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Table of Contents

Getting Started with Personal Assistant
What Personal Assistant Can Do for You
Logging in to Personal Assistant
Getting Started with Dialing and Conferencing
Getting Started with Voice Mail Browsing
Getting Started with Call Forwarding Rules

Getting Started with Personal Assistant


The following sections provide overviews and examples to get you comfortable and familiar with Cisco Personal Assistant.

Complete and detailed instructions about using the features introduced here can be found in other sections. Just click on the links in these sections to access more information.

What Personal Assistant Can Do for You

Cisco Personal Assistant functions like a virtual assistant, selectively forwarding and screening your incoming calls and helping you make outgoing calls.

There are two main jobs that the Cisco Personal Assistant can perform to help you manage your calls:

You can start using Personal Assistant through your telephone right away. For some dialog samples to get you started, see the following sections:

Set up your rules using the Personal Assistant user web interface. After you create your rules, you can activate them using the Personal Assistant user web interface or by voice commands over the phone.

For more information and examples of call forwarding and screening, see these sections:

Logging in to Personal Assistant

Logging in to Personal Assistant has two parts. You need to log in whenever you access the Personal Assistant user web interface. Sometimes, you will need to log in when you are talking to Personal Assistant over the phone.

For information on how to log in, see the following sections:

How To Log Into the Personal Assistant User Web Interface

The Personal Assistant user web interface is a web-based interface where you can configure Personal Assistant. You can access the interface through your web browser, using the URL that your system administrator provides.

The first time you log in, Personal Assistant opens the welcome page. The next time you log in, Personal Assistant opens the Rule-Sets page.

The password for Personal Assistant is the same password that you have established with your Cisco CallManager system. If you are unsure of your password or want to change it, contact your system administrator.

How to Log in Over the Phone

Personal Assistant protects your personal information and call forwarding instructions. To safeguard you, Personal Assistant asks for a Personal Identification Number (PIN) when you try to access or change this information.

You need to provide your PIN over the phone when you do the following:

The PIN that you need to give Personal Assistant is the same PIN that you have established with your Cisco CallManager system. If you are unsure about what your Cisco CallManager PIN is, contact your system administrator.

When Personal Assistant asks for your PIN depends on where you are calling from.

For details about when Personal Assistant asks for your PIN, see the "Logging in When You Call Personal Assistant" section.

Getting Started with Dialing and Conferencing

Personal Assistant can help you place and receive calls, and can set up conference calls using your spoken instructions.

You can start using spoken instructions with Personal Assistant right away. For help and keywords, see these sections:

Dialing and Conferencing Sample Dialogs

The following are dialing and conferencing sample dialogs. These examples assume that you have already dialed Personal Assistant and are in the Personal Assistant main menu:

Getting Started with Directory Dialing and Call Screening

PA: (Plays your recorded name), welcome to Personal Assistant. What would you like to do? Say the full name of the person you are trying to call.

You: Mr. Knightly.

PA: I'm sorry, I didn't understand. Say the person's first and last name.

You: George Knightly.

PA: (Plays a recording of Mr. Knightly saying his name...) Is this correct?

You: Yes.

PA: Dialing. (After a few rings...) Please wait while locating.

Knightly: Hello. I knew it was you.

You: Hi. Did you set up PA to screen your calls? Before you answered, Personal Assistant told me, "Please wait while locating."

Knightly: Yeah, it's really easy. You just go to the Rule page in the Personal Assistant web site and select call screening.

You: So what does it sound like on your side?

Knightly: As soon as I pick up, PA says, "You have a call from—" and plays your recording of your name. Then PA says, "Press 1 to connect or press 2 to transfer the call to a different number. And there's an option to send the call to voice mail."

You: That'll come in handy.

Knightly: And you can apply call screening to all your calls or to specific callers, depending on how you set up your rules.

You: So I should take this personally?

Knightly: Sure. I didn't want to miss your call.

Tips
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Getting Started with Conferencing

You: Listen, Knightly, I'm calling to see if you want to have a quick conversation with Anne about the Randalls project. Is this a good time for me to set up a phone conference?

Knightly: Works for me.

You: I'll get PA to call you right back.

PA: (After you hang up and redial...) Welcome to —

You: (Interrupting...) Conference.

PA: Say the name of the person you would like to conference in.

You: George Knightly.

PA: Adding George Knightly to the conference list from the corporate directory. Would you like to add more people to the conference?

You: Yes.

PA: Say the name of the person you would like to conference in.

