A PBX for everyone with Asterisk@Home

Maybe I am being misinformed, but I have heard that setting up Asterisk can be a pain in the Asterisk for the newer user. Still, it does appear to have its advantages regardless.

Asterisk, the open source private branch exchange (PBX) from Digium, has the power to change the telecommunications industry in much the same way that Linux is changing the operating systems market, but it needed work to simplify installation and configuration. The recent release of Asterisk@Home, a Linux distribution dedicated to making Asterisk easy to install and configure, is a big help.

Asterisk is the brainchild of Mark Spencer, who was the original developer of GAIM, the popular multi-network open source instant messenger. After GAIM, Spencer started work on Asterisk. Its features rival those of expensive proprietary PBXes, which can cost from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Asterisk does VoIP, interfaces with traditional telecom hardware, and is available at no cost.

Until recently, there was a steep learning curve for deploying Asterisk. Hiring a consultant for installation and configuration would eat into the cost savings Asterisk offers. Asterisk@Home makes it possible for the technologically savvy to set up Asterisk on their own. [Read the rest]