On Thu, Dec 24, 2009 at 8:37 AM, Simon P. Ditner <[email protected]> wrote:
> I saw an article on TCM the other day that VoIP has outstripped all other > industries for growth since 2000 by like a bazillion percent. Granted VoIP > wasn't really used that much then, so of course the slope of that graph > looks amazing. > > So now that the future is here, what would you like to see for speakers and > workshops in 2010? G.722, Video, Skype? Mobile apps? > That's an interesting point. Years ago it was a struggle to educate people about the existence and benefits of Asterisk and OSS telephony. Now, Asterisk is a recognized name and it's hard to shop for telephony without running into it. In terms of presentations, I'd be interested in seeing how the network has changed. I have a vague idea of how things used to work: that our analog line ran down to the end of the street, maybe it got MUXed a bit then digitized somewhere and fired around a packet switched network from carrier to carrier, it's route and rates having been determined using SS7. Now I dial 10 digita and my VOIP call goes off into the series of tubes that we call the Internet. It arrives at its destination but it may not require SS7 to get there, it may or may not even hit the traditional PSTN network. Some possible topics/questions: - How are the new and old networks different from a technology/protocol point of view? - How is the organizing philosophy different? Has it decentralized? - What happens when I hand of a call to a provider? We see rates from .5 - 5 cents for North America. Whats the diff? - With routes and companies involved in a single call, how do we manage quality? - What new concerns exist because of VOIP: arbitrage, grey routes, might we see zombie PBXs? - We see lots of small players now, presumably due to a lowered cost of entry. Can/Will they stay small? Consolidate? Get bought? - What is the exit strategy of the telecom startup: Become the next Bell? Carve out a niche and stay small? - Maybe: Lawful intercept, 911, encryption That's just off the top of my head. While the user interface has barely changed in 40 years, (we still have a handset and dial/keypad), the back end has been completely overhauled in the same timeframe. I'd be interested to hear an explanation of the changes from someone in the know. I'm still a fan of alternative events like hackdays and newbie-oriented events where we answer their questions and maybe help them get things configured. I don't see as many new faces as I used to, and even fewer repeat newcomers. Here's a thought: What about a 5 minute show-and-tell component at each meeting. A member or two could bring in a piece of equipment they've got, let people look and touch, and answer questions. Phones are an obvious one, but gateways or even less obvious things like bar code readers (for deployments, etc) could be useful. In fact, I'll volunteer to do a 5 minute show and tell on bar code readers. I have an unnatural love of these things and people are often surprised at how easy they are to use and how helpful they can be in many situations. Happy Holidays to all the TAUGers and their families. Dave Donovan Too long. Did not read.
