Author: Trefor Davies

Liver of life, father of four, CTO of trefor.net, writer, poet, philosopherontap.com

Off we go again – snoop snoop nnngggggg aaargh

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Friday, 30 October, 2015
No Comments on Off we go again – snoop snoop nnngggggg aaargh

Home Secretary Theresa May wants to look at your browsing history

Home Secretary Theresa May will announce plans to give Police the power to view the web browsing history of everyone in the country when she introduces the Government’s new surveillance bill in the House of Commons on Wednesday.

You are talking to confused of Lincoln here. On the one hand I want the government to catch spies, terrorists, child molesters, cyber criminals etc etc etc. On the other hand I don’t want a 15 year old kid being able to hack in to the database where all my personal online activity is stored and being able make use of what could be very interesting data to someone. If the database doesn’t exist then the kid/crook/etc won’t be able to hack it.

An offline existence seems to be quite an attractive proposition at the moment. One where I can make sure all my doors and windows are locked before I go out and the burglar alarm is set. A life where I don’t wake up in the night and pick up my phone to see what goes.

On the other hand I just bought a book – Venice by Jan Morris. I got it from Amazon, who store my credit card details and inside leg measurement. Had I used offline means to buy the book I would probably never have found it in the first place.

I wanted the book because Anne and I are off to that city in January courtesy of a flash online sale by BA. I found out about the sale via Slack, an IM platform that LONAP uses for intra team communication. BA too have my credit card data and know that I prefer an aisle seat (1C depending on the plane).

Before clicking “buy” I was able to check the reviews of the hotel in Venice. I didn’t go for the first hotel and also opted to upgrade to a room with a view of the Grand Canal, thanks to the reviews. I may use Uber to get me to the airport and quite possibly on another occasion AirBnB to find somewhere to stay.

So the 15 year old kid will be able to watch me take off and then go and burgle my house before heading off himself to a sunny spot (sunnier than Venice in January) paid for with my credit card.

A holiday at home is starting to sound good. I’d amble out and buy a paper every morning. Chillax in a cafe in Lincoln’s Bailgate with a pal, watch the people go by and then buy a few bits and a nice fresh crusty loaf before ambling home for lunch. In the afternoon I may attempt to catalogue my book collection whilst listening to some music on my record player (or possibly a CD if the vinyl is scratched).

Presumably I’d phone a friend to see if he (or she) fancied a coffee or it could be a long standing arrangement (if it’s Tuesday…). I wouldn’t use Facebook…

I’m just a crazy mixed up 53 year old. Is it a generational thing? The demographic 20 years older than me tends not to have an internet connection. They are the dwindling number of people in the UK without broadband. Am I part of a generation with one foot either side of the technological divide who can remember the days before the internet but has until now totally embraced it and who now grows dizzy in this data whirlwind of a world in which we exist.

HELP HELP I cry. I don’t know what to do. I’m just one entry in a database. And anyway I’m off away for the weekend – Durham and York. But then you knew that didn’t you…

Engineer voip

Nominet kills off ENUM project

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Thursday, 29 October, 2015
3 Comments on Nominet kills off ENUM project

Nominet ENUM is no more um

This arrived in the email this morning from Nominet Head of Policy David Abrahams via ITSPA:

“As you will be aware the Nominet ENUM project of 2007 was intended to provide a method for end-users to register ENUM domain names in the 4.4.e164.arpa zone. Nominet signed a contract with the UK ENUM Consortium in 2007 to operate the infrastructure for the UK ENUM system for an initial five year period. Although the UK ENUM Consortium went into liquidation in 2012 we have continued to run a provisioning system (EPP) and dynamic updates and nameservers to support ENUM.

The registration process for ENUM requires a participating registrar and a Validation Agency. The Validation Agency has to be appointed by the UK ENUM Consortium. There are currently no ENUM registrars or Validation Agencies operating for UK ENUM and there have only ever been 6 external registrations since the service was launched, that last being in August 2011.

We therefore intend to suspend support for ENUM services in November, to reduce our overheads of maintaining the infrastructure and service at a time when there is no prospect of any further registrations in the near future. A copy of the DNS zone as it stands now will be held in a repository in the event there is a decision or sufficient demand in the future to resurrect this service. We will endeavour to contact the registrants to notify them of the suspension.

We have made DCMS and Ofcom aware of our intention and thought we would let you know for good measure.”

This is kind of sad. Those of us who were around in the early days of VoIP and SIP had big hopes for ENUM, the system whereby voice calls would be routed over the internet.

The biggest problem was in those days I worked for a PBX vendor, Mitel. PBX vendors have no vested interest in which medium actually carries a phone call or whether that phone call is free or not. The ENUM proposition was that calls would simply be data sessions and therefore free over the internet.

This didn’t really fit in with telcos/carriers who make their money, and in fairness recover their overheads, by charging for calls. It’s no wonder that ENUM didn’t make it as an universal free service. That doesn’t mean to say that ENUM-like tech is not used by carriers to run their voice services as part of their core network.

It is also clear that free Over The Top voice services can be successful – witness Skype, Google Hangouts , Apple Facetime etc etc etc. It’s just that these services have been better marketed by organisations with very deep pockets and other ways of generating their cash.

Still I had a quiet moment of reflection in advance of writing this post in memory of Nominet ENUM and the people involved in the project.

PS featured image is an old stock photo mentioning Nominet. The one of me and Vint Cerf at a Nominet conference was too small to use. Check out the post I wrote following the Nominet ENUM project launch.

