The STAR application will look at day/date/time criteria listed in the table, and will route the call when it finds a match. They’re the easiest thing in the world to program, but also the easiest to mess up.
The application will start looking for a match at table entry 1, and then if no match is found, move down the table until entry 20. As soon as a match is found, the call is routed. If there is no match, the call will route to the default application at the bottom of the table.
A common use for STAR is holiday closings. You would create a table entry for each holiday. Enter the Start and Stop date, and change Specific Date to yes. Enter your holiday application number, and you’re done. Notice that the application number was entered last. If you enter the application first, calls will immediately route to your holiday application! This is because, by default, specific date and time is set to NO, and as long as it’s a weekday, the table has found a match.
Say you want to close at noon on New Year’s Eve and be closed all day New Years. You would need to create two table entries – one for noon until midnight on 12/31 and a second one for all day 1/1.
If you use a STAR for your normal Monday through Friday routing, a good trick is to use an entry way down the table, maybe 17 or 18. This will allow you to enter holidays and special dates higher on the table. You can’t enter them below your normal routing, because the call will be routed as soon as it finds a match.
