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Residential Phone Service |
Phone Service in MIT Housing
MIT Residence Halls have a variety of telephone service options. The network capabilities of each building will determine the options available to that building. These options include analog telephone service, cell phones, Voice over IP (VoIP) and MIT personal SIP accounts. Each of these service types is described below and they are supported to varying degrees by MIT's Information Services and Technology Department.
MIT is in the process of phasing out its old telephone system in favor of providing future telephone service via VoIP. All new construction at MIT will have networks capable of supporting VoIP and will not be wired for analog telephone service. (This is the same direction that local telephone companies are going with their new "digital" options.)
Additionally, some buildings at MIT have an older network infrastructure that is being upgraded to current standards. These buildings include some of the MIT residence halls. As each network is upgraded, analog service is phased out and the new network is capable of supporting VoIP.
What does this mean for me?
Your phone service options depend on what building you live in. Most buildings have analog phones in them. In buildings without analog phones, you will automatically be issued a personal SIP account which will give you a phone number and voice mail box where people can leave messages that will be forwarded to your email.Definitions:
Analog service - Analog telephone sets are basic single line phones similar to one that you might have at home. Student phones are limited to placing calls on campus. Students in residence halls with analog phones have the option to upgrade the room phone to full phone service, which includes unlimited local calls and 800 numbers, access to long distance services, and voice mail. Details about upgrading this service is available from IS&T.Cell Phones - Most MIT students use personal cell phones as their main voice communication devices. MIT partners with several cellular providers for discounted pricing, and makes available a CellularLD program offering heavily discounted rates for long distance and international calling from any cell phone.
In addition we encourage you to report issues with cell phone coverage in MIT buildings to cell-feedback@mit.edu. While MIT does not directly control cell phone coverage in MIT buildings, MIT tries to work with cell phone providers to improve coverage on campus. MIT's newest residence hall, Ashdown House, has cell phone repeaters in it, providing good cell phone reception throughout most of the building.
Voice over IP (VoIP) - VoIP is a protocol that allows you to make voice calls over the Internet. MIT does not have a full-featured VoIP service offering for the residence halls. However, students are welcome to contract with any company that provides VoIP, sometimes known as "digital voice," for service. These companies provide a range of services from using their software and your computer as your telephone to providing you with a regular telephone that you connect to the network outlet in your room. These providers include Skype, AOL, Gizmo, AT&T Callvantage, Verizon Voicewing and Vonage.
MIT Personal SIP account - This program allows MIT users to experiment with advanced voice and video applications and services. MIT Housing is using it to provide students in buildings that do not have analog service in the bedrooms with a personal telephone number. This phone number can be called by anyone and will remain yours throughout your time at MIT. By default it will have voicemail on it that will send your messages to your MIT email account as sound attachments. MIT Housing recommends that you forward this number to your cell phone or other preferred telephone. In buildings without analog phone service, your Residential Computing Consultants will be able to help you with the basic configuration of voicemail messages and call forwarding. Please see MIT's Using Your Personal SIP Account for more information about how to forward this phone number and do other customizations. Other students may sign up for this service if they are interested.
Emergency Service - Dial 100 from any MIT Phone to reach the MIT Police. Dial 617-253-1212 from cell phones and non-MIT VoIP phones to reach the MIT Police. Any building without analog phone service in the building will have analog hall phones strategically placed throughout the building for use in the event of an emergency.
What is available in my building? Please see the chart below to determine what options are available to you in MIT Housing.
Residential Telephone Options Analog in Room VoIP capable SIP assigned by Housing Graduate Undergraduate no
Last Updated July 25, 2008
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