Engineer peering travel

Lovely to have you with us

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Thursday, 29 October, 2015
No Comments on Lovely to have you with us

Return from Euro-IX Berlin

I don’t know whether it’s just hotel living or the exposure to different cultures but it’s always nice to come home after a trip overseas. For the first part of this week I was at Euro-IX Berlin. It was the usual useful meeting of Internet Exchange Point operators from mostly Europe but also around the world and I always get a lot out of it.

Our hotel in Berlin put on a fabulous spread for breakfast every day and indeed I took along a bottle of HP Sauce knowing that outside the UK you rarely find such condiments at the table. I knew however in my heart of hearts that the bacon and sausage on offer that would go with the HP were not going to meet spec. They didn’t. After the first day I stuck with croissants and fruit. Very sensible really.

I also find myself making up sandwiches for lunch. These conference hotels always put on a substantial buffet but just think about it. How many of us have a large lunch at work every day (ok outside of France, Spain, Italy etc 🙂 ). We usually have a sandwich or similarly light nosh. So in Berlin I took some bread and whatever meat was on offer and just made a butty.

Dinners I am ok with. Usually international fare served up in every country and accompanied by moderate amounts of beer and wine in keeping with being compos-mentis for the next day of conferencing (bed by 11pm etc :)). However how many of you go out for dinner or to the pub on several consecutive nights when you are at home? Right.

So whilst we all enjoy a bit of travel we all like to get home to our own comfort zone. In very recent memory I recall coming back from consecutive trips to Bucharest and Toledo. After having had a week of rich living I was beginning to suffer (I’ll leave it to your imaginations to decide how). My first action back in the UK was upon leaving Luton Airport to stop at the services on the M1 and purchase a cheese sandwich and a pint of milk. After consuming said items my constitution returned to normal. Hey presto. Amazing really the effect of a cheese sandwich and a pint of milk.

On the trip to Berlin the recuperation began the moment I entered the BA lounge at Telgel Airport. Then when on board the captain welcomed us over the tannoy saying it was “lovely to have us aboard” my shoulders began to relax.

I’m not really a big fan of British culture especially when abroad but there was something very comforting in that use of language. You aren’t going to get it anywhere else. It was as if Sgt Wilson from Dad’s Army was at the controls. Lovely.

The trip home was greatly assisted by technology – Uber. It’s got to a point when travelling that its a real disappointment to arrive somewhere that doesn’t have an Uber service. The rest of the day was beans on toast, hot bath and early to bed to avoid the Apprentice on TV (which really annoys me).

ThatsiffornowfolkscatchyalaterofftoDurhamtoseethekidsthisweekendandthenYorkforaPylonsgig.

PS check out my talk at Euro-IX Berlin about getting stuck in a lift.

PPS the featured image is of some grappa being poured for me at the Aigner restaurant on Tuesday night

End User travel

Sony Centre Berlin

bomb survivor near sony centre in berlin

Sony Centre Berlin – part of a E4Bn investment built on wasteland in the last 20 years

The building in the featured image is next door to the Sony Centre and is the only pre ww2 building in the area to have survived the bombing.

Image below is of some sections of the Berlin wall now on display. I was quite surprised that the wall wasn’t any higher – maybe only 10 or 12 feet. However you have to remember that there were two walls with a minefield and barbed wire in between.

By the time the wall came down there were only 16 million people left in the GDR, 1 million of whom were security guards!!!

And finally a very artistic shot of me in the Sony Centre

End User travel

Euref gas holder Berlin

The tour continues – euref gas holder Berlin

Euref gas holder Berlin. Berlin is a wonderfully atmospheric place. As someone who grew up during the Cold War it really does represent a rich seam of somewhat sombre material for the bloggers imagination. Especially on a grey October day.

Our tour took us to the Euref Centre for Alternative Energy and a sight of a gas holder built in 2013. Not much left around here from that era.

End User peering

The Berlin Conference – Euro-IX Berlin

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Tuesday, 27 October, 2015
No Comments on The Berlin Conference – Euro-IX Berlin

My name is Harry Palmer – Euro-IX Berlin

Sunday was a grey day in Berlin and the stark concrete surroundings of the Olympic Belltower provided an atmospheric background for a short video.

The Belltower, incidentally, was the British Rugby Club clubhouse in Berlin. A suitably indestructible place for rugby players to get drunk (and play rugby obvs).

I am in town for the Euro-IX Berlin forum conference. Other peering posts.

Apps ecommerce End User

Oyster refund yay?

Yay an Oyster card refund

I’m rich! No wait a minute…

Dear Huw Davies

Due to an operational issue, you are due a payment of £2.90. This is now ready for collection at Camden Town.

Payment correction details:
Reason: Payment correction because of an operational issue
Value: £2.90
Reference: 5272976
Collection location: Camden Town
Status: Ready for collection with Oyster card number 12345678910

To collect your payment, touch your Oyster card on a yellow reader at the location shown above when you start a journey.

Please keep your Oyster card number safe. You may need to quote it if you call TfL Customer Services(0343 222 1234).

The only problem with this refund is that I have to go to Camden Town to get it and guess how much that would cost me on the tube? Assuming I am already in Central London. I have probably been to Camden three times in the last five years.

I didn’t even know I had been overcharged. I guess some people do look at their Oyster card credit. I only need to know when it has nearly run out. Why can’t they just credit the card number?

Bit pathetic really innit?

I also have to announce a change in my train ticket collection policy. Having this year lost a couple of tickets and not been able to get replacements I’ve discovered a partial solution. If I opt for “print at home” then if I lose the ticket I can just reprint it.

Now the only problem is that the tickets this year have been lost on the hoof, whilst travelling and therefore nowhere near a printer. The ideal solution is eticketing but in the absence of this very obvious technology at least with print at home I can bring up a pdf (presumably) to show the ticket inspector I have something in the way of a right to be on the train.

