Gadgetopia

I read the description and didn't find it too confusing:

1. You give Google your phone number
2. Google calls your phone number
3. You pick up your phone (because it's ringing)
4. Google also calls the number of the advertiser, on your behalf
5. You hear a tone indicating that the advertiser's phone is ringing on the other end (this is the "you hear ringing on the other end" part)
6. You talk to the advertiser through the connection Google set up for you

This may mean that Google is still inbetween as the call takes place. I'm not too sure about that.

I set up this same system in our office with our Asterisk VoIP system. When someone in the office pulls up and order or customer information in the web administration system, they can click the phone number and it will call their extension first and then the minute they pick up the Asterisk server calls whatever the number they clicked on.

The only problem is if the user is logged in to the web interface at a computer that is not next to their VoIP phone (like another person's desk) then the system keeps calling that users desk and won't get a response. Other than the 2 times thats happened its been great and everyone loves it. The best part? It took all of about 5 minutes to code up a PHP script to do the whole thing.