Business VoIP to grow to 79% by 2013

A study from In-Stat has revealed that 42 per cent of US businesses are using VoIP. Its use in business has been growing steadily in recent years, and will continue to do so. It has been estimated that by 2013, the use of Business VoIP in the US will be 79 per cent, almost four-fifths of businesses.

There is one main reason why most businesses make the decisions to switch from a telephone provider to a VoIP provider, and that is price. Significant cost savings can be made with VoIP, something that can obviously make a difference to the profits of a business. The more calls a business makes, the more significant these savings can be. This has led to call centres and other businesses that make a large number of calls, to make the switch. But any business can benefit from this technology.

Some would ask, hasn’t it always been the case that VoIP is cheaper than a regular telephone? Well, the answer to that is yes, but there used to many negatives which meant that most businesses would refrain. VoIP used to have the reputation of being of poor quality. This has improved though, and continues to. The quality of broadband is a factor that has led to improved quality. The broadband connection has an important influence on the sound quality of VoIP, so the better the broadband connection is, the better the signal will be. Broadband has generally improved, meaning more reliable VoIP signals.

It is also much easier to use now. The early solutions consisted of software which was downloaded to a PC. This is still sometimes the case, with Skype being the best example, but these are usually not deemed suitable for business use. Business VoIP solutions are now run by reputable businesses who offer support and many of the other advantages that customers get from telephone providers. Complex solutions, such answer phones, the ability to divert calls, and extensions are also available. These are necessary for many businesses. VoIP phones and VoIP adapters are other developments that make it easier to use. The overall impact of these factors means that VoIP is much more trusted by businesses and individuals alike. The service doesn’t have the previous negatives and is usually cheaper than other solutions.

Contrary to previous opinion, there is no real reason for businesses not to use VoIP. If a quality provider is chosen, then the quality of both the signal and the customer service is just as good as with telephone providers. What sets VoIP apart are the massive advantages of cost savings. This is the main reason why VoIP usage is going up in business, and elsewhere, and why 79 per cent of businesses in the US are expected to have made the switch by 2013.

Andrew Marshall ©

Interior and Exterior Shutters

Shutters are an elegant alternative to curtains or blinds. They were the first known window decoration and originated from the Mediterranean region, but have since been adopted much further afield. Wooden shutters are most commonly used on homes and can be fitted on the interior or exterior.

Interior shutters are usually hinged on either side of the windows. To open and close they are swung outwards or inwards. Most, but not all Shutters, have louvres which are rotated open or shut. This allows the homeowner to choose the amount of air, light and heat that comes through. Plantation Shutters are a popular style of interior shutters. The term Plantation Shutters comes from the cotton plantations of the United States. Spanish immigrant bought shutters to the area of these plantations in California, and this is where the name comes from. The reason why many choose interior shutters over curtains is that they can be somewhere between open and closed. The shutters can be shut with the louvres partly open and partly closed. Curtains have to be either one or the other, unless they are only open in the centre. It is also possible to have fixed shutters which cannot by swung open or shut. If they have louvres air and light can still be let in by opening them. Most people choose hinged shutter though, as they afford this extra choice.

Like interior shutters, exterior shutters are usually hinged on either side of the window, but obviously on the outside rather than the inside. Although it is rare, they can alternatively be hinged at the top and bottom. Unlike interior shutters they are sometimes chosen with curtains on the inside. Exterior Shutters can be extremely attractive and can therefore add value to a home. In some areas exterior shutters are used to protect windows from natural disasters such as hurricanes and tornadoes. Cedar wood and mahogany are the most common materials used. It is important that exterior shutters are made from durable materials as they will be facing the natural elements. Cedar and mahogany are often chosen as they can cope with wind, rain and snow better than most other options. They are also resistant to rot and decay.

Both interior and exterior shutters have the advantage of allowing control over the element that come through the window. On a hot day, for example, the window can be left open but the shutter louvres can be closed to the extent that feels comfortable. This will block out the heat of the sun while still allowing fresh air in. This also makes it safer to leave windows open at night, as intruders would have some job trying to get past the shutters unnoticed.

Andrew Marshall ©

Types of Managed Hosting

There are different degrees of managed hosting; it is not just a matter of your hosting being managed or unmanaged. Different aspect of your hosting will be, and will not be managed, depending on the specific package.

It is important to know what is included in a managed hosting package, and not to just assume that everything is fully managed. Different people have different ideas of what managed hosting entails. In the eyes of a host they may feel they are offering managed hosting, but this may not be the same as your idea of managed. If you require fully managed hosting it is important to make sure that is what you are getting.