That’s all for now folks – at the Euro-IX meeting in Berlin. I may write something up later but it is more likely to be about the social rather than any actual work content.

Auf wiedersehen (pet).

Apps End User phones

12.1-YOG4PAS2QL has just destroyed my battery life

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Thursday, 22 October, 2015
4 Comments on 12.1-YOG4PAS2QL has just destroyed my battery life

oneplus one battery life 12.1-YOG4PAS2QL

The new reduced 12.1-YOG4PAS2QL battery life

As I was fiddling about on my laptop last night in front of The Apprentice, earphones in listening to music and concentrating intensely on my laptop screen to avoid all contact with aforementioned TV programme which I detest intensely, an offer of a firmware update for my Oneplus One came in. 12.1-YOG4PAS2QL.

I didn’t have masses of battery left so plugged it into the wall in the kitchen and returned to my state of ignoring the TV. You might ask why I even bothered sitting in front of the TV when we have a perfectly good living room to retreat to. However Mrs Davies likes the programme so it’s a way of us being together whilst doing different things. Sweet huh? 🙂

This morning I woke up to a fully charged phone with a few bug fixes and security updates. I scoured tinterweb to see if my issue with answering the phone was fixed (see yesterday’s post on Oneplus one freezing on answer). Most online resources just seemed to repeat PR blurb and what I could find suggested not.

One of the notional fixes was an improvement to the power consumption and thus battery life of the Oneplus One. Now I have to tell you my Oneplus One battery life has been great. Not any more it ain’t.

By 9.20 this morning I had about 3 hours left. Wot! People don’t have time to deal with this kind of crap. I am being driven ever closer to a different phone. Changing the settings to power saver just added an hour and dimmed the screen to the point where I’d need to shine a torch on it.

On top of all this I spent some time this morning uninstalling apps I never use – free paris wifi, KLM, stuff like that. I came across something called Truecaller. I didn’t know I had Truecaller. It has zillions of downloads. I don’t appear to be using it but it seems very suspicious if you ask me. It helps prevent incoming spam calls by screening the call against a global database. The problem is it obtains the global database from the directories of all its users.

Now this isn’t necessarily any different to Google knowing everyone’s email addresses but it feel a little uncomfortable. Maybe I’m worrying over nothing and I don’t appear to be using it anyway. Maybe it’s spyware!! It seems to have permission to access practically everything on the phone!!!

Anyway enough of this rant. 12.1-YOG4PAS2QL battery life turns out to be v disappointing. The clock of patience is ticking away on the Oneplus One.

End User phones

How do I decide which is the best mobile phone?

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Wednesday, 21 October, 2015
2 Comments on How do I decide which is the best mobile phone?

Best mobile phone? Unless you got religion it ain’t easy.

I’ve been thinking about getting a new phone. My Oneplus One is not really that old, maybe a yearish and it is still in good nick. Problem is that it keeps freezing when I try answering inbound calls. I end up having to call people back, once they’ve finished leaving a voicemail.

I’ve had a few problems during my time with the OnePlus One. For a while over the summer the phone occasionally became completely unresponsive, constantly appearing to enter digits in the phone unlock screen. This went away, presumably during a firmware upgrade. I’m sure there will be a fix for my current problem. Problem is I don’t want the hassle of researching the solution and then implementing any available patch.

This has made me start thinking of maybe getting a different phone. I’ve even been thinking the unthinkable and considering an iPhone. For those of you who know me you will know that would be a serious change in policy. A step over to the dark side. Funnily enough a number of engineering types I know who have iPhones have always considered themselves to be in the light and that it was who was groping around in the murky underworld.

Yesterday I popped out to our local corner shop (Tesco) where they have a large toy (electrical gadgets) department.I had a go at holding a number of different models – Apple, Samsung and others. Disappointingly the iPhone was by far the most comfortable in my hand. The Galaxy S6 felt it had a strange metal edge to it and the curved job seemed to be a non-starter.

On the basis of that cursory test the iPhone had it. It was interesting to see that you can actually buy a Nokia phone now that costs £15 including £10 worth of PAYG credit on the sim. That’s a fiver for a phone! Fine if you just want a spare to make calls and send texts.

Anyway getting back to my desk I did a search for “best mobile phone 2015”. Techradar came up near the top and their fairly recent review compounded my difficulty. The iPhone 6S, the highest ranking Apple device, only ranked 4th according to Techradar. Now one might consider the Techradar reviewers might be Android biassed but an at a glance look at the specs (courtesy Techradar) shows that the Samsung comes out ahead in a number of the parameters:

1. Samsung Galaxy S6

4. iPhone 6S

The different in battery capability is fairly marked as is the RAM and camera spec. Apple fanbois may counter by claiming better functioning and integration of software. They may be right but this doesn’t help me in my buying decision.

In the meantime I’m going to stick with my Oneplus One and see what comes along. The one lesson here is that (brand zombies/the religious apart) this type of purchasing decision needs to be taken at leisure.

Ciao amigos.

Bad Stuff Business voip

Tickets now available for Exec Dinner with Danny Prieskel – Telecom Fraud Experiences

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Monday, 5 October, 2015
No Comments on Tickets now available for Exec Dinner with Danny Prieskel – Telecom Fraud Experiences

Danny Prieskel discusses Telecom Fraud at trefor.net Exec Dinner

Fraud is a big problem for providers of telecommunications services, be they traditional voice or VoIP services. ITSPA runs workshops where we discuss the subject and has been very active in working with the Metropolitan Police where it comes to fraud response and anti-fraud measures.

