Mixing Tone and Pulse Dialing in Cardfile and Terminal

 Last reviewed: November 22, 1994
Article ID: Q92900
The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Windows operating system versions 3.0, 3.0a, 3.1, 3.11

SUMMARY

It is possible to mix the touch-tone and pulse-dialing capabilities of a Hayes or Hayes-compatible modem when you dial from Windows Cardfile or Windows Terminal. This capability allows the modem to mix dialing methods when dialing a series of numbers.

MORE INFORMATION

Hayes and Hayes-compatible modems use the "AT" command set. "AT" is used to get the attention of the modem. The command for tone dialing is "ATDT" followed by a phone number. ("DT" indicates tone dial.) The command for pulse dialing is "ATDP" followed by the phone number. ("DP" indicates pulse dial.)

Some phone systems are restricted to pulse dialing until an outside line or other phone service is reached by dialing a prefix, such as "9." Because tone dialing is faster than pulse dialing, you may want to dial the prefix in pulse and then switch to tone dialing for the actual phone number.

Listed below are the steps to mix tone and pulse dialing with Cardfile and Terminal.

Cardfile

Cardfile allows you to call another party without actually connecting the two modems. To dial a number with Cardfile, use the following steps:

  1. From the Card menu, choose Autodial; or, press F5.

  2. In the Autodial dialog box, choose the Setup button, and select either the Tone or Pulse option button to set the default dialing method. To pulse dial a prefix and then tone dial the phone number, select the Pulse option as the default.

  3. Select the Use Prefix check box.

  4. To dial a prefix in pulse, type the proper number in the Prefix box and add the letter "T." ("T" instructs the modem to switch to tone dialing after it pulse dials the prefix.)

    Some phone systems may require a pause between dialing the prefix and dialing the phone number. In such cases, add a comma to the prefix to allow a two-second pause before the phone number is dialed.

For example, you might use the following settings in the Autodial dialog box: 

   Number: 555-1212
   Prefix:     9T,
Note: A modem that is set for tone dialing can be switched to pulse dialing by inserting a "P" instead of a "T." In Cardfile, the "P" or "T" can also be inserted in the phone number, rather than the prefix.

For more information about using automatic dialing with Cardfile, refer to pages 446-447 of the "Microsoft Windows User's Guide" for version 3.1.

Terminal

Terminal can connect two modems together and enable two computers to exchange information. The settings to switch dialing modes in Terminal are similar to those in Cardfile. To modify the settings in Terminal, use the following steps:

  1. From the Settings menu, choose Modem Commands. The default prefix for tone dialing is "ATDT." Change it to "ATDP" to make Terminal use pulse dialing.

  2. To make Terminal pulse dial the prefix "9," pause before tone dialing a phone number, type the following in the Dial field of the Modem Commands dialog box: 

          ATDP9,T

    Change this setting to "ATDT9,P" to make Terminal first use tone dialing and then switch to pulse dialing.

Note: In Terminal, the "P" and "T" commands cannot be entered with the phone number because Terminal converts any letters in the phone number to numbers. These commands must be placed in the prefix.

For more information about using Terminal, refer to Chapter 11 of the "Microsoft Windows User's Guide" for version 3.1.

KBCategory: kbhw kbtool kb3rdparty
KBSubcategory: wi31
Additional reference words: 3.00 3.00a 3.10 3.11

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Last reviewed: November 22, 1994
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