Hosting can be either fully managed or partially managed, or of course, not managed at all. In theory fully managed hosting should mean absolutely all areas of hosting are covered, but as mentioned above you should make sure this is the case. With fully Managed Hosting you shouldn’t have to worry at all and should be able to assume your hosting is in the capable hand of the hosting company’s experts.

Partially managed hosting means that some aspects are managed for you, while others are not. Sometimes there will be different packages available, with different aspects included depending on which of these you choose. Other times though, you can simply pick and choose different options, paying for each of these you decide to have included. Some clients may only want one or two areas managed, while others may require their hosting to be more extensively managed.

There are many elements that may be included in a managed hosting package. These include security, maintenance and monitoring. Security gives website owners piece of mind knowing that everything will be secure. This protects from hackers and physical break-ins, as well as fire and other elements. Maintenance means that hosting clients do not need to worry about updating the servers. Solving any problems that arise also comes under this umbrella. Some choose not to pay for maintenance not foreseeing any issues, but then often expect these to be solved when they occur – something that they have not paid for. You could think of maintenance as an insurance policy, but in most cases problems will occur at some point. Whether maintenance should be chosen depends on the clients own ability to problem solve. If monitoring is purchased, then any problems should be quickly established as the hosting of websites is always being watched. Many choose 24/7 monitoring to give then this security.

Every client is different, as is every website, and the type of managed hosting chosen should be decided depending on these factors. For those with simple websites and/or good hosting knowledge partially managed hosting, or other forms of hosting, might be all that is required. For those who require complex hosting and have little experience fully managed hosting may be necessary.

Andrew Marshall ©

VoIP usage in Call Centres

VoIP is continually increasing in popularity. This is especially the case in business, and particularly in call centres where significant savings can be made. Calls via VoIP are cheaper than the traditional telephone calls, so businesses who utilise this make obvious savings. A call centres business revolves around making and receiving calls, therefore cheaper calls can be extremely advantageous.

The quality of VoIP has improves noticeable over recent years. This has allowed business to use it. Previously the quality could be poor so not adequate for business use as this would seem unprofessional. Like all technology its quality is improving with time. Many VoIP providers are now able to offer quality calls that are undistinguishable with regular telephone calls. Some business do make the mistake of using poorer quality VoIP for very cheap calls, but it is no longer necessary to choose between cheaper prices and quality; both are possible.

Many call centres have moved abroad, with a particular trend towards UK companies relocating their call centres to Asia. In Asia labour is generally cheaper so staff do not have to be paid the same amounts. VoIP makes re-locating more profitable. For businesses using telephones the labour savings are often not enough to make the move cost effective. One of the reasons for this is that telephones calls are significantly more expensive when made internationally compared with nationally. This price difference is not so high when it comes to VoIP. The Labour savings can therefore outweigh the extra costs of international calls. Using VoIP makes this much more profitable.

Call centres (as well as other businesses) moving abroad has led to some criticism. One of these criticisms is the loss of local jobs. The other is that some customers prefer to be dealt with by somebody locally (or at least in the same country) as they believe any problems can be resolved more easily than if dealing with someone on the other side of the world. They believe they will be more likely to speak with someone who can affect the issue more directly. Whether or not this is true depends on the nature of the issue.

Some businesses have call centres both locally and internationally. Each call centre will be used for different purposes. For examples, some services will be handled in the UK and others in India. This means that situations that benefit from being managed locally can be, while still allowing businesses to save on calls regarding matters that can be dealt with just as efficiently elsewhere.

The migration towards Business VoIP has been gradually occurring over the last decade. The increasing quality means that it has been happening more steadily over the past three or four years. As more businesses realise the potential of VoIP and the cost savings it can produce it is likely to grow ever further.

Andrew Marshall ©

Basics of Web Hosting

For a website to be seen by internet users it needs to be hosted and for this web hosting companies are used. With web hosting, web pages are uploaded onto a server. If this is not done then a website cannot be viewed. Web hosting is effectively putting the website onto the internet, allowing the world to see it. There are thousands of hosting companies with million of hosting packages between them.

There is a vast price range for hosting; from free to thousands of pounds a year. Free hosting has many limitations so should only be considered for websites without the need for complex solutions. The majority of these packages also demand that adverts controlled by the hosting company appear on your website, as this is how they make their money. This looks unprofessional (especially if not related to your website) so is not recommended for business sites. Other cheap packages may be adequate for small websites without too many, or too complex pages. Advanced hosting packages, such as Colocation and managed hosting, are for large sites or databases.

