Penny-pincher that I am, I've been known to pit long distance companies against each other to get cheaper rates. This can save big money, but reading the fine print of calling plans is no fun, and of course there's the annoying telemarketer whining whenever I leave Company A for Company B's lower fees. Visitalk.com aims to end the familiar Long Distance Carrier dance by letting you use your PC and an Internet connection to call anytime, anywhere in the United State -- for free.

During signup I was assigned a Permanent Communications Number (PCN), which provides access to all of Visitalk.com's features. Then the setup circus began. I downloaded and installed the Visitalk Connector, which connects to Visitalk servers to let other members know if you're logged on and also links to a personalized CommCenter Web page. PC-to-PC or video calling requires running a separate videoconferencing application in the background. I chose Microsoft NetMeeting because it was already on my machine, but White Pine CU-SeeMe and Intel VideoPhone are also supported. Before I was done I needed yet another membership with either DeltaThree.com or DialPad.com to make PC to phone calls.

Visitalk.com's interface could use some major tweaking, but the quality of calls made and received through the service (or should we say Dialpad.com or NetMeeting) is surprisingly good. Using the headset/ microphone Visitalk.com offers new members (for $2.99 shipping), I placed calls in the middle of the day and on nights and weekends when Internet traffic is heaviest. I experienced occasional dropped packets and delays and a slight pause before hearing the other party speak (as if they were on an overseas long distance call) but the overall sound quality of every call was as good as, or better than, a cellular connection.

The bottom line is, you don't need Visitalk.com at all unless you want its voicemail or voice-enabled chat features. Unfortunately, these tools are not as smart or useful as Internet call waiting services such as Callwave.com, Buzme.com or eVoice.com. If all you want is free Internet-based PC to PC or PC to phone calling, skip the installation headaches and set up NetMeeting or DialPad.com à la carte - they're doing the hard work here anyway.