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Asterisk can be configured to utilize XMPP in several capacities. It may utilize XMPP
as a presence framework (e.g., Extension 205 is away or on the phone), or, through the
voice messaging framework JINGLE, support full voice communications with other
services such as Google Talk.

Unlike other messaging networks such as MSN and Yahoo!, XMPP is decentralized.
Anyone may have his own Jabber server and run any number of services on his server.
You send messages in much the same way that you send email: the Jabber server you
use contacts the Jabber server of the other person, and a direct connection is estab-
lished. If the other person is not online, the message is stored, and when she log in to
her Jabber server, any stored messages are delivered. With encryption (the XMPP pro-
tocol supports TLS), it is no wonder why many businesses are starting to implement
their internal messaging networks using this amazing protocol, and Asterisk is able to
seamlessly integrate into this communications network.

Conclusion

That’s pretty much all that this chapter is going to teach you, but it’s nowhere near all
there is to learn. Hopefully, you are starting to get an idea of how big this Asterisk thing
really is.
In the next chapter, we’re going to try and predict the future of telecom, and we’ll
discuss how (and why) we believe that Asterisk is well positioned to play a starring role.

316 | Chapter 14: Potpourri