Hosting can be broken into two main types – shared hosting and dedicated hosting. With shared hosting a hosting company hosts many, or all, of their clients on the same server. This is perfectly adequate for many sites. It is cheaper than dedicated hosting as web space is being shared with other sites. Clients still have their own URL, or website address. Dedicated servers are aimed more at larger sites. Here a host leases an entire server out to one client. It is therefore not shared with others and only contains that one clients’ website, or group of websites. This allows for much more choice and control of the hosting of that particular website.

A website needs a domain name (also known as a URL), which would look something like this:

http://www.mywebsite.com/

A domain name is purchased prior to the website being uploaded to the server. It is purchased from a domain registration company, although some web hosts also offer this service. Clients can search as many domain names as they like to see what is available and how much it will cost. Two different websites cannot have the same domain name. Prices vary and are paid at a yearly rate.

As mentioned above there are many web hosting packages with different amounts of bandwidth, web space and support, as well as other variables. Bandwidth is the measurement of data communication and affects the amount of traffic a website can cope with. The more bandwidth that is dedicated to a website, the more traffic it is capable of receiving. If the number of visitors exceeds this at one time then the website may slow down, or break down temporarily. Web space is the amount of space on the server that the site can take up. The more web space that is available, the more pages that can be uploaded. Large files, such as video and audio files take up more space than pages containing only text. Some hosting clients may want 24/7 support in case problems occur. Others may want Managed Hosting; where the hosting is completely take care of by the hosting company. The amount of support required depends on the knowledge of the client and their needs.

Andrew Marshall ©

Using VoIP to call internationally

VoIP can be significantly cheaper than regular landline telephone calls; a cost saving that becomes even more significant when compared to using mobile phones. This difference is even bigger with international calls. VoIP calls are made via an internet connection, which is a cheaper technology than that used by telephone operators meaning VoIP providers can offer lower prices.

Three groups tend to benefit most from using VoIP to call internationally. These are expats, holiday makers and businesses. More people are living in a different country to their birth than ever before, and the majority of these want to keep in touch with family and friends back home. This can be much cheaper on both sides if they have access to VoIP, especially if VoIP is being used on both sides of the conversation. Tourism is a big industry and this is something that is likely to be exploited by VoIP providers in future. Much like people who have moved abroad, the lower cost calls can be very beneficial to this group. Generally it is easier for people around the globe to keep in touch these days, and VoIP makes this cheaper as well.

Business is the biggest area that can benefit from international calls made via VoIP. With the number of international companies now,Business VoIP is a big industry. Business can have customers and suppliers anywhere in the world. Significant savings are possible especially for businesses that make a large number of international calls. Many call centres have turned to VoIP is recent years. The more calls that are made, the bigger the savings are compared with other options. This has allowed call centres to utilise cheap labour. For example, many UK companies have moved their call centres to India, where labour is cheaper. It is cheaper for them to pay people in India and use VoIP to call internationally back to the UK, than to pay workers locally.

One of the disadvantages of VoIP is that it is usually not as easy as picking up the phone. A computer is often needed, although VoIP phones and adapters to use regular telephones are available. These are usually used with Business VoIP, but it is not so easy for tourists, who may find it much more convenient to use their mobile phones. However, with the increase of wireless and internet café’s the use of VoIP is becoming more convenient. VoIP is still rare over mobile, but this is likely to change over the coming years. The other negative of VoIP can be its quality. This used to be a major disadvantage but this is much improved, although it can still be a concern. The quality is always improving so this negative could eventually be insignificant.

Andrew Marshall ©

Poorer Families not benefiting from Child Trust Fund

The Conservative party believe that poorer families are not benefiting from the child trust fund. The have said the majority of children who will benefit from the Labour introduced scheme will be those from wealthier families. This is based on statistics stating that 82% of parents who live in the richest ten areas of the UK have set up CTF accounts for their children, but fewer than 70% of those residing in the poorest ten areas have.

What are the reasons for this? It theory it is they who should be more keen to take advantage of the scheme as they could do with more government assistance. The Tories claim that many are unaware of the existence of the scheme, therefore suggesting that the government has done a poor job of publicizing it and educating people to its benefits.

It is possible, though, that it purely comes down to the fact that wealthier people tend to have more money available to them to invest. For the Child Trust Fund to be really beneficial it is necessary to invest further, with family and friends allowed to invest up to £1,200 per year. The original £250 voucher from the government shortly after a child is born, plus a further £250 voucher seven years later will not have a huge impact once a child turns eighteen. Therefore it is possible that many parents who cannot afford to further invest, don’t think it has any value, although it could be argued that £500 plus interest is better than nothing.