The next trefor.net UC Exec dinner will focus on Telecom Fraud and has Danny Prieskel along as guest speaker. If you want to understand more about Telecom Fraud and be part of the debate then you need to be at this event.

Danny Prieskel is a co-founder of Preiskel & Co and has over 20 years’ experience working in the telecoms, media and technology sectors, advising across the globe. He has been ranked for over 15 years in major independent research guides as one of the world’s leading communications lawyers.

He is a friend of our industry and has very generously agreed to come along to this dinner to chat about his experiences with VoIP fraud.

Telecom fraud is a subject that affects most of us in the communications game. Both the Internet Telephony Service Providers Association (ITSPA) and The Federation of Communication Services (FCS) have active programmes on the subject and the joint ITSPA/trefor.net biannual workshops frequently cover the topic.

This evening is an opportunity to get together with senior peers in the industry to discuss the issue.

This event is very generously supported by anti-fraud vendor NetAxis who are currently offering free trials of their Engo fraud detection services to ITSPA members.

trefor.net Exec Dinners are events that gather together leading players from industry for evenings of debate over dinner. Our guest speakers are experts in their field and are there as a catalyst for the debate which is conducted under Chatham House rules. The speakers get as much out of these dinners as the other attendees so we are able to attract some of the leading players in their field.

Previous dinners and lunches have had an interesting variety of guest speakers:

Tony Cox of Microsoft talking about the future of Lync
Huw Rees of 8×8 on the USA market for hosted Internet Telephony
Joe Baguley of VMware talking virtualisation futures
Mehdi Nezarati of esna.com talking about the Google Unified Communications landscape for business
Prof Alan Johnston talking WebRTC
Steph Watson on the future of the PBX
Andy Davidson on “instant on” WANs
Dean Elwood on the Large Telco market
Kevin Murphy of BT on the challenges of moving Voice to the 21CN
Curtis Peterson Global SVP Operations RingCentral

What people have said about trefor.net Exec Dinners:

Sally Fuller – Director Marketing & Centres of Excellence, KCOM
Trefs annual UC dinners are held twice a year and that should give you a clue about their surprising nature from the outset. Tref has a knack of picking interested, interesting and inspiring people that are at the core of making our industry a great one (yes I sneak in on the b list). Tref’s guests get more from sharing their insights and ideas than withholding them. Every time I learn something new, meet someone new, get a new perspective & miss my last train home.

Colin Duffy – CEO, Voipfone
The trefor.net dinners are always good for high quality gossip, industry chit chat and networking – you can guarantee learning something or meeting someone new and useful. Far more importantly though, they’re just a damn good evening out.

Tim Meredith – Director of Unified Communications and Mobile, Daisy Group PLC

I just wanted to thank you for being an excellent host and putting on a really informative (and fun) evening. I hope to attend many future evenings!

Andy Davidson – CTO Allegro Networks, Chairman LONAP, Chairman IX-Leeds, Director Euro-IX

Lively, informative, and tasty! That’s how I’d describe each evening I’ve spent in the company of Tref and his invited guests. You’re guaranteed several conversations with colleagues and key decision makers at organisations across the industry over a relaxed dinner at a fantastic hand-picked menu and location.

Business voip

trefor.net ITSPA workshop final lineup announced

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Wednesday, 30 September, 2015
No Comments on trefor.net ITSPA workshop final lineup announced

trefor.net ITSPA workshop attracts global players to panel

The Autumn trefor.net/ITSPA workshop is colocated with Convergence Summit South in Sandown Park Racecourse on 7th October. The final lineup has been announced and includes some big names from the global VoIP community. The general theme is how to make money and how to stop losing money.

Curtis Peterson (SVP of Operations, RingCentral), Mike Wilkinson (Vice President, Market Offers, Broadsoft) and Dave Axam (DIrector Hosted Communications, BT) join Trefor Davies on a panel to discuss opportunities for Communications Providers to make money.

After the coffee break we have an update on ITSPA’s work with ActionFraud, an introduction to the ENGO fraud protection system from sponsors Netaxi, an introduction from Jose Saras (Partner, Preiskel & Co) on the ITSPA/Preiskel & Co guidance on end user terms and conditions and sponsors Yaana Technologies are going to talk about data retention and the upcoming Investigatory Powers Bill.

The full schedule is below:

The workshop will start at 2.30pm in the Royal Box and finish around 4.30pm.

The agenda:

2.30pm – Part 1: The Telecoms Business – How can providers still make money?

As the market changes, this panel will discuss the best opportunities available for CPs to make decent returns, the market developments that will bring extra value as well as highlighting the markets to consider avoiding.

The panel will include:

Trefor Davies (trefor.net)
Curtis Peterson (SVP of Operations, RingCentral)
Mike Wilkinson (Vice President, Market Offers, Broadsoft)
Dave Axam (DIrector Hosted Communications, BT)

3.15pm – Teas and Coffees

3.30pm – Part 2: The Telecoms Business Fraud Update- The ITSPA tool kit to stop your business losing money

This session will provide a summary of ITSPA initiatives to prevent against fraud and options to consider to help strengthen your current fraud prevention procedures, including:

Update on ITSPA’s work with ActionFraud
Introduction to the ENGO fraud protection system from sponsors Netaxis
Introduction from Jose Saras (Partner, Preiskel & Co) on the ITSPA/Preiskel & Co guidance on end user terms and conditions

If you want to come just RSVP to [email protected].

Apps Business business applications webrtc

Winners of Genband WebRTC Apps Competition

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Tuesday, 29 September, 2015
No Comments on Winners of Genband WebRTC Apps Competition

Metronet win prestigious WebRTC Apps competition.

