The last ten years have without a doubt been filled with many memorable ups and downs. From an unprecedented terrorist attack and two recessions to the swearing in of the United States first African American president and a growing focus on protecting the environment, the significance of the events since the start of the millennium have left a lasting impact on who we are and how we think of the world around us.
Without a doubt, technology has been one of the biggest influencers of the past decade, and it’s fabulous to reflect on how far we’ve come since the dawn of Y2K. While there have been countless advances and improvements, some technologies have changed our lives for ever. For better or worse, the following top 10 tech advances are now part of our reality and positioned to become even more ubiquitous as we peek into the future.
Web 2.0
First coined at a conference in 2004 to label a second generation of internet-based services, Web 2.0 has shifted the Internet away from static web pages towards dynamic and collaborative content and social networking. Web-based communities, hosted services, web applications, social networking sites, video-sharing sites, wikis, blogs, mashups, and more are all examples of Web 2.0. Certainly just the fact that there are now over 65 million Facebook users worldwide is enough reason to put this among the best 10 tech advances of the decade. However, if you also include how this shift in how we use the Internet applies to business, education, politics, news, and entertainment, its influence is truly monumental.
VoIP
It’s hard to hold that only a decade ago we were paying our local phone company by the minute whenever we made a call outside of our place code. Rates were often outrageously high, and many people simply couldn’t afford to call friends and family living abroad. Then came Skype, MediaRing Talk, and a whole host of other internet phone providers that made calling anywhere in the world affordable and often times free.
Yes, VoIP technology might have been first introduced in the 1990s, but it wasn’t widely available to consumers until the last ten years. Now, many of us have replaced our landlines with VoIP phone service such as Vonage and don’t think twice about calling long distance. VoIP has also been instrumental in the shift to overseas call centers and the growth in teleconferencing, and has become an instrumental tool for countless businesses that have expanded their customer base beyond their local site.
Cloud Computing
Cloud computing, also known as internet-based computing, let us slash hardware and software expenses and pay for only the applications we use. Cloud computing buzz words and acronyms like software as a service (SaaS) and platform as a service (PaaS) began rolling off the tongues of IT managers as they discovered the cost-savings in this technology. Cloud computing spawned a wave of telecommuting as workers could now access their data and applications by logging on from their home PC. It also let small businesses gain access to many of the same tools that were once only available to their larger competitors who had deep pockets for IT expenditures.
Smartphones
Blackberries, iPhones, Android phones, and many others. We have definitely made a tremendous leap in mobile phone technology. As we enter 2010, we employ our phones to text message, send emails, browse the Internet, play games, take photos, read books, and listen to music. With PC capabilities, these supped up phones have itsy-bitsy in common with our cumbersome cell phones of days gone by. No doubt, manufacturers such as Apple and Nokia will continue to churn out new advances as our addiction to mobile technology grows.
TiVo/DVR Players
For TV lovers, TiVo and digital video recorder technology have been among the decade’s best technological advances. While we once bought and level-headed video tapes, frustrated ourselves with programming our VCRs, and hoped for the best that we taped the shows we wanted to watch, we’re now ensured that we’ll never miss anything on TV. By storing programs onto hard disk storage, we can also do cool things with this handy technology like pausing live TV and rewinding and replaying it with a touch of a button.
Digital Cameras
When was the last time you bought a little yellow box of Kodak film? If you’re like most, you ditched your old camera for a digital model sometime in the last ten years. Now, we can choose an unlimited amount of photos, upload them onto our PCs, share them with everyone on Facebook and Flickr, and make copies on our home printer. Professional photographers almost exclusively work in digital now and have to be equally talented in Photoshop as they are at shooting at the right angle.
Streaming Media
Streaming media technology has let us incorporate audio, video, and multimedia in ways that we never thought were possible. Adding a video to a personal blog, incorporating a webcast to your corporate site, watching your favorite point to on HULU, or downloading your favorite tunes to your iPod, streaming media has made the online world more lively, up-to-date, and interactive.
GPS
For the navigationally challenged, traipsing to AAA before a trip for foldable paper maps was a must. Now, our cars and mobile phones are designed with GPS (global positioning system) in place to retain us from getting lost. This satellite-based navigation system, made up of 24 satellites effect into orbit by the US Dept. of Defense, was originally developed for military use. However, it’s quickly become a favorite tech gadget for civilians, too.
Wii
Video games used to be primarily for teenage boys with too distinguished time on their hands. Nintendo’s Wii changed all of that. The home video game console’s distinguishing feature is its wireless controller which detects movement in 3-D. With a growing number of games, including Wii Fit that is being targeted to “gamers” of all ages and has been incorporated into exercise programs at health clubs worldwide, there’s no denying that Wii has changed the map we play video games.