You: Anne Weston.

PA: Adding Anne Weston to the conference list from the corporate directory. Would you like to add more people to the conference?

You: No.

PA: Please wait while I set up the conference... Successfully conferenced in George Knightly....Successfully conferenced in Anne Weston. Conferencing done.

Anne: Hi guys.

George: Hello, Anne.

You: George and I have some great news to share with you.

Tips
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Getting Started with the Personal Address Book

Use the personal address book to store names and numbers for people who are not included in the corporate directory, including customers, suppliers, family members and friends. Additionally, use the personal address book as a place to store copied entries from the corporate directory in order to personalize those entries. For example, you might want to use a nickname for a colleague whose full name is hard to pronounce, or you might want to add a home phone number for a colleague whose home number is not listed in the corporate directory. For instructions, see the "Copying a Corporate Directory Entry Into Your Personal Address Book" section.

Here is an example dialog with callers from your personal address book.

PA: (Plays your recorded name), welcome to Personal Assistant. What would you like to do?

You: Get me "Boss" on his pager.

PA: Paging Bernard Woodhouse from the corporate directory. Is this correct?

You: Yes.

PA: Page sent. What else would you like to do?

You: Call "fund-raisers."

PA: Calling...555-7755 from the personal address book.

Called party: Thanks for calling Bates & Bates. How may I help you?...

You: (After you have ended your call with Bates & Bates and speed-dialed Personal Assistant...) Call Dad on his home phone.

PA: Calling...555-9989....from the personal address book.

Dad: Hello?

You: Hi, Dad. I thought you might be home.

Related Topics

Getting Started with Voice Mail Browsing

Assuming that you already have access to Cisco Unity voice mail and have enrolled with Unity, you can start using Personal Assistant right away to browse your messages and send new messages.

If you are unsure about whether or not you have Cisco Unity voice mail, contact your system administrator.

You can browse your voice mail using a few keywords. For help with these, see the following sections:

Logging in to Voice Mail

To get started with voice mail browsing, simply dial Cisco Personal Assistant and say "Voice mail" or "Check messages." The next steps vary depending on the phone from which you are calling.For detailed information about the steps you take to log in to your voice mail, see the "Logging in When You Call Personal Assistant" section.

The PIN that you need to give Personal Assistant is the same PIN that you have established with your Cisco CallManager system. You can enter the PIN on your telephone key pad or you can say the numbers aloud. If Personal Assistant does not understand you after you say your PIN after several times, you will be transferred to your Unity voice mail system and asked for your Unity password.

The following sections provide examples and valid commands to help you get started with voice mail:

Voice Mail Browsing Sample Dialogs

The following are sample dialogs for voice mail browsing using Personal Assistant:

Listening to an Urgent Message and Calling Back

In this dialog, you dial Personal Assistant from your colleague's extension.

PA: (Plays your colleague's recorded name), welcome to Personal Assistant. What would you like to do?

You: Log in.

PA: Please enter your extension or say your first and last name to access Personal Assistant.

You: (Saying your extension...) 9-8-7-6. (You can also enter your extension using your touch tone key pad.)

PA: Please enter your PIN.

You: (Enter your PIN on your touch tone key pad.)

PA: (Plays your recorded name), welcome to Personal Assistant. What would you like to do?

You: Voice mail.

PA: Welcome to voice mail. You have three new and two old messages. One message marked urgent. Voice mail main menu. What would you like to do?

You: List headers.

PA: Message one, marked urgent. Received today, at 7:45 a.m., 5 seconds, from George Knightly. What would you like to do next?

You: Read it.

PA: "Big news on the Randalls project. Woodhouse came on board last night. Give me a call as soon as you can."

PA: What would you like to do next?

You: Call back.

PA: (Dials the number for George Knightly.)

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Summarizing Messages, Listing Headers, Replaying a Message, Pausing Personal Assistant

In this dialog, you call Personal Assistant from your desk phone.

PA: (Plays your recorded name), welcome to Personal Assistant. What would you like to do?

You: Voice mail.

PA: Please enter your PIN.

You: (Enter your PIN on your touch tone key pad.)

PA: Welcome to voice mail. You have two new and three old messages. One message marked urgent. Voice mail main menu. What would you like to do?

You: Summarize messages.

PA: You have 1 new message and 2 saved messages from George Knightly. One message marked urgent. You have 1 new message and 1 saved message from an outside caller.

What would you like to do next?

You: List headers.

