Desktop Softphone – Quick Reference Guide

This guide provides an overview of the most commonly used features of the Public Internet Desktop Softphone for Windows and Mac.

Signing In

1. Open the softphone.
2. Enter the Username and Password provided by Public Internet.
3. Press Login. Once connected, you’ll hear a short welcome tone and the keypad appears.

Tip: The softphone remembers your details and signs you in automatically each time it starts. If sign-in fails, a message beneath the logo explains why – for example, “Username or password not recognised” or “Couldn’t reach the server”.

Note: The first time you make or answer a call, your computer may ask for permission to use your microphone. Select Allow, otherwise the other party won’t be able to hear you.

Understanding the Display

The softphone window is made up of three main areas:

• Status Bar: Along the top, showing your extension number and name, a status dot, and the Do Not Disturb (moon) button.
• Main Area: The centre of the window, showing the keypad, the call in progress, your call history or your settings.
• Menu Bar: Along the bottom, with buttons for Keypad, History, Voicemail and Settings.

The status dot next to your name shows your connection at a glance:

• Green: Connected and ready to make and receive calls.
• Red: Do Not Disturb is on.
• Spinning outline: Reconnecting.
• Empty outline: Not connected.

Tip: The softphone reconnects automatically when your computer wakes from sleep or your internet connection comes back, so there’s no need to restart it.

Making Calls

Using the Keypad

1. Click Keypad in the menu bar, if it isn’t already showing.
2. Click the numbers on the dial pad to enter the phone number.
3. Click the green Call button.

Using Your Keyboard

1. With the keypad showing, type the phone number.
2. Press Enter to call.

Press Backspace to delete the last digit, or Escape to clear the number and start again.

Pasting a Number

1. Copy a phone number from an email, website or document.
2. With the keypad showing, press Ctrl+V (Windows) or Cmd+V (Mac), or right-click the number field and select Paste.
3. Click the green Call button.

Tip: Spaces, brackets and dashes are removed automatically, so a number written as +44 (0)20 7946 0958 dials correctly. UK numbers can be dialled as normal starting with 0, and international numbers can start with either + or 00.

If a call can’t be connected, a Call Failed message explains why – for example, “Line is busy” or “Number not found”.

Redialling a Number

1. Click Keypad in the menu bar and make sure no number is entered.
2. Click the green Call button. The last number you dialled appears.
3. Click Call again, or press Enter, to dial it.

Tip: Calls to voicemail aren’t remembered as your last number, so checking your messages won’t affect redial.

Answering Calls

When a call comes in, the softphone rings, shows the caller’s name or number, and displays a desktop notification. The softphone window also comes to the front so you don’t miss it. You then have several options:

• Click the green Answer button, or press Enter, to take the call.
• Click the red Decline button, or press Escape, to reject the call.
• Click the desktop notification to bring the softphone to the front if it’s hidden.

If the caller’s name is shown, hover over it to see their number.

Note: The softphone handles one incoming call at a time. If someone calls while you’re already on a call, they’ll hear a busy tone or see a busy message, depending on their device.

Ending Calls

You can end a call in several ways:

• Click the red Hang Up button.
• Press Enter or Escape on your keyboard.

Tip: Because Enter and Escape both end the call, take care when switching between the softphone and other applications during a call.

Putting Calls on Hold

1. During an active call, click the Hold button.
2. The Hold button flashes and the caller will hear hold music.
3. To return to the call, click Hold again.

Muting a Call

1. During an active call, click the Mute button.
2. The Mute button flashes and the other party can no longer hear you.
3. Click Mute again to unmute.

Using the Keypad During a Call

If you need to enter digits during a call – for example, to choose an option from an automated menu or enter a PIN:

1. Click the Keypad button on the call screen.
2. Click the digits you need.
3. Click Hide to return to the call controls.

Tip: You can also type digits on your keyboard at any point during a call without opening the keypad.

Making a Second Call

1. During an active call, click the Add button. Your first call is automatically placed on hold.
2. Dial the second number and click the green Call button.
3. A green bar showing On Hold and the name or number of your first caller appears just below the status bar.

To move between the two calls, click Swap Calls or click the On Hold bar. The call you switch away from is placed on hold automatically.

Transferring Calls

The softphone uses Consultative Transfer, so you’ll always speak to the recipient before handing the call over.

1. During an active call, click the Add button. Your caller is placed on hold.
2. Dial the number you want to transfer to and click the green Call button.
3. Wait for the person to answer and announce the call.
4. Click the Transfer button to connect them. You’ll hear a short confirmation tone and both calls will end on your softphone.

Tip: The Transfer button only becomes available once the person you’re transferring to has answered. If they can’t take the call, hang up on them and click the On Hold bar to return to your caller.

Transferring to a Colleague from the Contacts Panel

If you use the Contacts panel (see Using the Contacts Panel below), you can start a transfer straight from it:

1. During an active call, click the colleague or contact you want to transfer to.
2. Select Transfer. Your caller is placed on hold and the colleague is called.
3. When they answer, announce the call and click the Transfer button.

Choosing Your Caller ID

If your account has more than one number, you can choose which one is shown to the people you call. If you only have one number, these options won’t appear.

Setting Your Default Caller ID

1. Click Settings in the menu bar, then select System.
2. Select My Caller ID.
3. Select the number you want to present. A tick shows the number currently in use.

Changing Your Caller ID for a Single Call

1. On the keypad screen, click the caller ID shown just below the number field.
2. Select the number you want to present.
3. Dial and make your call as normal.

Tip: A caller ID chosen this way applies to that one call only. Once the call ends, the softphone goes back to your default caller ID.

Do Not Disturb

Do Not Disturb (DND) stops incoming calls from ringing your softphone.

1. Click the Do Not Disturb (moon) button in the top right of the window.
2. The moon icon pulses and the status dot next to your name turns red to confirm it’s on.
3. To turn DND off again, click the moon button a second time.

Tip: DND is synced on our platform, so turning it on or off on the softphone also applies to your other devices, such as a desk phone on the same extension. It also stays on if you close and reopen the softphone.

Viewing Recent Calls

1. Click History in the menu bar.
2. Your most recent calls are listed newest first. An icon shows whether each call was outbound, inbound or missed, and missed or failed calls are shown in red.
3. Hover over a call to see more detail, including the date, time, duration and number.
4. Click a call to dial that number back.

Tip: A number on the History button shows how many calls you’ve missed since you last looked. On a Mac, the count also appears on the softphone’s Dock icon. The count clears as soon as you open History.

Listening to Voicemail

1. Click Voicemail in the menu bar.
2. The softphone calls your voicemail box.
3. Follow the voice prompts, typing digits on your keyboard or using the Keypad button to choose options.

Tip: A number on the Voicemail button shows how many new messages are waiting for you.

Using the Contacts Panel

The Contacts panel opens alongside the keypad and lists your colleagues and saved contacts, so you can see who’s available and call them with a single click. It’s currently a Beta feature, so you’ll need to switch it on first.

Turning On the Contacts Panel

1. Click Settings in the menu bar, then select Features.
2. Turn on User Presence.
3. A people icon appears in the top left of the window. Click it to open or close the panel.

Seeing Who’s Available

The Users tab lists your colleagues, each with a coloured dot showing their current status:

• Green – available.
• Red – on a call.
• Flashing – their phone is ringing.
• Grey – offline.

Click a colleague to call them, or type in the Search box to find someone by name or extension number. Hover over a colleague to see their extension and status.

Tip: Drag and drop colleagues to put the people you call most at the top of the list. Your order is saved for next time.

Managing Contacts

Viewing Your Contacts

1. Open the Contacts panel (see above).
2. Click the Contacts tab at the bottom of the panel.

Contacts are shown in two groups:

• System – shared contacts set up for your organisation. These are marked with a padlock and can’t be changed.
• Personal – contacts you’ve added yourself.

To find a contact quickly, type a name or number in the Search box at the top of the panel.

Adding a New Contact

1. Go to the Contacts tab (as above).
2. Click + Add Contact.
3. Enter the contact’s Name and Number.
4. Click Save, or press Enter. To discard the contact, click Cancel or press Escape.

Editing or Deleting a Contact

1. Hover over a personal contact to show the edit and delete buttons.
2. Click the pencil icon to change the contact’s details, then click Save.
3. Click the bin icon to delete the contact.

Tip: Contacts are deleted straight away without asking you to confirm, so double-check you’ve picked the right one before clicking the bin icon.

Seeing Which Number Was Called

If more than one of your organisation’s numbers rings your softphone – for example, your direct line and a sales number – the Called Number feature shows which one the caller dialled, so you can answer the call appropriately. This is currently a Beta feature.