The WebRTC apps competition we ran in conjunction with/sponsored by GENBAND came up with three clear leaders and one eventual winner. One entry showed how WebRTC would be monetized and the others presented their solution it as an an overlay to existing support services.

The idea was that entrants would be given free accounts on the Genband Kandy WebRTC Platform as a Service and then use those accounts to put together innovative service ideas.

The eventual winner was Metronet.

The judges were hugely impressed at the number of levels Metronet were able to utilize WebRTC and KANDY. The technology was used in a mobile devices, M2M connectivity to their monitoring systems and integrated into their core CRM platform. The solution also utilized messaging, file sharing, voice, video, conferencing and collaboration.

Metronet have based a large amount of their success in both their Data and Voice offering on their proactive customer service and saw the potential to be able use WebRTC to grow that service commitment still further. The underlying monitoring platform was already in place so triggering a the group message to the Engineering Application from there was quite simple. Metronet were able to use the KANDY reference mobile apps to very quickly allow the engineers access to the group from both Android and Apple mobile devices.

By then adding WebRTC calling into their NOC CRM they were able to build a consolidated environment fault resolution environment for voice, video, conferencing and collaboration with the result of a “cradle to grave” resolution for faults so inevtiably improving already impressive SLAs.

Everyone involved would like to congratulate Metronet for their entry and look forward to seeing more of their inventive use of the technology.

Stuart Goble, GENBAND VP Sales UK, Ireland and Nordics was pleased with how the competition and sponsorship went: “Metronet took a real business problem and defined a solution using KANDY technology. The application is built with a combination of rich-messaging and real time voice and video provided by the KANDY platform. KANDY provides a set of tools that makes the process simple for IT developers, allowing very specific applications like this to be cost effectively developed.”

In conclusion:

Winner is Metronet – WebRTC and Metronet portal advances engineer response
Second Place – Manor Telecom – WebRTC powers the “webphonebox.com”
Third Place – DRD – WebRTC powers Uboss Test line functionality

See our WebRTC section on this blog for other related posts.

Apps Business webrtc

Second WebRTC Apps Competition finalist

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Tuesday, 29 September, 2015
No Comments on Second WebRTC Apps Competition finalist

WebRTC Apps Competition finalist DRD Communications.

The WebRTC apps competition we ran in conjunction with/sponsored by GENBAND came up with three clear leaders and one eventual winner. One entry actually showed how WebRTC would be monetized and the others presented their solution it as an an overlay to existing support services.

The idea was that entrants would be given free accounts on the GENBAND KANDY WebRTC Platform as a Service and then use those accounts to put together innovative service ideas.

The second WebRTC Apps Competition finalist was DRD Communications. DRD will be more familiar to you as the holding company that owns the Vanilla IP Broadsoft wholesale provider..

DRD’s simple but very effective entry showed the simplicity by which WebRTC via the KANDY APIs can be integrated into existing successful applications to provide useful day to day functionality. The original scenario allowed DRD to add a test calling function to their augment their market leading back office provisioning, billing and integration Uboss www.uboss.com but the same JavaScript APIs could have just have easily been used to provide voice and video access to a support engineer or sales representative. Additionally using the conferencing and collaboration functionality provided by the KANDY platform those conversations could allow users to be walked through configuration or other troubleshooting scenarios on a shared screen.

The judges saw that the DRD’s development company were implementing small and simple code additions to an already powerful management platform to provide significant functional options. The code they used meant they could quickly apply the WebRTC/KANDY functionality to other areas of the application allowing them to react quickly to Uboss developments or potentially to a customer’s needs.

This application is likely to one of the big wins for the WebRTC technology.

See our WebRTC section on this blog for other related posts.

Apps Business business applications webrtc

GENBAND Summer of Apps WebRTC Competition finalist Manor IT

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Tuesday, 29 September, 2015
No Comments on GENBAND Summer of Apps WebRTC Competition finalist Manor IT

WebRTC apps competition winners include monetisation of the technology

The idea was that entrants would be given free accounts on the GENBAND KANDY WebRTC Platform as a Service and then use those accounts to put together innovative service ideas.

The first of the finalists was Manor IT:

Manor IT

Manor IT’s “WebPhoneBox” entry impressed the judges as it directly monetized the WebRTC where as other entries used the technology to augment services improving existing commercial or business process functions. The Website allowed Manor to address the maximum subscriber audience on two levels. Firstly it was designed so you could use the service without having a to register an account just like a “PhoneBox” but secondly the access could be from any device and network without having to download an app.

To make a call the user logs onto ‘www.webphonebox.com” website (currently this function is in beta and not openly available) and enters the dialed number, payment method and payment amount. This information is then securely passed to the Manor IT Application Server. Alternatively existing account details and DDI can be used.

The Application Server verifies the payment details with the appropriate financial house.

The destination tariff is identified via Manor IT’s JeraSoft rating platform providing a maximum call duration. An authentication token is then provided to the KANDY WebRTC platform and passed to the web browser which then initiates the call

The call can then be established through KANDY and via Manor IT’s Session Border Controllers utilizing and utilizing Manor IT’s full LCR. 1 minute before call is cleared down a pop up allows the user to top up the account.

Using this method of paying for a call groups of people can share PC or Tablet devices far more easily as logging out of the website or the time restrictions on the access keys meaning there is no fear of other users accidently using their credit. The inbuilt WebRTC protocol NAT traversal and variable codecs on the media path coupled with the use of HTTPS on the signaling path means that any network should be usable even if it is locked down for SIP (e.g. Hotel WIFI) or has complex NAT or bandwidth issues.

Overall this was a simple idea that used various properties of WebRTC to provide an innovative solution and Genband congratulate Manor IT and their development are Devine IT www.divineit.net.