PA: Message one received today, 8:56 a.m., 44 seconds, from extension 1-2-3-4-5.

What would you like to do next?

You: Next message.

PA: Message two received today—

You: (Interrupting...) Skip to last message.

PA: Message five received January fourteenth at 5:33 p.m., 8 seconds, from an outside caller. What would you like to do next?

You: Read it.

PA: Dad, here. Your sister's coming in next Saturday at noon. Flight 8990 on United. Or, no, flight 8909. Let me know if you can pick her up.

PA: What would you like to do next?

You: Repeat.

PA: "Dad, here...." What would you like to do next?

You: (Press the Hold button on your telephone.)

Tips
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Returning to the Main Menu, Forwarding and Deleting a Message

You: (Press the Hold or Resume button on your telephone to take Personal Assistant off of hold.)

PA: What else would you like to do?

You: Cancel.

PA: Voice mail main menu. What would you like to do?

You: How many messages do I have?

PA: You have two new and three old messages. One message marked urgent.

You: Read messages from George Knightly.

PA: You have one old message from George Knightly. Message 1, marked urgent, received today at 7:45 a.m. "Big news...." What would you like to do next?

You: Forward it.

PA: Please say the full name of the person you want to forward the message to.

You: Anne Weston.

PA: (Plays a recording of Anne saying her name...) Is this correct?

You: Yes.

PA: Do you want to include an introduction to this message?

You: Yes.

PA: Please record your message after the tone. Press the pound key when finished.

You: Anne, here's the good news from George. I thought you'd want to hear it straight from the source. (Press #.)

PA: To send this message, please press or say 1. To listen to your recording—

You: Send it.

PA: Message sent. Back to the message you were listening to. You are at message one. What would you like to do next?

You: Delete message.

PA: Message deleted.What would you like to do next?

Tips
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Getting Started with Call Forwarding Rules

The following sections can help you set up rules for Personal Assistant:

Four Ways Personal Assistant Can Forward Calls

Because Personal Assistant can selectively forward your incoming calls to other telephone numbers, an incoming call to your desk phone can be routed to your mobile phone, your home phone, or another phone, based on the rules you create. An incoming call can even generate an email-based page.

The details of your rules are unique to you, but rule combinations fall into four basic categories:

A destination is a phone number or email-based paging address where you want Personal Assistant to send your calls. Setting up rules can be as simple as choosing a destination. If you want Personal Assistant to send all of your incoming calls to your voice mail, for example, set up this destination in a rule.

Related Topics

Where Do You Set Up Call Forwarding Rules?

Set up rules in the Cisco Personal Assistant user web interface. Access the interface through your web browser, using the URL supplied by your system administrator.

Once you have set up your rules, you can activate them by using the Personal Assistant user web interface or by using spoken commands that you give over the phone.

You can also set up a special call forwarding rule-set called "Follow Me" over your telephone. Using Follow Me, you can temporarily redirect calls to a different phone, for example, you can direct calls to your hotel room phone while on a business trip.

For step-by-step instructions for how to set up the Follow Me rule-set, see "Using Follow Me" section.

Related Topics

Getting Started from the Welcome Page

Use the welcome page as a point of departure to explore the Personal Assistant user web interface and return to the welcome page as a way to orient yourself in the interface.

From the welcome page, get started by clicking one of the four action buttons, as shown in Figure 1-1.


Figure 1-1   The Personal Assistant Welcome Page


Each of the action buttons represents a sub-step toward the larger action of creating a new call-forwarding and screening rule. For example, click the Create Callers button to go to the Address Book page and the Caller Groups page. You can return to the welcome page whenever you want to explore a new action.

The welcome page is easy to find: The first time you log in to the Personal Assistant user web interface, the welcome page opens automatically. The next time you log in to the interface, you can return to the welcome page by choosing Help>Welcome to Personal Assistant from the main menu.


Note   You can access user web interface pages through the main menu, as well as through the welcome page. The main menu is displayed at the top of each page in the interface.

Most of the interface pages are stocked with sample information. For more information on how to use or delete samples, see the "Getting Started with Sample Information from the Welcome Page" section.

Related Topics

Getting Started with Sample Information from the Welcome Page

You can find sample information on most of the pages in the Personal Assistant user web interface. For example, the address book page contains two sample address book entries and the Destination page contains a few sample destinations.

Click around and explore the sample information. It might be particularly helpful to explore sample information in conjunction with the welcome page, where action buttons link to corresponding interface pages. See the "Getting Started from the Welcome Page" section for more information on action buttons.