1. Click Settings in the menu bar, then select Features.
2. Turn on Called Number.

The number that was dialled then appears beneath the caller’s name on the incoming call screen and during the call, in the desktop notification, and when you hover over a call in History.

Tip: The called number is recorded even while this setting is off, so when you turn it on you’ll also see it for calls already in your History.

Calling from Links

The softphone can dial phone number links found on websites, in emails and in business applications.

1. Click a phone number link.
2. If your computer or web browser asks which app to use, choose Desktop Phone.
3. The softphone asks you to confirm the number. Click Call to dial it.

Tip: If you’d rather links dial straight away, go to Settings > Notifications and turn off Confirm Call Links. If the softphone is still starting up when you click a link, it will offer to make the call as soon as it’s connected.

Opening Your CRM

If your softphone has been linked to your CRM or customer database, it can open the caller’s record in your web browser.

• During a call, click the Open CRM button to look up the other party.
• With CRM Auto Open turned on in Settings > System, the caller’s record opens automatically whenever you answer a call from an external number. Turn it off if you’d rather only open records when you need them.

Note: The Open CRM button and CRM Auto Open setting are only available once a CRM link has been set up on your account. Contact our support team if you’d like to use this feature.

Adjusting Your Settings

Click Settings in the menu bar to see the options below. Click the arrow at the top of a settings page to go back.

Notifications

• Call Notifications – show a desktop notification when a call comes in.
• Show Missed Calls – show the missed call count on the History button.
• Open on Inbound Calls – bring the softphone to the front when a call comes in.
• Confirm Call Links – ask before dialling a number from a link.

System

• My Caller ID – choose your default outgoing number (only shown if you have more than one).
• Always on Top – keep the softphone window above all your other windows.
• Open at Login – start the softphone automatically in the background when you log in to your computer.
• Beta Updates – receive early access updates before they’re released to everyone.
• Confirm Quit – ask before quitting the softphone.
• CRM Auto Open – open your CRM automatically when you answer a call.
• Support Diagnostics – show call quality statistics for troubleshooting.

Features

• User Presence – show the Contacts panel with your colleagues’ status.
• Called Number – show which of your numbers an inbound caller dialled.

Tip: Not sure what a setting does? Hover over it for a moment to see a short description.

Viewing Call Quality Statistics

If you’re having problems with call quality, our support team may ask you to turn on Support Diagnostics so you can share technical details about your calls with them.

1. Go to Settings > System and turn on Support Diagnostics.
2. During a call, click the Call Stats button to see live call quality information.
3. Click Copy to Clipboard and paste the details into your email to our support team.

To see the statistics for a call that has already ended, go to History and click the information (i) button next to the call.

Keyboard Shortcuts

• 0–9, * and # – enter a number, or send tones during a call.
• Enter – make a call, answer an incoming call, or end the current call.
• Escape – clear the number, decline an incoming call, or end the current call.
• Backspace – delete the last digit.
• Ctrl+V (Windows) or Cmd+V (Mac) – paste a number.

When a pop-up message is showing, press Enter to accept it or Escape to close it.

Closing and Quitting the Softphone

Closing the softphone window doesn’t quit the app. It carries on running in the background so you can still receive calls, and the window reappears automatically when a call comes in.

• Windows: The softphone icon sits in the system tray, next to the clock. Click the icon to reopen the window, or right-click it for more options.
• Mac: The softphone icon sits in the menu bar at the top of the screen. Click the icon and select Show Application to reopen the window.

To quit completely, open the softphone icon’s menu, select Quit Desktop Phone, then select Yes to confirm.

Tip: On Windows, if you can’t see the softphone icon in the system tray, click the small up arrow next to the clock to show hidden icons.

Note: Once you quit, you won’t receive calls on the softphone until you open it again.

Updating the Softphone

The softphone checks for updates automatically and lets you know when a new version is available.

1. When the Update Available message appears, click Update to download it now, or Later to be reminded in 24 hours.
2. A progress bar shows the download. Click Cancel if you need to stop it.
3. When the Update Ready message appears, click Restart to install the new version.

Note: You can’t make or receive calls while an update is downloading, so choose Later if you’re expecting a call.

Tip: To check for an update yourself, click Settings in the menu bar and select Check for Updates. This option isn’t available during a call.

Signing Out

1. Click Settings in the menu bar.
2. Select Logout.
3. Select Sign Out to confirm.

Tip: The softphone remembers your username, so you’ll only need to enter your password to sign back in. You won’t receive calls on the softphone while you’re signed out.