1. Technical Field
This invention is directed to telephone terminals and more particularly, to configurable telephone terminals.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Current trends in the design of telephone terminals indicate that more and more telephone functionality is being integrated into the telephone display. For example, information as to the features available on the display has migrated from LEDs to the display, and local additions such as telephone number directories, status inspection, incoming caller information etc., are all migrating to the display.
Many interactive display arrangements available today permit accessing the features available on the display through softkeys. One such feature available on these arrangements is a personalized directory of frequently called telephone numbers for the user. A user may enter these numbers and provide associated names which appear as softkey labels for identifying these numbers. These directory entries are accessed by the user and while being viewed may be dialed automatically in these display arrangements.
The prior art interactive display arrangements with a personalized directory allow a user to enter duplicate names into the directory. Duplicate names, however, can confuse the user and misdialing errors can easily occur. By way of example, if a user is allowed to provide in the directory two softkey labels having the same name, the user unfortunately is forced to remember which of the two softkey labels will place a call to the person he or she is then trying to reach.
These prior art interactive display arrangements also allow a user to enter a telephone number without a name or the name without the telephone number into the directory. Having a directory entry with a name but no telephone number can also lead to misdialing errors. Also having a directory entry with a telephone number but no name creates an undefined or blank softkey label in the directory at which the user can place a call. When attempting to use the directory, finding such an entry without an associated softkey label is very difficult for a user.