Patent ID: 7359492

Claim:
A method for operating a local telephone comprising the steps of; establishing a telephone call between the local telephone associated with a local party and a remote telephone associated with a remote party; receiving a first voice signal from the remote telephone during the telephone call responsive to the step of establishing; sensing a storage prompt signal, wherein the storage prompt signal comprises a distinctive audio service prompt generated by a telephone network service provider associated with the remote party; storing the first voice signal in a first memory unit in the local telephone responsive to the step of sensing the storage prompt signal; sensing a conversion prompt signal; converting the first voice signal to a first text signal in real time, as the first voice signal is received from the remote telephone, responsive to the step of sensing the conversion prompt signal; storing the first text signal in a second memory unit in the local telephone responsive to the step of converting; editing the first text signal responsive to the step of storing the first text signal to produce an edited first text signal; storing the edited first text signal in the second memory unit in the local telephone responsive to the step of editing; and providing at least one of the first text signal and the edited first text signal stored in the second memory unit in the local telephone.