Techno Lust: Phoenix Duet Speakerphone

I've had a very nice conversation with folks at Marratech, who make a web-based videoconferencing/whiteboard software client that runs on all platforms. In talking with them, I asked about how they did their audio echo canceling, and they suggested looking into the Phonix Duet speakerphone. Excerpts from review that appeared on the VoIPspeak site are posted below. Essentially, this is a device which provides echo cancellation and that allows you to avoid using a headset.

The Duet was designed from the ground up to work with voice over IP (VoIP) services such as Skype, Gizmo, and SoftPhones as well as Instant Message clients such as MSN Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, and Google Talk. With proprietary Acoustic Echo Cancellation, Noise Suppression, and equalizer algorithms built in, the Duet PCS offers remarkably clean sound.

The first question you might ask is �who needs a business class speakerphone that plugs into a USB port?�. I actually had to think about that for a minute until I stopped to think about my own usage habits. To start off with, a USB sound device is much more efficient than using a soundcard for VoIP applications. With a soundcard you are using the processing power of the computer for the analog to digital conversion when the strength of a soundcard is not in its input, but rather than in its output abilitty. With a USB audio device, the device converts the audio into digital signals before sending it to the computer. This results in much better sound quality and compression which can have a dramatic efect on VoIP conversations. As a USB audio device, the Duet PCS not only functions as a speakerphone but also has a stadnard headset jack available essientially turning a standard headset into a high quality sound platform. Since it registers as an audio device, it is not specific to VoIP or IM applications, the noise reduction and echo cancelation make this device an excellent choice for podcasters as the recording quality is so good.

A PDF data sheet is located on the Phoenix site.

Chronicle: 2006 Technology Guide

The Chronicle of Philanthropy has published a 2006 Technology Guide with stories outlining some unusual and creative ways that NGOs are using technology. From the introduction:

• A New York organization that provides low-cost technology aid to nonprofit groups is achieving another social goal: It trains low-income people and minorities to offer the technology services, giving them new job skills and paid empolyment


• Unicef gets the word out about issues that affect children around the world by producing "podcasts"--radio broadcasts that can be downloaded free and listened to on portable audio devices.


• Organizations tha deal with unpopular or sensitive causes are attracting a growing number of volunteers by using the Internet. In many cases, the groups are able to find people with far more expertise than the volunteers they were able to recruit in the past.

The Chron is subscription based.

Wireless Networking in the Developing World

This book is available as a free .PDF download.
From the web page description:

The massive popularity of wireless networking has caused equipment costs to continually plummet, while equipment capabilities continue to increase. By applying this technology in areas that are badly in need of critical communications infrastructure, more people can be brought online than ever before, in less time, for very little cost. We hope to not only convince you that this is possible, but also show how we have made such networks work, and to give you the information and tools you need to start a network project in your local community.

Monthly Introduction February 2006

Welecome to Tech for Non-Profits, the unplugged version of Microdesign Consulting. We feel that non-profit corporations and NGOs deserve the same advantages that technology can bring to for-profit business. To that end, we've dedicated ourselves to finding cost-effective ways to bring the benefits of wide-area networks, computer databases, IP videoconferencing and Voice over IP to our clients and friends. Check out our (mostly) annotated VoIP resource guide.

Review of Screencam tools

eWeek this week has a review of screencam tools. And in the same issue, a review of Asterisk.

DNS

DNS is a mystery. However, in Windows IT Pro this month there is an introductory article that explains DNS, and DNS troubleshooting. Deconstructing DNS by Douglas Toombs,(subscription required) contains an accessible discussion of the theory of DNS, how DNS applies to Active Directory, and Windows-based tools for troubleshooting DNS.
Some of the tools are already present on any Windows workstation; IPCONFIG, and NSLOOKUP.

Random Purchases

I don't know what it is about January, but everything seems to come together in a perfect financial storm. A ton of services and things expire and need to be renewed. It is just amazing even though I'm not sold on "software as a service" (at least as a consumer...) we've constructed a list on ongoing subscriptions to print and online services that need to be re-examined on at least a yearly basis. Here is some of the list, both personal and corporate:

Visual Mind upgrade $89.00 Creating mind-maps

Microsoft's Action Pack: Every microsoft server and desktop application available for developers and consultants to use to run their business as they familiarize themselves with the Microsoft offerings. $299/year. Microsoft also has a developer program that provides for a low-cost Univeral subscription (all the developer tools and servers) for a year, for any developer who intends to offer a shrink-wrap product written using Microsoft tools within an 18 month time frame.

LogMeIn subscriptions. I mentioned this remote-access program last month and ended up buying two "Reach" licenses, each for a year, and one "desktop support" license for a month. I'll probably buy more as I need them, just like they planned.

QuickBooks update for payroll. I'm sticking with QB 2004 Basic.

Upgrading Memory

I had a note the other day from the crucial memory folks. They have an on-line memory evaluation tool which will check the current chips installed in your machine, and recommend upgrades. I was interested to see that both my desktop and laptop had about half of what I would have guessed, 1 megabyte and 512Kb respectively, and it would cost about $140.00 to bring my desktop machine up to 2 gigs, and $185 to bring my laptop up to 1 gig.

Research on Video Conferencing-Based Distance Education

Navigating the Sea of Research on Video Conferencing-Based Distance Education

A Platform for Understanding Research into the Technology's Effectiveness and Value

This is a white paper provided by Polycom, and written by Alan Greenberg of Wainhouse Research. I suppose under most circumstances you might look at this as biased, but since it points to a series of studies and literature searches, which presumably have stood up to peer review, the paper is worth a look. Not surprisingly, they think V.C.B.D.E is terrific. :-)

For delivering instruction, video conferencing
likely is neither more nor less effective than
its counterpart, the �traditional� classroom.

• Interactivity is king � video conferencing supports far greater interaction than is otherwise possible from many asynchronous technologies,
  and effective video conferencing-based instruction must be designed to take advantage of this capability.


• A number of other, related instructional strategies have been identified to maximize the success of a video conferencing-based learning situation.


• When used appropriately, video conferencing is a cost-effective way for educational institutions to deliver successful educational experiences to an expanded student population.

This is one of a host of white papers provided by Polycom which cover all kinds of topics related to videoconferencing. The resource list is located here.