OCS VoIP in a disaster zone

jkruse — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 06:56:22 GMT

Massive storms in Brisbane recently left many people homeless, and in fact it was declared a disaster zone.

One of the people who had their home destroyed in this storm was my mate Bill Lockett from Dimension Data. Our best wishes and thoughts are with him and his family during this time as they rebuild.

Bill’s house lost all power and landline communications, but fortunately Telstra’s NextG network was still online.

Bill was able to use a generator to power his laptop, and with a Polycom CX200 USB handset (which in fact he had to dry out as it was in an inch of water) and Office Communicator 2007 he was still fully able to use his work phone. No special hardware, software, or VPN required. Microsoft’s adaptive RTAudio codec ensured that call quality was excellent, despite the conditions.

Nice one Bill :)

New headset for OCS/mobility

jkruse — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 02:54:39 GMT

Office Communications Server and Communicator 2007 have audio codecs that provide the best possible audio/video quality over any network - but it goes without saying that audio codecs are only as useful as the quality of the sound you put into the packet. Therefore when using a softphone it is critical that you have decent hardware for the complete solution.

I mentioned recently that I am using a Jabra GN9350 as my primary headset for OCS in the office. This is an awesome device which provides excellent audio quality and range and is definitely my preferred headset for OCS voice. The only problem is that due to the size of the base station and power pack it's not really mobile - and therefore I need another solution when on the road.

Until now I've been trying a variety of mobile headsets, including the bluetooth headset for my mobile phone. My laptop has bluetooth built-in so I can pair the headset and use it with OCS, but unfortunately it can only pair with one device at a time - so when I use it with the laptop, it can't talk to my mobile.

Well I've now also got my hands on a Jabra JX10 bluetooth headset. This device is the perfect mobile headset - it can be simultaneously be paired with both my laptop and mobile phone, it is small and light-weight, comfortable enough to wear for hours, the battery life is great (and it includes a car charger!), and with the A330 adapter it fully supports Office Communicator answer/hang-up buttons.

Perfect!

Technorati Tags: ocs, voice, hardware, jabra, headset

Johann's Unified Communications : voice

OCS VoIP in a disaster zone

New headset for OCS/mobility