I've been out all day, and have seen a lot of buzz around AOL's decision to drop its Total Talk service later this year.
I really liked Andy Abramson's take on the news, and his post has a lot of insight as to why this is actually a positive step along the way for VoIP to mature from a Voice 1.0 to a Voice 2.0 application.
AOL came to market last April, but VoIP has come a long way since then, and it's an uphill battle trying to make money with traditional POTS replacement service - as the pureplays know all too well. As Andy notes, the more recent PhoneLine offering from AIM is more in line with the future of voice, and is probably a better vehicle for AOL to retain its subscriber base and hopefully return to growth.
Technorati tags: VoIP, Jon Arnold, Andy Abramson, AOL
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Fall VON - If You're Into Asterisk...
Just a very quick post - actually a re-direct to Alec Saunders's blog post this morning. The folks at Iotum have been driving a terrific effort to bring the Asterisk community together at Fall VON. Alec has the full story on his post, and if you're into Asterisk/Open Source telephony - and will be at the show - you'll be quite impressed at all the activity they've lined up.
This mash-up builds on the success of a similar initiative I helped put together at VON Canada back in April, where everyone was pleastantly surprised at the turnout. It's great to see the momentum continuing here, and it looks like this will be a must-do thing to be a part of if you're following the Asterisk community. Great going Iotum!
Technorati tags: Asterisk, Jon Arnold, Fall VON, Alec Saunders
This mash-up builds on the success of a similar initiative I helped put together at VON Canada back in April, where everyone was pleastantly surprised at the turnout. It's great to see the momentum continuing here, and it looks like this will be a must-do thing to be a part of if you're following the Asterisk community. Great going Iotum!
Technorati tags: Asterisk, Jon Arnold, Fall VON, Alec Saunders
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Canada's Telecom "Bill of Rights"
Only in Canada, eh.
I just wanted to note that our telecom regulator, the CRTC, has issued a "bill of rights" for consumers regarding telephone service.
The intentions seem consistent with the spirit of Internet Freedoms which proclaim our rights to choose our providers, access applications, have clear access to content, etc. It's a nice message, and am sure will assure consumers that the CRTC is acting in their best interests to ensure they can make fair, informed decisions about telecom services. Certainly for the mass market this is a good thing, as we now have so many ways of getting phone service, and most people don't live in VoIP-land.
How this plays out with the carriers remains to be seen, as clarity and fairness is not always their top priority, especially as the market becomes increasingly crowded with new offerings and bundles.
Fellow blogger Mark Goldberg is much more attuned to our regulatory issues, and I recommend reading his post for further analysis and context. In short, I agree with Mark - "set minimum standards, and let the marketplace decide".
Technorati tags: CRTC, Jon Arnold, Mark Goldberg
I just wanted to note that our telecom regulator, the CRTC, has issued a "bill of rights" for consumers regarding telephone service.
The intentions seem consistent with the spirit of Internet Freedoms which proclaim our rights to choose our providers, access applications, have clear access to content, etc. It's a nice message, and am sure will assure consumers that the CRTC is acting in their best interests to ensure they can make fair, informed decisions about telecom services. Certainly for the mass market this is a good thing, as we now have so many ways of getting phone service, and most people don't live in VoIP-land.
How this plays out with the carriers remains to be seen, as clarity and fairness is not always their top priority, especially as the market becomes increasingly crowded with new offerings and bundles.
Fellow blogger Mark Goldberg is much more attuned to our regulatory issues, and I recommend reading his post for further analysis and context. In short, I agree with Mark - "set minimum standards, and let the marketplace decide".
Technorati tags: CRTC, Jon Arnold, Mark Goldberg
When Good Bloggers Do Bad Things - Maybe - RIM's Pearl Plans
Today's Globe & Mail ran an interesting story that raises questions about the impact of blogs when used to divulge corporate information before the intended time.
The story in question is about RIM, and how a blogger named Genius Boy has been forwarding information about their upcoming "Pearl" product to the popular tech site, Engadget.
While I don't expect the Globe to be first to market, I haven't seen this story covered before. So, either I'm not reading in the right places, or most people think it's a non-issue. Or maybe it's not being followed at all.
