I am running Ubuntu 21.10 on a Thinkpad X1 Tablet. I pay for a VOIP phone and usually use it via a Grandstream HT502 ATA. But sometimes I would like to use my computer to make the VOIP call. I installed Empathy and I have set up my SIP account in Empathy. And when a call came in I was able to answer it but I cannot figure out how to dial out nor how to add a contact. If I have not set the SIP account to be active the "Contact List" window says "You need to enable one of your accounts to see contacts here" and offers me an Account settings button. Clicking on that button opens the "Messaging and VoIP Accounts" and I can enable my Sip account. Then the "Contact List" says that I am "Offline" and "Change your online presence to see contacts here" It offers me a Go Online button which does not do anything. In the drop down menu with my status I can change "Offline" to "Available" but as far as I can tell it has no effect.
Empathy's help suggests that to add a contact I choose "Chat -> Add Contact" but I do not see "Chat" anywhere and do not know how to find it. For initiating an audio conversation, Empathy's help suggests I right-click on the contact I want to call. But I am unable to add any contacts so this is not possible.
How can I initiate a VoIP phone call? Is there a way to see a dial-pad?
How can I add a contact?
Once I get Empathy working, I would like to conduct some phone interviews; is it possible to record calls with Empathy?
