Question : Identify telephone Caller's number

Hello,

I want to make a simple java application that will be able to identify who is calling me at the landline.

For example at the time of the call it finds out the caller's number if this is possible and it searches a DB.

I think something like this is possible with Asterisk.
On the other hand I need something very simple.
The bare minimum.
I only need to understand who is calling from one landline.

I have seen some hardware PCI cards from Digium but I think that this would be an overkill
for my application.

Do you have to suggest me some hardware/software combination that I should use in order to accomplish my task ?

Thank you in advance.

Answer : Identify telephone Caller's number

The simplest approach would likely be to use a unit like the callerID units from CallerID.com,

http://www.callerid.com/

They make both serial connection units and ethernet based units that are not too expensive,  though the minimum is a 2 line unit.  The reason I suggest them is that they provide a full SDK with examples and are very easy to program with in a number of languages including Java.

It would be less expensive to just use a modem to catch the caller ID but does involve a bit more work than using the SDK from the callerID.com units.

Of course there are a number of programs that might work for you off the shelf,

http://www.identafone.com/index.htm

As well as open source free programs that might serve directly or as a example to work from,

http://sunflowerhead.com/software/yac/

Specifically take a look at the 'For Developers and Power users' section.  Likely something you can interface with java easily.

Asterisk is more than capable but would be overkill for just doing a screen pop.  You not only have to setup asterisk but also would require a analog phone card or device as well.  If you wanted to do anything more down the road Asterisk would be a good choice.