As you explore sample information in the interface, be sure to open the Rule-Sets page and look at the sample rule-set. From the welcome page, click the Create Rules action button, or open the page from the main menu by choosing Rules>Rule-Sets. Once you get to the Rule-Sets page, open the sample rule-set by clicking the plus icon, then click the text of one of the two sample rules contained inside. Clicking on the text of a rule takes you to the Rule page where setup information for that particular rule is stored. Notice how sample information stored in other pages shows up in the Rules page. Use this sample rule as a model for setting up your own rules.

You can modify or delete samples when you are no longer using them. Or you can ignore them; because the samples are inert, they will not interfere with new information that you enter.

For deletion instructions, see the "Deleting Sample Information" section.

Deleting Sample Information

To remove samples, delete the sample rule-set before deleting other sample information. Similarly, you must delete a destination group before you can delete destinations within that group. Follow these steps:

Procedure

Step 1   Open the Rule-Sets page in one of the following ways:

Step 2  
Click the delete icon to the right of the "Sample Ruleset."

Personal Assistant asks you to verify your deletion request.

Step 3   Click OK.

The rule-set is deleted. If you want to delete more samples, start by deleting the destination group, then delete the sample information stored in other pages.


Note    If you have "activated" your sample rule-set, Personal Assistant displays an error message when you try to delete. De-activate the rule-set by returning to the Activate Rule-Sets page and choosing "click to select" in place of the rule-set name. Then click Update.



Related Topics

Quick Setup Example of a Call Forwarding Rule

This example illustrates how to set up a rule telling Personal Assistant to send your incoming calls from a single caller to a single destination. After following this example, you can create more advanced rule combinations. For an overview of rule combinations, see the "Four Ways Personal Assistant Can Forward Calls" section.

Procedure

Step 1   Log in to access Personal Assistant.

The first time you log in, Personal Assistant opens the welcome page. The next time you log in, Personal Assistant opens the Rule-Sets page.


Note    The password for Personal Assistant is the same password that you have established with your Cisco CallManager system. If you are unsure of your password or want to change it, contact your system administrator.

Step 2   Before you set up rules for Personal Assistant to follow, consider whose phone calls you want to forward, to what number, and on what schedule.

For this example, you want calls from Harriet Smith forwarded to your mobile phone while you are on vacation. Now you need to create a rule-set and add a rule to it.

Step 3   If the Rule-Sets page is not already open, choose Rules>Rule-Sets from the main menu.

A rule-set is a container that holds one or more rules. You need to name a rule-set before you can add rules to it.

Step 4   In the Rule-Set page, enter a name for your rule-set in the Rule-Set Name field. For example, "Work Week" might contain rules that you want to apply to Monday-Friday calls. In this example, you name your rule-set "vacation" (Figure 1-2).


Figure 1-2   Creating a Rule-Set


Step 5   Click the Add Rule-Set button.

Personal Assistant creates your new rule-set and adds it to the list of rule-sets.

Step 6   Now you need to add a rule to the rule-set. A rule is simply an instruction that you want Personal Assistant to follow. Access the rule page by clicking the Add Rule button to the right of your new rule-set (Figure 1-3).


Figure 1-3   Adding a Rule


Personal Assistant opens the Rule page.

Step 7   In the Rule page, you can tell Personal Assistant that you want to specify a caller, Harriet Smith, by name. Figure 1-4 shows the Caller Identity section of the Rule page.


Figure 1-4   Caller Identity Section


Step 8   Use the first drop-down arrow to choose "is one of."

Step 9   Click the Select Callers button.

Personal Assistant displays the Caller Search window, as shown in Figure 1-5. Use this window to search for the caller you want the rule to apply to.

Step 10   Use the drop-down arrow to choose either Corporate Directory or Address Book. In this case, you want to search the corporate directory.


Figure 1-5   Searching for a Caller


Step 11   Enter the first or last name of the caller you are looking for and click Search. You can also search by partial name.

Personal Assistant displays the results of your search, as shown in Figure 1-6.


Figure 1-6   Search Results


Step 12   Select a caller from the list by checking the Select check box to right of the caller's name. Click Add Selected and Close.

Personal Assistant adds the caller you selected to the rule you are building and takes you back to the Rule page, as shown in Figure 1-7.


Figure 1-7   Identifying a Caller


Step 13   In the Rule page, use the Destination drop-down arrow to choose a destination. In this example, choose your mobile phone, as shown in Figure 1-8.