Regardless, wearing my blogger hat, I feel obliged to draw attention to the story. No doubt, it's impossible to control content on the Internet, and in general, the morals and ethics of blogging are open to wide interpretation. It's an unregulated wild west space, and people will do what they want - or can - because it's so easy to do and the downside is usually pretty limited.
Who's to say whether RIM is happy or unhappy about this? As the article points out, RIM's stock is up 30% this month, and Boy Genius is publicly taking pride and credit for this run up. What the stock price will do once the product is launched is anybody's guess.
I think this story is ripe for debate and I'm sure 100 people will have 100 different takes on it. Your comments are welcome - I'm just putting this out there, especially in light of the attention Garrett Smith has been creating for bloggers this week.
Technorati tags: Engadget, Jon Arnold, RIM
The story in question is about RIM, and how a blogger named Genius Boy has been forwarding information about their upcoming "Pearl" product to the popular tech site, Engadget.
While I don't expect the Globe to be first to market, I haven't seen this story covered before. So, either I'm not reading in the right places, or most people think it's a non-issue. Or maybe it's not being followed at all.
Regardless, wearing my blogger hat, I feel obliged to draw attention to the story. No doubt, it's impossible to control content on the Internet, and in general, the morals and ethics of blogging are open to wide interpretation. It's an unregulated wild west space, and people will do what they want - or can - because it's so easy to do and the downside is usually pretty limited.
Who's to say whether RIM is happy or unhappy about this? As the article points out, RIM's stock is up 30% this month, and Boy Genius is publicly taking pride and credit for this run up. What the stock price will do once the product is launched is anybody's guess.
I think this story is ripe for debate and I'm sure 100 people will have 100 different takes on it. Your comments are welcome - I'm just putting this out there, especially in light of the attention Garrett Smith has been creating for bloggers this week.
Technorati tags: Engadget, Jon Arnold, RIM
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Canadian IP Thought Leaders Series - Jim Courtney on VoIP and the Skype/Google News
On this week's podcast on the Pulvermedia Podcast Network, I spoke with Jim Courtney, industry colleague and fellow blogger. Jim wears a few hats, mainly as an industry consultant, and an Associate Editor of the widely-read blog, Skype Journal.
Jim has a long history in tech/telecom, and offered his perspective on the trends he's seeing here in Canada's IP communications market. Also, having posted earlier in the day about the Google/Skype news on Skype Journal, the podcast was a timely opportunity to explore the implications of that development more deeply.
You can download the podcast here, as well as read more about Jim's background.
Technorati tags: Jim Courtney, Jon Arnold, Skype Journal, VoIP Podcasts
Jim has a long history in tech/telecom, and offered his perspective on the trends he's seeing here in Canada's IP communications market. Also, having posted earlier in the day about the Google/Skype news on Skype Journal, the podcast was a timely opportunity to explore the implications of that development more deeply.
You can download the podcast here, as well as read more about Jim's background.
Technorati tags: Jim Courtney, Jon Arnold, Skype Journal, VoIP Podcasts
VoIP Blogs - I'm Top 10 Material
Well, this sure was nice to see earlier today. I hate being so busy that I'm not able to blog in a more timely manner, but better late than never.
I met Garrett Smith earlier this year at a VoIP show, and have been meaning to stay in touch. Well, he's been staying in touch with me by reading my blog - and lots of others who commment about VoIP. I hadn't come across his blog until today, but I'm glad I did!
So, for those of you who don't know by now, Garrett has been reviewing VoIP blogs for some time and has come up with a top 30 ranking, broken up into the 3 tiers. The top tier is the top 10 he considers must-reads for ongoing everday coverage. The next 10 are basically ones you should be reading weekly, and the bottom 10 are for less regular monitoring, but still valuable nonetheless.
Well, I'm a happy guy by virtue of being ranked #4 in the top tier, with Andy Abramson #1, Om Malik #2 and Rich Tehrani #3. I have no idea what Garrett's ultimate criteria were, and he concedes this is an inexact science, but I'm not complaining to be in such good company. I follow pretty much all these blogs regularly and they're all very good.
Bottom line - you won't go wrong following any of these, and I'm just happy to be along for the ride. Thanks Garrett, for putting this together! At minimum you've made the day for 30 other bloggers, and hopefully many others will pick up on this. You can read his posting here, and from there, you'll be able to quickly link to any of the 30 blogs in his rankings.
