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Because we didn't know the technical name of what we were looking for, we began our pursuit by browsing a broad category called Shareware in the non-commercial part of Yahoo!'s directory. There we found the Dave Central Shareware Archive for Windows and Linux shareware, freeware, demos, and betas. We noted the sunglasses icon ( ) that appears next to the listing, recommending it as a useful resource. We did a little clicking around at Dave Central, combining techniques of searching and browsing, till we found software that seemed to match your description. A search on "answering machine" turned up a few
irrelevant results and a product called IVM Telephone Answering and Call Management 1.00. Dave's description looked promising. It "acts as a telephone answering machine using a computer and a voice modem. Features include call-id logging, remote access and automatic on after hours." We went on to NCH Swift Sound and learned more about their Answering Attendant, which is described as a "call management application for Windows 95, 98 or NT computers." Not content with just one product, we took our search to Tucows, (The Ultimate Collection Of Winsock Software), a landmark archive of Windows-based
Internet software. Here, we searched unproductively on "call management," but retrieved better results with the keyword "telephone": A fax utility program called Call Center offers features that answer your phone with a personalized greeting and take a message, if your modem hardware supports voice telephony; while a modem dialer product called Active Phone Server apparently acts as an online answering machine with caller ID. Mind you, we haven't tested any of these products and can't vouch for their quality. However, they are clear evidence that, if you're feeling adventurous, there are innovative downloads to be found on the Web. Just remember, shareware products offer features so
new that the terms to describe them haven't been firmly established; it's helpful to use a variety of keywords when looking for specific capabilities.
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