Michael Graves

Aastra MBU-400: Oh Oh?

January 28, 2009
Michael Graves
VoIP

aastra_mbu400_270x270 Since first posting about availability of the new Aastra MBU-400 SIP/DECT system I’ve seen considerable interest in the device, but no-one stepping up with any first hand experience with its use. The device is in fact vaguely related to the snom m3 SIP/DECT systems that I own and enjoy using. Both are based upon reference designs from RTX Telecom.

As an OEM product from RTX Telecom the hardware design is largely fixed, but Aastra has a lot of control over the firmware. I know that snom has made considerable progress with firmware enhancements for the m3 since it was introduced to the US about a year ago.

DIY Inspiration: MSI WindBOX

Sometimes a piece of hardware is the inspiration for a project, or even a whole new approach to household computing. MSI is about to release their WindBOX, which has me considering the possibilities. It’s essentially the hardware equivalent of one of the popular new net-top pc’s but in a form factor that mounts to the VESA fittings on the back of any common LCD.

Citrix Online Chooses GIPS Technologies

January 27, 2009
Michael Graves
VoIP

There are few things that have improved my personal quality of life as much as Citrix® GotoMeeting® service. Before I signed up for GotoMeeting®, way back in 2004, I was spending a lot more time on airplanes visiting customer sites to troubleshoot problems. These days most problems we can troubleshoot remotely. It’s both faster and less costly.

As GotoMeeting® has evolved they tied in an audio conferencing service, presumably a partner that provided the service through their own facilities. I tried using this a couple of times but the call quality was not great. It seemed typical of some of the lesser free conference services. So for the longest time we used a separate conference bridge, even though GotoMeeting® offered an attached service.

Dave Michels On Teleworking

Dave Michels, principal of Boulder’s Buffalo Communications, has a great post today detailing recommendations for effective teleworking. His recommendations are backed by some detail about his own home office installation. As someone who has worked from a home office for over a decade his advice definitely rings true.

In fact, I’d like to take a moment to amplify and extend his recommendations based upon my work situation. Most of the things that I’d like to highlight reflect the difference between the occasional teleworker and the full-time home-office dweller.

Pika WARP Asterisk Appliance

Nir Simionovich as nice little post revisiting the Pika Warp Asterisk Appliance now that it uses the Asterisk GUI v2.0. I've always admired Pika's effort in the Asterisk appliance space. It's an interesting platform on which to develop niche IP…

Comcast Trouble Resolved With Help From Their Tweeple

January 25, 2009
Michael Graves
Broadband, HDTV, Tivo, Video

I was incensed as a result of the past weeks trouble with the cable card swap that Comcast imposed. After considerable time spent on the phone in the afternoon I detailed the situation in a blog post early last evening. At the point when I wrote that post we had no clear path to solution, just the promise that someone would call us back.

Shortly after the blog post went live a twitter message was automatically sent to highlight that post. This caught the attention of @comcastcares, which is Frank Eliason, Director Of Digital Care at Comcast.

Frank & his staff are based in Philadelphia PA. The fact that Comcast has been using Twitter to stay on top of customer service has been known for some time. I had some cursory interaction with them during the long service outage in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike.