Tag Archives: Microsoft

You Can Never have Enough Friends

  By Carl | October 31, 2010 - 2:44 pm | Carl Ford IMHO
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@Apple, @Google and @Microsoft.

People often give me more credit than I deserve. I am a well connected person, but I am ecclectic in my friendships and tastes. Often there is an expectation that I know “EVERYONE”. I don’t and some that I do know don’t necessarily want me to chase them around for every inquiry I get.

So my general rule of thumb is to use Linkedin. I am an open networker and I believe that many of us trust it as a way to initiate a conversation.

While many friends want me to see Facebook in the same way, most of my immediate family uses Facebook, so getting professional work done is harder on that system.

Never the less, I have started a campaign to connect up directly with all my speakers on both Facebook and Linkedin. Yes I will do twitter too, albeit briefly ;<).

If you want to talk to the people I want to hear, its good for you to connect with me on either platform.

ITEC New Jersey Today

  By Carl | April 15, 2009 - 7:09 am | Carl Ford IMHO
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Here are FIVE REASON to be at ITEC Conference at the Meadowlands in Secaucus, NJ to:

  1. Hear from product managers with Microsoft and Intel on the latest products and applications
  2. Meet your peers, trade stories about solutions and develop your all-important network today, with IT managers from near you.
  3. Learn from experts and systems integrators on what works, what doesn’t in social media and enterprise tools
  4. Talk with the consultants and service providers at the expo, located all around the conference theaters – everything together for maximum value on your time
  5. Admission to the conference and expo is FREE to qualified attendees and with our new ONE-DAY format you arrive in the morning, take in some conference sessions, tour the exhibit floor, network over a free lunch and leave better educated.

ITEC is all about education – in person at the conference, online with ITEC-TV and via the ITEC Connect Newsletter in your inbox every two weeks!

Don’t miss this once a year opportunity to get free technology education. ITEC – your best chance to catch up on technology and trends!

Come hear from Microsoft’s Steve Deming present “Windows Roadmap & Small Business Server 2008″ and Intel’s Barry Heller present on the Intel Server Building Blocks at ITEC New York Metro.  These programs will include active Q&A sessions and time for follow up discussions, and are moderated by Travis Millhimes of LAM Systems, Inc. 

Admission is free to qualified IT Professionals. 

High Definition Audio – An Interview with AudioCodes’ Alan Percy

  By Carl | December 10, 2008 - 7:58 am | PodCast
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I remember the first time someone suggested to me that VoIP could be better than the PSTN. I was ready to believe that and felt that would be a compelling story.  So when Alan Percy was telling me about what they had going on at AudioCodes I asked for the chance to do a podcast.

What was most striking from the discussion was the overall way Audiocodes is working to support the migration to HD VoIP.  Supporting codecs from Skype and Microsoft as well as G.722 as its base a carrier can connect to communities of interest.

The message gets across, but the quality of the audio line was not that great.  Two guys on wireless devices had some drop outs. And while I have the HD audio embedded as an MP3, the case for better audio is being made while we talk.  As most of my readers know communication protocols handle dropped packets by filling in with what was around the gap, while data waits for all parts to be assembled. The beauty of Wideband codecs is there is more audio to hear and therefore the better the fill in the gaps.

Alan Percy of Audiocodes on HD VoIP [ 30:30 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Jerry Yang, Thank you but…

  By Carl | November 18, 2008 - 6:12 am | News
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Jerry,

While I advocated you make the deal with Microsoft.  I want to tell you I am sorry to see you leave.

What that says to me personally is that your company is going to be nothing like you envisioned it.

Anyone who has started a company and then watched it change over the years knows this experience.

I often wonder when is the right time for people to get out of the way and let a new regime takeover.

In California often you see existing teams morph work in to newco’s.

I am looking forward to you doing a newco.  And I will be your fan.

To the board.  Rather than searching for talent, how about hiring Sabeer Bhatia formerly of Hotmail.  He may help the team see the value of going back in and trying to get something done with Microsoft.

A Tale of Three (FCC) Decisions

  By Carl | November 5, 2008 - 5:25 am | News
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As the FCC enabled whitespaces for the computing industry the wireless world continued to be advanced with the merger of Sprint WiMAX into Clearwire and the approval of the Alltel acquistion by Verizon.  While I will miss the wizard commercials, I think the more important observation is the question of how wireless evolves.

The Verizon story will be mostly around LTE, Clearwire around WiMAX. But who owns White Space?  Who do you associate with this alternative?  Google and Microsoft have been big advocates, but I am not sure they intend to be a service provider for this space. On the other hand, Cloud Computing is probably going to benefit tremendously from the access the White Space provides.  Should I insert Ebay/Skype and Amazon into this discussion?  Motorola and Phillips for their devices?

Imho the future of wireless is going to be very dynamic.  And as we have seen from the iPhone’s success its going to be more about what you can do than what technology is used.

Freedom2Speak.org Launched

  By Carl | October 24, 2008 - 7:12 am | News
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Jim Kohlenberger has shared this information with me.  Included in this site which highlights the innovation of VoIP is the ability to petition to keep VoIP as an enhanced service.

With the FCC poised to vote November 4th on a key decision that will impact the future of Internet communication, today VoIP leaders are launching a new voice activated web site and online campaign to educate consumers and policymakers about the power and potential of VoIP:  www.freedom2speak.org

An incredible transformation is making its way across the Internet — helping to bring voice to the net. These innovative Internet voice applications are changing the way we communicate, stay connected to our friends, family and colleagues. Together these technologies have the potential to deliver extraordinary new benefits.

We want to introduce you to some of the exciting new voice tools now just emerging. This new web site contains nearly 300 different cool tools — each unique — that are stretching the horizon of voice on the net.

But the future of some of these exciting technologies is not all assured. There are an unfortunate set of policy proposals by special interests that could limit your ability to speak and be heard on the Internet. And that’s why we’re asking you to get involved. Stand up — speak up — and fight for your freedom to speak on the Internet!

The web site:

1.    Highlights the amazing things that are happening when voice is integrated with the Internet.  Providing examples of nearly 300 innovative new voice enabled tools that are emerging on the Internet. These voice enabled Internet applications are giving voice to blogs, connecting friends together on MySpace and Facebook, empowering people on the campaign trail, transforming video games, integrating voice and video into instant messaging, allowing one telephone number to reach all your phones at once, ushering in a new era of voice recognition based information retrieval tools, integrating click to dial functionality into mapping and other web sites, and doing things never before possible.

2.    Demonstrates the extraordinary benefits that VoIP enabled tools can deliver.  The site includes a state by state map of benefits; highlights the broader benefits for consumers, the economy, the environment, homeland security, etc.; and provides examples of exciting and beneficial ways the technology is being put to use.  For example, at a time when families are struggling to pay their bills, VoIP enabled competition is poised to save consumers an astounding $110 billion over the next 5 years.

3.    Enables users to take specific actions to protect their freedom to speak on the net.  The FCC is poised to vote on November 4th on a key decision that will impact the future of these technologies.  The site describes key policy issues that could impact the growth of these technologies, and gives people the ability to take specific actions to protect their freedom to speak on the Internet.  With just a few clicks, the site allows users to file comments at the FCC or talk directly with policymakers.  Its critical because some proposals could subject voice enabled web sites to a patchwork of potentially conflicting state rules, or reverse key policies that would apply per minute fees to Internet commutations and voice enabled web sites.

4.    Using the medium as the message.  Voice enabled tools are incorporated throughout the site, including into voice blogs, a virtual VoIP debate between Obama and McCain, a tool to call members of Congress, and a voice broadcast tool tell their friends about the site.

VoIP is not another flavor of telephone service.  It’s a new frontier in communications for individuals and businesses alike, and it requires forward-thinking regulatory approaches.  If policymakers reflexively subject these new voice enabled Internet tools to yesterday’s telephone regulations without first understanding the variety of tools emerging, consumers and business users could miss out on the new services, increased choices and new ways to communicate that VoIP can deliver.

Jim Kohlenberger
Executive Director
The Voice on the Net Coalition

About the VON Coalition:
The Voice on the Net or VON Coalition consists of leading VoIP companies, on the cutting edge of developing and delivering voice innovations over Internet. The coalition, which includes AT&T, BT Americas, CallSmart, Cisco, CommPartners, Covad, EarthLink, Google, iBasis, i3 Voice and Data, Intel, Microsoft, New Global Telecom, PointOne, Pulver.com, Skype, T-Mobile USA, USA Datanet, and Yahoo!  works to advance regulatory policies that enable Americans to take advantage of the full promise and potential of VoIP. The Coalition believes that with the right public policies, Internet based voice advances can make talking more affordable, businesses more productive, jobs more plentiful, the Internet more valuable, and Americans more safe and secure. Since its inception, the VON Coalition has promoted pragmatic policy choices for unleashing VoIP’s potential. http://www.von.org