See our WebRTC section on this blog for other related posts.

End User travel

Thoughts from a cocoon

Flight BA 462 to Madrid

I’m buried in music on a flight to Madrid. My own earphones insulate me from the tinny emissions of a cheap set of earphones across the aisle. The dress code is high summer. Whilst Autumn in the UK has screeched around the corner and slid to a halt in front of me kicking up the detritus of the season of light it is still hotter in Madrid than the highest temperatures we see back home.

I’ve read some of the paper (FT) and had a brief snooze which was only interrupted by the food trolley. Fair play the iced bun was quite tasty. It was slightly annoying having seen copies of the Financial TImes available free of charge as I got on the plane. I had just forked out £3.50 barely 30 minutes earlier.

At least I was in the privileged position of priority boarding on account of my BA frequent flyer status (bronze – 🙂 It’s a pleasant enough flight. Seat 16F has an empty seat beside it so room to spread out the FT and another tray on which to put my cup of tea. Yes folks, a cup of tea. The 3 days in Sheffield talking about the internet last week were quite boozy and I’d rather arrive at the hotel tonight reasonably fresh. A beer on the terrace, assuming there is such a facility, will then be most refreshing.

Yesterday I bought a campervan. It’s an early VW T2 bay – 1971. No road tax as it’s considered to be a vintage car. We havent decided what to call it yet. The previous owners called it Kay, presumably due to it’s K reg number plate. That’s a bit wishy washy for me. Ideally I wanted a Dave. We will have to give the name some thought. I’m not even sure if it’s a boy or a girl.

When I get back to the UK I need to book tickets to Latitude. If you have a campervan you need to go to festivals. MIght even do it from Madrid. I believe the internet arrived there some time ago. It’s a nice hotel where I’m staying. NH Collection Eurobuilding. I’m there for the European Peering Forum – EPF as those who know call it.

It’s just going to be an extension of Sheffield – long days talking to people and long nights eating and drinking. I might just have a quiet night in at the hotel tonight. Bit of a swim followed by a healthy meal and some refreshing mineral water. Yea. Honest! 😉

The hotel has a very nice looking spa with a load of treatments on offer. I never bother with the treatments. For one my back is too ticklish. A massage has me writhing in ticklish agony. Usually I end up just wallowing in a hot tub for a while. This time I have brought my swimming goggles – I’m gonna try and get some exercise.

10 minutes to landing. That’s all you’re getting. Ciao amigos.

Engineer engineering internet

UKNOF32 Sheffield Day 2

Engineer peering

UK & Ireland Peering Forum Sheffield

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Wednesday, 16 September, 2015
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Live blogging from the UK & Ireland Peering Forum

chromebook End User

He’s dead jim

He’s dead Jim & Captain I cannae hold her

This He’s dead Jim is getting to be a bit of a nuisance. I often find tabs have crashed on my Chromebook with the message “He’s dead Jim”. This is usually a memory issue.

Google reveals that lots of people have the same issue. Indeed my lovely daughter Hannah has the same problem and she has the same model of Chromebook as me.

Now the thing is I only paid £150 plus VAT for this Chromebook. It’s a low end job but serves me perfectly apart from this bit about getting my name wrong. My name as you all know is not Jim.

Problem is that references to Jim are becoming more frequent and a pain in the proverbial. Online advice suggests rebooting my Chromebook more often to get rid of unnecessary background processes. I’ve just done this and it remains to be seen whether it has an effect. I will have to tell you later.

In the meantime I’ve been thinking about upgrading my Chromebook. They are very cheap but this is part of the problem. What I’d really like is a Pixel but that costs over a grand and in my mind shies away from the whole concept of disposability of hardware which I am a fan of.

If I lose or break (difficult) my Acer I just buy another, log on and hey presto I am up and running. If my device costs a thousand pounds this principle doesn’t apply.

The Pixel does have some benefits – 12 hours battery life (wtf omg!!!), a better screen resolution and better audio. I’m not sure the touch screen functionality is an attraction.

Whether it will cure the He’s dead Jim problem I am not sure – I wouldn’t be very happy if the problem persisted on a device I paid that much cash for. It could push me toward the dark side (ie the fruit).

I’ll have a think about it and if a conclusion is reached be sure you will be the first to know.

Check out more Chromebook posts.

PS I just chucked in that comment re “Captain I cannae hold her” for a laugh. If you don’t understand you are not on my wavelength 🙂

End User security

Secure data stolen from Lloyds Bank datacentre

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Thursday, 10 September, 2015
No Comments on Secure data stolen from Lloyds Bank datacentre

lloyds bank data theft

I note Police are investigating the disappearance of a storage device that contains people’s names, addresses, sort codes and account numbers, after it was taken from a data centre in July (Telegraph).

Some thoughts here.

Why would the Telegraph store this kind of info unencrypted on a data device? Indeed why would they store it on a physical device that could be stolen at all? Doesn’t sound like a very secure situation to me at all.
Lloyds might have argued that Datacentres themselves are inherently secure. Well yes they are but there have been a number of examples over the years where people have stolen kit, usually expensive routers, from “secure” racks in “secure datacentres”. Datacentre security usually involves multiple layers of sign-in/verification and also involves cctv. Doesn’t seem to stop this kind of thing happening though.
On this basis we should consider all data to me inherently insecure and open to theft at some point and assume that it will be stolen. The only way around this is to have a regime that involves regular password changes. I assume you all do this right? Even then it doesn’t guarantee the security of your data.
If we assume that data will inevitably at some point be stolen then the question arises as to whether we are storing this data unnecessarily. eg do you need to keep your online banking login information stored somewhere that may be stolen. How about on a bit of paper hidden in a sock instead? (no clues being given here btw:)
We should also question it when others propose to store your personal data for their own purposes. I’m sure there are many examples of this – you can name your own.