Coda - there's a good reason why Andy is #1. I cite him regularly, and he, in fact, gets the hat tip for telling me about Garrett's posting before anyone. No doubt this buzz will spill over to the Blogger's Panel at Fall VON, which will be very nice. I can certainly tell you that many of the bloggers cited in Garrett's posting have been emailing amongst ourselves, so the inner circle buzz is quite good.
Anyhow, back to Andy. One of his many activities includes a blogging program he developed for Nokia as a means of creating awareness and momentum for their N Series handsets. I've been blogging about this for some time, and yesterday I posted a review of the N91, written by my son, Max. Today, Andy added that posting to the Nokia blog page, and it was pretty cool to see my son up there. So, I can vouch first hand for the good work Andy does - no doubt about it.
Technorati tags: Garrett Smith, Jon Arnold, blogs
I met Garrett Smith earlier this year at a VoIP show, and have been meaning to stay in touch. Well, he's been staying in touch with me by reading my blog - and lots of others who commment about VoIP. I hadn't come across his blog until today, but I'm glad I did!
So, for those of you who don't know by now, Garrett has been reviewing VoIP blogs for some time and has come up with a top 30 ranking, broken up into the 3 tiers. The top tier is the top 10 he considers must-reads for ongoing everday coverage. The next 10 are basically ones you should be reading weekly, and the bottom 10 are for less regular monitoring, but still valuable nonetheless.
Well, I'm a happy guy by virtue of being ranked #4 in the top tier, with Andy Abramson #1, Om Malik #2 and Rich Tehrani #3. I have no idea what Garrett's ultimate criteria were, and he concedes this is an inexact science, but I'm not complaining to be in such good company. I follow pretty much all these blogs regularly and they're all very good.
Bottom line - you won't go wrong following any of these, and I'm just happy to be along for the ride. Thanks Garrett, for putting this together! At minimum you've made the day for 30 other bloggers, and hopefully many others will pick up on this. You can read his posting here, and from there, you'll be able to quickly link to any of the 30 blogs in his rankings.
Coda - there's a good reason why Andy is #1. I cite him regularly, and he, in fact, gets the hat tip for telling me about Garrett's posting before anyone. No doubt this buzz will spill over to the Blogger's Panel at Fall VON, which will be very nice. I can certainly tell you that many of the bloggers cited in Garrett's posting have been emailing amongst ourselves, so the inner circle buzz is quite good.
Anyhow, back to Andy. One of his many activities includes a blogging program he developed for Nokia as a means of creating awareness and momentum for their N Series handsets. I've been blogging about this for some time, and yesterday I posted a review of the N91, written by my son, Max. Today, Andy added that posting to the Nokia blog page, and it was pretty cool to see my son up there. So, I can vouch first hand for the good work Andy does - no doubt about it.
Technorati tags: Garrett Smith, Jon Arnold, blogs
Monday, August 28, 2006
Guest Blog - Max Arnold's Nokia N91 Review
My son Max is rapidly becoming a certified geek, and he's definitely the IT guy in our household. I've been lucky enough to evaluate the Nokia N Series phones, and have been using the N90 for some time, which readers of this blog would well know.
I recently received the N91, which is sleeker and more powerful. Max has basically taken this phone, befriended it, and I have seen very little of it since. So, in return, Max is sharing his view on the N91 in this guest posting.
He may just be a budding teenager, but in terms of a lifestyle demographic, he's an ideal user to evaluate this phone. There are several terrific reviews out there for this phone, but all are from an adult user's perspective. I'll bet this is the only one you're going to find out there written by a teenager. I really try, folks, to bring you content you won't find anywhere else! So here's the story, in Max's own words....
As soon as I opened the Purolator box, I knew it was gonna be one heckuva phone. Seeing that it was part of the Nokia N series, where I had already had a good impression from my Dad's N90 with its 2 megapixel lens, great layout, and features like Bluetooth. Only mine sported a 802.11 wireless network card to access wireless internet networks anywhere in the world, which came in very handy when we were up on vacation, and I needed to check my email, a 4 Gigabyte hard drive (about 170 times the size of the n90's storage space), dedicated MP3 buttons, and a 3.5 mm optical audio port on the top with an mp3 player-style �lock� switch on the top that puts the phone in keypad lock mode.
