A
system for providing immediate access to detailed information about a
wireless call. The
system includes a first mechanism for placing a
wireless call. A second mechanism times the call to provide a
call duration value. A third mechanism computes the detailed information from the
call duration value and a predetermined value associated with the call. A fourth mechanism displays the detailed information. In a specific embodiment, the predetermine value is a billing rate associated with the call and the detailed information is expense information. The third mechanism includes a computer that runs
software for computing the detailed information from the
call duration value and the billing rate. The
software includes a routine that detects when the
wireless phone is being used for a call and times the call. The
software also includes a mechanism for providing user-selectable parameters for controlling the third mechanism.The user-selectable parameters include a first parameter that indicates use of one or more
address book categories or lack thereof. The
address book categories each indicate one or more calls to be tracked by the
system. The user-selectable parameters further include a category for association with newly provided detailed call information, a per-minute billing rate corresponding to the predetermined value, and a type of currency to be used by the third mechanism for computing expense information. The software generates an expense report listing the detailed information in response to the
receipt of the user selectable parameters and any other received call identifiers. In the illustrative embodiment, the fourth mechanism includes mechanism for displaying the detailed information in approximately real-time and includes a mechanism for automatically displaying or storing the detailed information upon completion of the call.