At this stage if I let it get to me I’d be a quivering wreck. There’s a lot of stuff out there about me. What can I do about it?

Part of the problem (problem?) is that stick a lot of stuff online myself without being prompted. Yesterday’s video of a goods train passing in front of me got over 4,500 views on Facebook with no effort whatsoever.

People will know I was at that specific railway crossing at the time the video was taken. Given enough time you could build up a profile of my regular movements and habits just from information publicly available on the web.

Although I know some people who shy away from platforms like Facebook for this very reason I don’t. In fact I’ve started to use Facebook more and more as believe it or not it is good for business. I’ve even installed the Facebook app on my droid despite my previous misgivings about the personal data it wanted to access on my phone.

I’ve basically just said “to hell with it” and plunged into the deep-end instead of playing about where I was able to stand up without the water coming over my head.

I don’t know where all this is going. On Tuesday one of my kids became the proud owner of a macbook pro. During the (brief) install phase he told me the machine was asking him whether he wanted to encrypt the disk. I googled this and found that Apple had introduced this feature as standard to make it harder for governments to snoop on their customers’ data.

We probably need to rely on these big companies doing the right thing because they have the resources to be able do it right. It is a worry though especially when half their business model relies on them collecting enough personal information about you to be able to sell it.

I’ve gone on enough here and it’s nearly time to go home. I’m cooking a pork casserole so that we have something ready for when we get back from Galashiels at the weekend. Look out for a post about The Pylons gig we are going to see at the 100 Bands Festival. In fact if you are in the area come and see them. 1pm main stage Saturday.

Lots more posts on the subject of data theft and online security in the security category of this blog.

PS I am a Lloyds Bank customer and user their mobile app. I am happy to do this because they guarantee to cover any losses due to theft arising from my use of the app. It’s the way ahead.

Apps End User mobile apps spam

WhatsApp spam

WhatsApp spam endemic

Aaaargh just received my first WhatsApp spam message. I don’t even use WhatsApp though I do have the App on my droid. It’s getting uninstalled right now.

The spam originated from someone who created a group , added me to it, sent the spam and then removed me from the group. Must be a machine in play there.

An App must truly be labelled useless if all it does is serve you with spam.

I also still get phone call spam. I spent much of this afternoon getting my Snom M700 DECT system working. Wasn’t totally straightforward as it isn’t a Voipfone supported device but they have some great engineers and we got it sorted.

So now our home phone number points at two Snom DECT handsets (kitchen and TV room), a Yealink (conservatory/office) and on the CSIPSimple App on my mobile. I was just running through the ringtone options with the family when a son told me my mobile was ringing. This was somewhat confusing as so was the phone I had in my hand. Trouble is I was trying out a ringtone when it happened so little old me got confused initially.

I eventually did answer the Snom only to find it wasn’t a sales call from the subcontinent but a survey (from the subcontinent). The caller told me he was from a company called UK Surveys, or simlar. I asked him where in the UK he was and told him I didn’t trust him so he put the phone down on me. Oh ok.

I told the family that these calls would start getting less frequent as I would be implementing call barring where the inbound number was withheld. This raised a chorus of complaints on the basis that the call might be important. My view is if a person doesn’t have the courtesy to tell me their number they don’t deserve to be answered.

Anyway we are now a landline-less household. The home number is virtual. It is the way of the ~~future~~ present. I am now also WhatsApp-less. A truly uninspiring experience. At least WhatsApp spam is no longer going to be receivable on my phone.

See previous tome on WhatsApp. If you get WhatsApp spam they have a page on the subject that isn’t massively helpful.

PS I realise some of might not consider one spam message to be “endemic”. I do.

PPS I’m back. Hols are over. They were great. Now I need to get some work done and lose some weight.

charitable food and drink Weekend

Evening meals and aid for refugees

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Saturday, 5 September, 2015
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Lincoln aid for refugees

Tonight we are having pork curry. It’s been cobbled together from some leftovers from last night’s bbq and the use of some spices I bought last year when strolling through Lincoln market. I came across a stall selling Indian spices so I bought a few quid’s worth without really knowing when I’d make use of them.

Since then the garam masala mix has been used pretty extensively but we hardly seem to have touched the huge bagful. This time I roasted and ground some of the spices then fried them in oil and ghee together with garlic, ginger and green chili. Add onions, green pepper, bbd’d pork from last night, a tin of coconut milk and two of tomatoes and we are cooking on gas (yes).

Rugby has been watched but cricket ignored – I don’t think it’s going very well. Hannah and I have also been to deliver food to the collection point for the Calais refugees. The whole situation has caught everyone’s imagination and there was a constant stream of people delivering mostly clothes to the collection point down behind the Horse and Groom pub in Lincoln.

Hannah and I had been to Tesco to return the borrowed glasses we used for the party last night. Whilst we were there we stacked up with basic foodstuffs – oil, rice, flour etc for our donation. For some reason it gave me quite a pleasure on emptying the Tesco shelves of their value tomato puree. Maybe it was the ordered rows of tubes of puree that I liked although it was quite an emotional thing to fill the shopping trolley with food destined for people with a real need for it. I tried to imagine who it would end up with.

The whole refugee situation has become distressing. Over time my attitude to the refugees has changed from “these are just trying to get somewhere they can have a richer life” to “wow these are real people with really desperate problems trying to flee to somewhere safe where they can lead normal lives and their kids can go to school”.

