Wrong Caller ID Info?

[BrentEaston]

Is it possible to program names that will represnet a clling number? For example, I have 4 lines in our corporate office. Our phone company we use, DOES NOT support "Caller ID Name." So, if I call someone my number will display on their caller ID, but my name shows up as "Out of Area," or "California Call." And, when we get calls inbound, we don't get the name.... only the number.

When I call one of our other offices (who's phone company does support caller ID name/number), my name always displays as "Out of Area." Except when I call on one specific number. If I call on that number, it shows up as someone's name, instead.

So, I was curious.... is there any place in a Merlin Legend system, that I could program a number and name representation? So, when an outside call comes in from that number, it will show as something I programmed into the Merlin?

Hope that makes sense. Thanks for your help.

 

[exsmogger]

I don't have much experience with this, but if you have a PRI circuit in your system you should be able to send any name and number you want. Otherwise you're out of luck.

Brian Cox

http://www.jandjcommunications.com

 

[Pepperz]

No. Sounds like you have CO trunks, and you can label them any way you wish, but you won't get a name translation from the Legend. If you are seeing the calling number, press the > sign on a display phone, and see if you get more. A lot of what you are after is specific to the service carrier.

Pepperz@charter.net

 

[jgideon]

I'm not aware of any way to say 'when I get a call from x number, display 'y' on my MLX display'. The only variation of that I've done is have a 'phantom' DID go to coverage, but that would require the outside party to dial a different number.

As far as when you call OUT.... the Calling Party Number is always (usually) sent forward with the call setup information, so the far end should always get the number. Name isn't usually 'sent' with the call, it is 'retrieved' by the receiving end through a database dip. Not all carriers are willing to share the information, or pay to retrieve it. For instance, when I get a call from SBC/Ameritech territory in Illinois to my home in Verizon (Bell Atlantic-PA), I DO get the 'number', but Verizon won't pay SBC to look up the name, so I get 'illinois call' or 'unknown name', depending on the areacode of the caller.

I suspect that the line that does show up a name is either 1) listed wrong with a telco somewhere 2) has a 'name' cached by the receiving telco or 3) your provider has the Calling Party Number for that line programmed wrong. You said that some other name shows up... is the number that shows up the correct number for that line? If you call the number that shows up, does it ring on that line?

 

[BrentEaston]

jgideon;

In answer to your question... Yes, a different name shows up, but the number is correct. And, when I call the number that displays, the number does ring back to our corporate office. The odd part (which I just discovered), is that we have 3 offices. Two of them have Merlin Legend systems (that are not connected in anyway ... aside from POTS lines). And in our corporate office, we use an Avaya Partner system. Anyway, if I call either of the two offices, my caller ID name shows up the same (no matter which office I call). I called my telephone company (the one that my corporate office uses for service) to see if they knew why that would be, and they said that their system does not realease the name information. So, no matter where I would call, it should always be "out of area" or something like that.

I believe the two other offices (the ones with the Merlin systems), use the same phone company as their provider. It might be that there is some type of info programmed into their switch. But aside from that, it is probably NOT a Merlin programming issue?

 

[jgideon]

OK, let's make sure I'm reading this correctly. You are in the corporate office placing calls using a partner with four analog lines. When you make outbound calls on three of the lines, the 'number' for the line is displayed on the far-end callerID box, but with 'name unavailable' or some other generic text. When you call out on the 4th line, the far end displays the correct 'number', but a 'name' that is not associated with your organization.

Assuming the above, in re-reading your post, I'm not sure if the 4th line 'funny name' displays for any place you call, or just to your two other offices.

If that name displays some place other than your two offices, I would suspect that the 'name' is being cached (wrongly) by some name-database-lookup-provider somewhere. If you'd like to try a call to me and see what shows up cross-country, give me your email in an obfuscated format and I can send you a rollover number at my house (I have name/number there, but only number here at work).

I do not believe there is anything in the Merlin that is causing it, but I could also be wrong.