E-Book Readers
Internet gurus have touted the waste of printed books for nearly two decades, but the technology to allow readers to truly enjoy printed material on a highly readable, portable procedure simply wasn’t available until this decade. Now e-book readers such as Barnes & Helpful Nook and Amazon Kindle are piquing the curiosity of book lovers everywhere and selling out at retailers. Like what the iPod did for music, e-book readers are now taking the publishing world by storm.
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Filed under Vonage Business Solutions by on Jan 28th, 2012. Comment. 
Back in the day, if you wanted to call someone on the telephone you had to go through a switchboard operating system. There were even times where you could hear your neighbors talking on the telephone. Even recently when I was using my old cordless house phone I could hear a conversation, but had no idea where it was coming from. It probably was picking up close signals from people in my apartment building..
Now there are other methods of talking on the telephone then being required to stand next to your phone that is hooked up to the wall.
Cell phones
This is an obvious one. So many people, even young kids have their own cell phone. Cell phones have been a big dispute for many years on whether people should be allowed to talk on them while in the car. These have many different providers, styles, and are portable where ever you are just as long as you are getting a signal.
Disadvantages to cell phone are those times when your battery runs low or you are in an place without service. I have a tough time getting service sometimes on my phone, but some people don’t at all. Dropped calls are a common thing as well. However, having a cell phone can be a large thing, especially during emergencies.
What you will need: Cell phone, charger, battery (should be included) and a service plan.
High Speed Internet Connection Phones
There are many different providers for this one. There are large companies such as Vonage providing this service or just your local cable company. Basically you hook your phone up to a phone adapter that is connected to high speed internet. Normally this service will provide you with free long distance anytime, anywhere. This can be a great alternative if you have a high speed internet connection. If you are interested in this one, even see if your cable provider has it available. If they do you’ll be able to attach your phone bill (monthly fee usage) to your cable bill too.
These high speed connection phones can offer you the same things your regular phone company can such as Caller ID, voicemail, 3way calling, call waiting, and call transfer.
This option isn’t available to anyone since you will need a high speed internet connection such as cable to get this to work. You will also need to buy a phone adapter which may or may not be fraction of a free installation. This is something that will be different for each provider.
What you will need: High speed internet (Cable or DSL), telephone, telephone adapter, sterling power cords and cables
Messenger Phones
There are now features available when using your instant messaging system. There’s a couple ways your can do this. You can either have an sincere phone number, or honest pay for your minutes. I do know that Yahoo messenger is offering around $0.01 a dinky. If all you do is pay for the minutes, people will not be able to call you back. However, for a very miniature price per month (about $5.00) you can have your own phone number.
People will be able to call your computer or you can call them in return. Like your high speed internet phones and cell phones you can take this phone number with you where ever you are, providing that you have a computer next to you and you are signed into your fable on messenger.
This is probably the big downfall of this service is that it requires you to be logged into your messenger and be at your computer. But if you are near a computer the majority of the time, it is a very inexpensive service. You pay for your minutes much like a calling card and can do it online with your credit card. It’s also a nice method of utilize if you want to have a 2nd phone line only for certain people (business, certain friends) you can have a less expensive service.
What you will need: Computer, instant messenger with this feature, microphone. (headset optional)
it’s become easier to stay in touch with the people you love. And even if no phone options are available to you, there is still the standard instant messaging, e-mails, standard letters, faster ways to travel for visits, and if you’re a gamer you could play with your friends online with all the games out there.
But if you’re a phone person, there are options available to you. And if all else fails, there are always pay phones around town.
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Filed under Vonage Business Solutions by on Jan 27th, 2012. Comment.
Network integration, VoIP (voice over IP), document management, web applications development, online security, procurement of hardware and software – this is all section of the field of information technology. It’s a large section of most businesses’ operating budget, despite the dramatic fall in the cost of computer hardware over the past decade or so. For an increasing number of companies in Boston, IT outsourcing is proving to be an economical alternative.
For businesses in
Boston IT outsourcing confers several advatages. Contemplate for example the largest share of your company’s operating budget – employee wages and benefits. When you take into consideration the number of employess accessing and making utilize of your comapny’s IT system as well as the number of IT maintenance workers you have on staff, then figure in their average salary, ongoing training costs, benefits packages and payroll expenses, you will most likely discover that IT outsourcing is a far more cost-effective solution.
Local Boston IT consultants will do an extensive analysis of your current IT system, pinpointing its weaknesses and vulnerabilities – which are more than you may realize. Those offering Boston IT outsourcing are also experts in how to speed up and optimize the functions of your all-important IT systems, which can cost much less than you deem – and in all probablity, involves very itsy-bitsy alteration of your current hardware configuration.
Realize also that your business and its products and/or services are unique, and “one-size-fits-all” IT solutions, for all their appeal, are often not the best. An investment in Boston IT outsourcing means you’ll get the answers and solutions that are best for your particular business. Boston IT consultants are independent contractors that work for themselves or an independent company that does not represent the interests of Microsoft, Apple, IBM, HP or Dell. Their IT solutions for your company may involve products from one or more of those firms – or none at all. For instance, here’s an example of how Boston IT outsourcing can work for you; how noteworthy money would your company save if it did not have to pay thousands of dollars each year to license Microsoft Office? Were you aware that there is a free application that has virtually all the same functionality and saves documents in a compatible format? What do you know about the free and rock-solid operating system known as Linux?