We stacked up our trolley with food but in doing so wondered whether there was a more efficient way of using the money. Buying the food from a wholesalers rather than Tesco. Buying sacks of rice rather than small bags of the value stuff, though those did seem to offer the best value in-store. At least it made us feel that we were helping in our small way and unfortunately I’m not sure I trust big charities enough to donate them cash.

I think I will at least value the fact that we are able to have the curry in the comfort and safety of our own kitchen tonight rather than be hungry on some roadside or in a refugee camp somewhere in Europe.

travel Weekend

Winding my way down beach street the holidays are drawing to a close

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Thursday, 3 September, 2015
No Comments on Winding my way down beach street the holidays are drawing to a close

beach street – summer of excess

It’s back to school tomorrow and the walks down beach street will soon become a distant memory. The ice cream parlour on the prom effectively closes its doors to us until the next holiday.

No longer will we be woken by the cry of seagulls. No more early morning trips to the breakwater, cool breeze ruffling our hair, a gaze out to sea and back for breakfast.

The second hand bookshop on Michael Street will have time to replenish its stocks and the regulars in the snug of the Whitehouse Hotel can have their seats back.

This morning I am wearing long trousers for the first time since maybe May and the early signs of autumn have also driven me to long sleeves and a light coat for my trip to London. I am easing myself back into the land of work just as nature eases us gently from Summer into Autumn.

Got some exciting projects coming up. Stay tuned.

travel Weekend

Rachel Hair Do

Rachel Hair do – you going?

Still on holiday and thought you’d like this – a poster for a gig in Peel, IoM. They don’t explicitly say it’s the Rachel Hair do but seems obvious. She’s also pretty used to the pun I’m sure 🙂

travel Weekend

Glen Maye and other holiday musings

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Sunday, 30 August, 2015
No Comments on Glen Maye and other holiday musings

Yesterday Dad and I picked Tom up from the airport. His flight showed up as running 5 minutes late so we took the opportunity to nip to the bottle bank before heading for the airport. Turns out the flight landed 8 minutes early so the lad was there waiting for u when we arrived at Ronaldsway.

Our My plans for a trip on the Manx Electric Railway and thence up the mountain were stymied by the fact that I had forgotten the roads were closed all day for the Grand Prix. Instead we went for a walk down Gen Maye. Some of us. It’s a beautiful glen with a pebble beach at the end of the walk. Lovely walk.

Back to the house in Peel to catch the Ireland v Wales rugby. There are some things that always take priority over holiday activities. We won. Later out to dinner at the Harbour Lights Cafe on the promenade (@harbour_lights). great food. The place was packed. You bring your own wine and there is no corkage. Prior to the meal we had a beer at the Marine, just over the road then afterwards Hannah and I walked around the breakwater before heading back up the hill.

Today it’s the annual Viking Longboat Races. First time we have been here whilst they are on. Exciting. Pics to follow hopefully. Then we have friends Elaine and Peter coming round to dinner. Roast beef with all the trimmings. Not often Dad gets to do a joint as he is on his own.

After today we have one more full day left in the Isle of Man. Back home Thursday evening. It’s been a good couple of weeks. It’ll take me a while to recover I’m sure. I’m in London on Thursday for a lunch and then a LONAP meeeting. Not too onerous a start back to work.

Catch ya later…

travel Weekend

Walking around Peel Shoprite

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Saturday, 29 August, 2015
No Comments on Walking around Peel Shoprite

Walking around Peel Shoprite

Walking around Peel Shoprite whilst the others bought some salady bits for dinner last night. Had just returned from Tynwald Mills where we happened across a shoe sale. We bought 5 pairs of shoes for £50 including a pair of Barkers leather shoes reduced from £170 to £10. Steal.

May stick up some photos in due course – fwiw.

travel Weekend

Peel Saturday 29th August and yes Tref is still on holiday

Post author By Trefor Davies
Post date Saturday, 29 August, 2015
No Comments on Peel Saturday 29th August and yes Tref is still on holiday

Peel Saturday 29th August

Just been out for my favourite early morning spin to Fenella beach. I do the same route every time. Down past Moore’s Kipper factory and along the far side of the quay to Fenella car park.

Unfortunately at this time of year there are always a few campervans taking up the far end of the car park. The really scenic end. I don’t blame them. I’d do the same myself. A fantastic place to spend the night. However I like to get there early and have the place to myself. Not happening on a bank holiday weekend.

After gazing at the sea and castle for a few minutes I then move round to the breakwater. This morning I parked up and climbed the stairs. A bit of breeze but a perfectly calm sea. Absolutely no boats in sight and indeed to begin with the only other people in sight were a couple of fishermen at the far end of the breakwater. It’s low tide. Don’t know if it is a good time to fish.

Out to sea there was no sign of a basking shark. There never is. I did see one once. Once in about ten or fifteen years of looking. This coming Monday we are going on a 2 hour boat ride to the south of the island. The Sound. If we are ever going to see basking sharks that will be the time.

Turning my attention to the inner breakwater a few fishing boats are tied up. I don’t know how they decide which days to go out. Today is a Saturday so maybe not. They are bottom dredgers, after queenies. Crabs are also landed at Peel but not much else these days I think, at least not on an industrial scale. I might be wrong but haven’t seen any.

Back in the car I drive back around the marina and along the prom. This morning a flock of geese had decided to take a stroll so I pulled up for a short while and watched. They showed no sign of going anywhere in a hurry. Tourists at large. Eventually I squeezed the car past the outermost goose and made my way left past the Heritage Museum and the Creek pub, along the harbour and down to the end of the prom. Someone was already ensconced in one of the shelters. Probably be there all day now. An old man with a pony tail.

I point the car back up the hill and head for home.

travel Weekend