IVR Glossary

Plum Voice's comprehensive documentation of IVR concepts, topics, and terminology.

a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h | i | j | k | l | m | n | o | p | q | r | s | t | u | v | w | x | y | z
Click one of the letters above to be taken to a page of all terms beginning with that letter.
A-law
A-law is a lossy method of audio encoding that will compress 16-bit linear PCM audio samples into 8-bit samples thereby reducing bitrate by 50%. Like its encoding cousin, u-law, a-law assumes that the audio stream contains predominantly voice data (as opposed to, say, music data) which has a low dynamic range. It then uses a pseudo-logarithmic algorithm to compress the data, favoring detail for samples in the “middle” of the range and effectively glossing over samples at the extremes.   Read more...
Apache
The Apache web server group formed in 1995 to build an open-source web server. The name was a play on the phrase "A patchy web server" referring to initial state of the code base.   Read more...See also: Application server
Application
Software created to help a user perform a given task.   Read more...
Application server
An application server in the context of IVR is a server that generates VoiceXML to drive the progress of a callflow. Besides generating VoiceXML, it may access a database, call webservices, read and write from files, send emails, or perform other useful actions. When an IVR server (such as an on-site Plum Voice Platform or our hosting platform) receives or initiates a call, it requests VoiceXML from the application server via an HTTP request. Typically a start URL pointing to your application server is configured for each inbound DNIS.   Read more...See also: Apache
Array
A data type offered by most programming languages that provides indexed access into a collection of variables.   Read more...
ASR
ASR stands for Automatic Speech Recognition. It represents a collection of technologies required for an IVR system to listen for specific words and phrases, detect the speech from within an audio sample, analyze the speech relative to what is being listened for, and provide the final text representing what the ASR system believes was uttered.   Read more...See also: Token
Assign
The assign element assigns a value to a predefined variable.   Read more...See also: IVR, variable
Attribute
Attributes are options that you can set for your VoiceXML tag. There is a specific set of attributes for each VoiceXML tag of all sorts of varieties. Some attributes allow you to set a maxage or maxstale value for your VoiceXML tag for caching purposes. Other attributes allow you to set the scope or a specific mode for your VoiceXML tag.   Read more...
Audio
The audio element retrieves and plays the specified audio file. See also: IVR
Audio repository
The audio repository is a tool provided for Plum Hosting Accounts that allows users to upload and store their audio files locally on Plum's hosting site. The audio repository also allows users to use a phone application to record audio files that can then be used within their own application.   Read more...
Automated attendant application
An interactive voice response (IVR) application that replaces the role of a human attendant by answering incoming telephone calls with a recorded or synthesized greeting or message.   Read more...

Search Glossary

Term of the Day

Internet Protocol
A protocol used for communicating data across a packet-switched internetwork using the Internet Protocol Suite, also referred to as TCP/IP.