Figure 1-8   Selecting a Destination


Step 14   Choose a call screening option from the last drop-down menu. When you receive an incoming call that has been screened, Personal Assistant tells the caller to hold while identifying the caller for you. Personal Assistant then asks you to accept the call, forward the call to a different number, or send the call to voice mail. For more information, see the "Using the Call Screening Feature" section.

Step 15   Click Preview Now. Personal Assistant provides a text version of your new rule, as shown in Figure 1-9.


Figure 1-9   Previewing a Rule


Step 16   If you are satisfied with the rule, click the Save button. Or, you can make changes on the Rule page and preview the rule again.

After you click Save, Personal Assistant returns to the Rule-Set page, as shown in Figure 1-10. Notice that the new "vacation" rule-set is listed as "Inactive." Your rule-set cannot apply to your calls unless you activate it.


Figure 1-10   Updated Rule-Set


Step 17   Choose Rules>Activate Rule-Sets from the main menu.

Personal Assistant opens the Activate Rule-Sets page.

Step 18   Specify the day or date when you want your rule to take effect. In this case, you want to schedule the rule from December 5 - December 12, as shown in Figure 1-11.


Figure 1-11   Activating a Rule-Set over a Range of Days


Step 19   Using the From and To drop-down menus, select a date range for each rule-set that you want to schedule.

Step 20   Choose the rule-set you want to schedule from the Rule-Set menu.

Step 21   Click the Update button.

Step 22   Choose Rules>Rule-Set from the main menu.

Personal Assistant opens the Rule-Set page. Notice that your rule-set is now scheduled, as shown in Figure 1-12.


Figure 1-12   Your Scheduled Rule-Set


Your Personal Assistant now has a rule to follow and a schedule for applying the rule to your incoming calls.

You can add more rules to the vacation rule-set or change the rule you have already created. You can also build a second rule-set and activate it according to a different schedule.

Finally, you can put your new rule to the test with a special testing tool. For instructions, see the "How to Use the Call Forwarding Rule Tester" section.



Tips

Related Topics

The "Quick Setup Example of a Call Forwarding Rule" section and the "Activating Rule-Sets by Voice Commands" section are designed to provide a basic overview of the rule-building process; for more tips and detailed instructions, see any of these related topics:

Activating Rule-Sets by Voice Commands

Besides using the Personal Assistant user web interface, you can activate a rule-set by using spoken commands over the phone. For detailed information, see the "Activating a Rule-Set" section.

The following dialog shows how to activate the "vacation" rule-set from the "Quick Setup Example of a Call Forwarding Rule" section by using voice commands.


Note   This example assumes that you want to activate the rule-set for a time you have not already scheduled in the user web interface. The example also assumes that you have already dialed Personal Assistant and are in the Personal Assistant main menu.

PA: (Plays your recorded name), welcome to Personal Assistant. What would you like to do?

You: Rule-sets.

PA: Please enter your PIN.

You: (Enter your PIN on your touch tone key pad.)

PA: Please say activate or de-activate to schedule your rule-sets.

You: Activate.

PA: Please say the name of the rule-set you want to activate.

You: Vacation.

PA: Vacation. Is this correct?

You: Yes.

PA: Please say the duration for which you would like the rule-set to be active.

You: Eight days.

PA: Eight days. Is this correct?

You: Yes.

PA: Activating rule-set. Personal Assistant main menu.

Tips

Using a Follow Me Rule to Temporarily Change the Destination for All Calls

Follow Me is a special rule-set that you create and activate over the phone. Follow Me tells Personal Assistant to forward all of your incoming calls to a desired destination for a specified period of time. For example, you can forward all calls to your hotel phone while travelling, or to your mobile phone when you are out of the office. For more information, see "Using Follow Me" section.

The following is a sample dialog for creating a Follow Me rule-set. This example assumes that you have already dialed Personal Assistant and are in the Personal Assistant main menu, and that you have a destination called "Home Phone".

PA: (Plays your recorded name), welcome to Personal Assistant. What would you like to do?

You: Follow me at Home Phone.

PA: Please enter your PIN.

You: (Enter your PIN on your touch tone key pad.)

PA: Home Phone. Is this correct?

You: Yes.

PA: Please say the duration for which you want to forward your calls.

You: Three days.

PA: Setting Follow Me for three days. Is this correct?

You: Yes.

PA: Setting Follow Me. Personal Assistant main menu.

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Posted: Fri Apr 25 22:12:46 PDT 2003
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