Yeah, it's funny. When I got here 17 years ago the old CBX had been in place five years. A status symbol then was a display phone. People liked the voicemail. Later everyone got a display phone, we changed our CO trunks to PRI and bought a magic box to convert calls to T1 and send the caller ID to the display. Then we started getting new employees who could not understand how to use voice mail and only wanted to know how to forward their number to their cell phone where they didn't have to remember a four digit password. They couldn't remember to put a 9 in front of the number but old CBX would send callers to voice mail. Then management started getting the word from headquarters that we needed to upgrade the phone system. No complaints about quality or the voice mail but it was just too old. Then HQ went VoIP on their system and insisted we must go VoIP. Then we were told what system to buy (old CBX couldn't do VoIP) to be like HQ. The fact that new system couldn't support the 500 or so OPX lines and modem lines didn't matter.
What used to be an additional duty moving phones around and about 1 real problem per month is now 10+ trouble calls per day. Most of them from young people. The older customers read and follow instructions. The young ones still want that easy button and to forward all calls to their smart phones. Yet they can't figure out how to put a 9 in to the forward number. New VoIP capable PBX sends a not available message to internal callers and something to the LEC PRI that prompts a "this number is not in service" message to external callers when users neglect to include the nine.
LoopyLou, your grandmother probably would read the e-mails and instructions and get along fine. It's the young ones and the upwardly mobile ones who can't seem to figure out how to work a phone. They are the one's talking about pitchforks and torches.