Boston IT outsourcing is not only a money saver, it is an education during which you are likely to discover an entire host of low- and no-cost software solutions for your businesses’ IT systems.
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Filed under Vonage Business Solutions by on Jan 24th, 2012. Comment.
Now that most families have high speed internet in their home, some have decided to break free from traditional landline phone services. Dealing with the unexpectedly high costs of home phone service, they wanted an alternative and started to use VOIP (Voice over IP). This proved to be one of the best and cheapest solutions for telephone needs. That is one of the main reasons I decided to disconnect my landline service and go totally digital. Through my research to find the best companies available, I was able to arrive up with a couple of reasons for others to try this type of service as well.
Save a bundle- Money is an important reason for someone to look for alternative phone service. With traditional landline phone service, you could pay well over a hundred dollars per month. It feels like you have spent an entire year’s salary on one month of phone service. Making international calls cost even more. Using VOIP is tremendously different when it comes to cost. With my current service I am able to pay less than thirty dollars a month and salvage to enjoy unliminted nationwide calling. I also find extremely great yell quality whenever I make or receive calls. Not having to hear a constant hum or static on my phone line is a relief.
Features galore- On my old service, I was only able to obtain a few calling features and they were not the ones I really wanted. In order to have other features, it would cost me an additional price. My phone costs slowly started to climb and my wallet constantly shrunk. VOIP service providers are able to provide you with an abundance of different calling features that are useful. You are then able to customize these features objective the arrangement you like them. I love using the transfer feature with my current provider because it gives me convenience. If I happen to answer a call at home and need to leave, then all I have to do is transfer my current call to my mobile phone. It is just that simple.
Phone number from any location- This is another one of my favorite reasons to use VOIP service. No matter where you live in the United States, you are able to get a phone number based out of a totally different state. Business owners can use this to their advantage. If they would like their customer immoral to think that they are nationwide, then get a phone number from a different spot. Anytime you have to travel to another state, you can unruffled keep your fresh phone number and won’t have to change it. I consider VOIP service to be “convenient phone service in a box”.
Not having to regularly worry about what the cost will be of my home phone service the next month gives me a peace of mind. I know ahead of time how much I will have to spend on it. The only way it will change is if I add more services or phone lines to it. I appreciate opening my phone bills now because I was able to customize my service for a very uncouth price.
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Filed under Vonage Business Solutions by on Jan 21st, 2012. Comment.
Net Neutrality is the current hot topic phrase at the center of many ideological and business debates. At its essence net neutrality simple means that Internet Service Providers (ISP) or government institutions cannot limit access to internet speeds, or internet sites based on your behavior online.
For example, Comcast Cable recently has purposefully reduced speeds of customers who hog up a lot of broadband space by either uploading or downloading large files. Even though these customers are well within their right to use the service they paid for, Comcast wants a bigger piece of the pie from these types of customers. Comcast would also want to do this in order to force customers into buying higher priced internet plans, and to construct a false scarcity that they could then raise the price on all their services.
Comcast and companies like them want to create an artificial market that they can manipulate without competition in order to dictate who and at what price someone pays for internet service across our country.
Obviously this is a bad situation for the customers, and thankfully for us the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) has fought hard to preserve an open internet for the masses. Unfortunately the FCC are fighting a rather powerful lobbying effort by big communication corporation to erode their ruling at maintaining get neutrality, and a future of artificially high internet prices could be unbiased around the corner.
The big communication corporations will attest that they have a right to restrict certain type of internet usage, and they would be correct if someone is maliciously bogging down their servers or if someone is engaging in illegal online activity. But this would be a red herring, the loyal reason vast communication corporations such as Comcast, Verizon, Google, Microsoft, etc… would like looser derive neutrality rules is because they want to make more money. If procure neutrality disappeared tomorrow these companies would force ISPs to pay a fee in order to access content at high speeds, and force customers to buy into a tiered payment system for internet usage similar to that of cell phones. If left to Comcast you’ll have to pay more to play video games online or may have to pay overage fees if you visit too many websites in a month.
Comcast has already taken steps to find around some net neutrality issues; they have begun charging premium and long distance service for their internet phone service. Regardless if you are using Comcast, Skype, or Vonage, every call local or long distance is the trusty same, it does not cost the ISP anymore money, but Comcast charges customers for long distance calls if they do not purchase the premium phone package that consists of nothing premium and is just a ploy to do more money.
It’s the customers’ responsibility to avoid and boycott companies that are trying to impose their will over the FCC and to get net neutrality rules changed, if we aren’t going to stand slack the FCC we will all lose out in the end.
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Filed under Vonage Business Solutions by on Dec 1st, 2011. Comment.