Canadian VoIP
This post will also be known as "I can get VoIP if I want to".
The list of comments on the Apple Rumours article pretty much veered completely to VoIP stuff, and the legal ramifications and regulatory pain-in-the-butts, especially here in Canada -- e.g. there is no residential VoIP service available in Canada.
It still seems absolutely crazy to me that I can cancel my phone service -- but then I am "not allowed" to get a VoIP line? What if I just use some PC-to-phone software?
Dave made this comment:
Legal loopholes can be big problems... unless you don't mind the fact that terrorists could plug in their VoIP phones anywhere without the cops being able to trace them... (oh... unless you can figure out some way to filter out some ethernet MAC address in the middle of the web... )
Umm, Dave, what makes you think terrorists aren't already doing this!? My example of using PC-to-phone software would accomplish just that! Add public wireless access and a laptop, and calls can be made from anywhere.
I think I might just trial the iConnectHere service, although without the gateway. I guess that means running something "compatible" on my computer, but there isn't anything listed on the site (that I can see) that mentions what the soft client is. Gaurav, do you know what they use? And is it PC-only?
Aside: I was looking for Mac SIP software and didn't find any, just Xmeeting (H.323) and Ventrilo (proprietary? the Mac port is "in progress"). tkPhone looks promising, but Win/OSX is also "coming soon".
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Comments
Solving 911 problems.... like this!
I think cordless phones are more pervasive than we think, and are definitely a problem when it comes to poweroutages.
I suggest VoIP users buy a very cheap cell phone like the the Diceland or the Hop-on wireless for their 911 calls and other essential local calls.
There is nothing that makes me think they aren't already...
but providing people with a much easier way of doing it isn't necessarily right either. I wouldn't be surprised if ISPs begin to filter out VoIP traffic that they haven't okayed in the future...
I doubt this will be because of "terrorist" reasons
It will NOT be because of "terrorist" concerns (even though that might be the stated reason). It will be because of potential lost revenue. Especially telling in Canada, where the big ISPs are also the phone companies...
VoIP is not a good/evil technology. Like many other technologies, it can be used for either. I do not think that "terrorists might use it" is a valid argument against VoIP...down that path lies the madness that is going on in the States, where personal freedoms are being chucked out the door.
Here is a short-list of technologies that help terrorists: SMS (text) messaging, encrypted instant messaging, encrypted email.
My point isn't...
that "terrorists might/do use it" therefor it's evil... my point was just that it's important to look at how new methods of communications are regulated and to decide whether or not they should be or shouldn't be controlled... that's all. There has to be a happy medium between the wild west attitude and the over-regulated one.
Why?
Why? Why "must" communication be regulated/controlled? What is a "wild west attitude"? One where people are free to use a communications medium of choice?
I agree that critical infrastructure (analog phone system, electrical grid, water, sewer, etc.) needs regulation. It's not clear to me that something that people can choose (i.e. residential VoIP) needs regulation. Especially if it is used in a peer-to-peer fashion (well, no worry about regulation there, because it can't be regulated in that case). Bits in a pipe are going to be difficult -- and I believe unnecessary and harmful -- to try and control.
Can't be regulated?
Communication must be regulated/controlled because it is an essential service. Boris, just remember that because you can tell the difference between a best-effort, non-fault tolerant, VoIP system does not mean that others can or that companies wouldn't take advantage of those who can't. You're right, peer-to-peer regulation would be tough, but to say it's impossible is downright silly. Long distance isn't an essential service, so VoIP plays well there today, but local loop has been thus far deemed to be a critical service that the government feels the need to regulate. I for one think that's right, better than someone's grandmother signing up for a $15 phone service in order to save money and then not realizing that when the power goes out and she's abandoned in her 22nd floor apartment she won't be able to call anyone.
Oh, and given some time, even peer-to-peer traffic could be regulated and controlled... Just give some money to someone and they'll figure out a way to filter it out...
Bring the noise
Unless of course she was using a cordless phone, in which case she also won't be able to call anyone, as mentioned by Gaurav.
I'm not advocating p2p as an end-run around regulations, I just don't think it's realistic that the government will step in and regulate my use of a softphone!
I think "benefit of the doubt" is in order here. A company may not bill it's VoIP service as analog, first-line replacement unless it meets the same regulatory requirements as an essential service -- total agreement.
However, billed as second line, acknowledged as such by the consumer (i.e. I can knowingly choose it as QUOTE second line UNQUOTE, but it is my risk, not the company's), I see no further need for regulation.
Hmmm...I wonder if it would worthwhile for Rogers to do something like place an "emergency" cellphone in the home (some sort of basestation with battery backup, connected to the VoIP gateway -- cell transport gets used in 911 location and power failure scenarios) in order to market it as first-line...
SoftClients
I make calls using MSN Messenger and the iConnecthere Softphone Client on a Windows 2000 computer (PIII-800 + 256 MB RAM). I did not like the exprience. Neither did the called party.
Perhaps a high powered computer would offer better results.
Problems with voice processing
Today there are many problems with voice processing on the PC platform, primarily caused by the lack of an ingress encoding card on the PC. Nortel has found this to be a large problem, especially in the enterprise space. Sound cards are pretty good at doing outgoing sounds, but not at anything incoming. To combat this, Nortel offers a USB headset that does most of the voice processing rather than leaving the CPU to do it.