Another feature that I was particularly impressed with was the sliding keypad cover to make the phone smaller and have the number pad only open when necessary. When the sliding cover is closed, no space is wasted at all � the dedicated MP3 buttons are mounted on that cover, and still remain active and functional when the cover is open, so you could be halfway through dialing a number with your music playing, you could hit the pause button, and then finish dialing, unlike certain other electronic devices like this where you can only use one of those functions at one time.
Only things I disliked about the physical layout were that the mono speaker was placed right beside the volume switch, and when you're adjusting the volume, sometimes your thumb covers the speaker and makes the sound sound warped, I also disliked the placement of the menu button � on the right side, instead of on the keypad � very awkward.
Wired:
Wireless card allows you to access the internet at no cost from your carrier � whopping 4 gb hard drive allows you to store every video, picture and song you could ever imagine. Phone looks great while charging in the included cradle.
Tired:
Still full of glitches. Occasionally, the media gallery empties itself, and you have to re-point your files from the file manager, which can be quite a pain. Also, a mono speaker doesn't do much when it comes to playing multimedia.
Bottom line: once this thing is fully edited for bugs, re-places its menu button, and gets stereo speakers, this phone will have reached its full potential as a smartphone.
Next steps: If Nokia makes a higher-grade model of the N91, judging by its features, I say it could do even better having a larger screen with touch-screen on board, and maybe even a built-in email client.
Finally, a photo taken at our local diner, showing some nice depth of field from the N91:
Technorati tags: Nokia N91, Jon Arnold
I recently received the N91, which is sleeker and more powerful. Max has basically taken this phone, befriended it, and I have seen very little of it since. So, in return, Max is sharing his view on the N91 in this guest posting.
He may just be a budding teenager, but in terms of a lifestyle demographic, he's an ideal user to evaluate this phone. There are several terrific reviews out there for this phone, but all are from an adult user's perspective. I'll bet this is the only one you're going to find out there written by a teenager. I really try, folks, to bring you content you won't find anywhere else! So here's the story, in Max's own words....
As soon as I opened the Purolator box, I knew it was gonna be one heckuva phone. Seeing that it was part of the Nokia N series, where I had already had a good impression from my Dad's N90 with its 2 megapixel lens, great layout, and features like Bluetooth. Only mine sported a 802.11 wireless network card to access wireless internet networks anywhere in the world, which came in very handy when we were up on vacation, and I needed to check my email, a 4 Gigabyte hard drive (about 170 times the size of the n90's storage space), dedicated MP3 buttons, and a 3.5 mm optical audio port on the top with an mp3 player-style �lock� switch on the top that puts the phone in keypad lock mode.
Another feature that I was particularly impressed with was the sliding keypad cover to make the phone smaller and have the number pad only open when necessary. When the sliding cover is closed, no space is wasted at all � the dedicated MP3 buttons are mounted on that cover, and still remain active and functional when the cover is open, so you could be halfway through dialing a number with your music playing, you could hit the pause button, and then finish dialing, unlike certain other electronic devices like this where you can only use one of those functions at one time.
Only things I disliked about the physical layout were that the mono speaker was placed right beside the volume switch, and when you're adjusting the volume, sometimes your thumb covers the speaker and makes the sound sound warped, I also disliked the placement of the menu button � on the right side, instead of on the keypad � very awkward.
Wired:
Wireless card allows you to access the internet at no cost from your carrier � whopping 4 gb hard drive allows you to store every video, picture and song you could ever imagine. Phone looks great while charging in the included cradle.
Tired:
Still full of glitches. Occasionally, the media gallery empties itself, and you have to re-point your files from the file manager, which can be quite a pain. Also, a mono speaker doesn't do much when it comes to playing multimedia.
Bottom line: once this thing is fully edited for bugs, re-places its menu button, and gets stereo speakers, this phone will have reached its full potential as a smartphone.
Next steps: If Nokia makes a higher-grade model of the N91, judging by its features, I say it could do even better having a larger screen with touch-screen on board, and maybe even a built-in email client.
Finally, a photo taken at our local diner, showing some nice depth of field from the N91:
Technorati tags: Nokia N91, Jon Arnold
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