Many are in the situation of simply being unable to further invest. Feeding and clothing children now is more important than saving for their futures; many have no choice but to think about the present. By the time today’s children turn eighteen they may be earning themselves so providing for them now is more important. In a way not taking advantage of the child trust fund could be a missed opportunity. It is possible that taking full advantages could mean an eighteen year old could receive £24,000. But in reality the majority of parents are unable to invest anywhere near the £1,200 each year.

There is much debate as to the future of the child trust fund. The Conservatives have said that they will make the child trust fund only available to the poorest third of families, as they are the ones who need the help most. But considering the statistics that they have highlighted, would this be a positive solution? Although almost 70% of the poorest families do open a CTF account, many of these will not be regularly investing, therefore making the scheme relatively ineffective. It is the wealthier families who take full advantage, so it is likely better to either leave the scheme as it is or withdraw it altogether.

Andrew Marshall ©

The Child Trust Fund from Jump Savings is the choice of many parents looking to invest they CTF voucher.

Affect of Law Firm Ownership Rules

Since November 2006 it has not been legally required for solicitors firms to be owned by registered solicitors, something that was previously necessary. This effectively means that anyone can be the owner of a law firm, although the legal services themselves have to be performed by solicitors.

The reason for this bill was to improve access to legal service for all. This works on the basis that more competition leads to lower prices, which in turn makes it more accessible. This has led to some corporations such as banks and insurance companies starting to offer such services, with more expected to in future. It is thought that people will be less intimidated going to a company they know rather than a professional law firm. There are many affects, both positive and negative, that this could have on the legal sector.

Most of the companies who are likely to offer these services will probably be outsourcing the legal work rather than employing their own solicitors. Work on a case by case basis could be outsourced to individual lawyers looking for extra work. This would mean only having to pay for the lawyers when necessary rather than paying an annual salary, therefore reducing the cost and the price they charge. This will likely lead to more freelance solicitors, so it will be good for some solicitors.

Some fear that these new “law firms” will provide less of a quality service. The personal touch that a clients individual solicitor can provide may be lost if they are effectively dealing with a large corporation. How much contact will there be between the client and the solicitors dealing with their case? This will depend on how each specific company runs these legal services. Whether people choose to use these companies or traditional law firms may come down to a matter of trust. Some might be more wiling to trust a company they already use for their shopping, banking or insurance, but others may prefer to trust specialist professional law firms.

Small firms are the ones most likely to suffer from this legislation. Large firms who charge large fees are likely to survive as their big clients will still be wiling to pay. Clients with small cases who would normally use a small law firm may go for a cheaper option instead, thus putting smaller firms in danger of going out of business. If offering legal services then proves non-profitable to non-legal companies and they relinquish these services then it could eventually mean that legal services become less accessible than at present.

It is possible that the whole banking sector could change with different types of law firms focussing on different areas of law. It is likely that large corporate and criminal cases will still be dealt with by specialist law firms. With corporate law businesses are likely to want to have ongoing relationships with their law firm. This new type of law firm are more likely to focus on individual client services.

Andrew Marshall ©

Solicitors London

The Changing Role of Women

In the past women were in many ways thought of as being inferior to men. The typical lifestyle among families was for women to stay at home while men worked, and this was the accepted way of life for both parties. Although certain generalisations still exist much of this has changed, especially over the last hundred years.

A decade ago women there thought so inferior that they were not even allowed to vote. Early in the twentieth century things began to change though. Many protests took place amongst women seeking to gain voting rights, and this led to them being given the vote in 1918. But even then it was only women over the age of 21 who could vote, while the voting age for men stood at 18. It took until 1928 for women to be given equal voting rights. The rights of women across the board have continued to grow ever since.

The old way of life was very rigid in terms of the gender roles and the majority of people lived according to this. The role of a woman was to get married, have children and spend her days at home looking after the children and doing the housework. The workplace was almost exclusively male dominated.

The start of women in the workplace can be attributed to the Second World War. A large number of men were involved in fighting meaning less were available to work in their regular jobs. This meant women had to step in and many worked in factories during this period. Many enjoyed this sense of freedom and wanted to continue once the war was over.

After this women started to want more from their lives and didn’t want to just accept their standing in society. This has led to more working women as time has gone on, something which particularly grew in the 1960’s. Their role in society in general has become more significant across many areas. Much of this came from the rise of feminism with women wanting to be treated equally to men.

Women these days tend to me more independent. They want more from their lives and want to choose how they live. This could be once reason for the increasing divorce statistics over the last fifty years. Women no longer just accept things the way they are; if they are unhappy in their marriage they won’t take it. Could this be one positive of increasing divorce for women? This independence has also meant many more single women.

These days women are generally treated equally to men although some would argue this isn’t always the case. They tend to run their own lives and live how they want, without being pigeon holed by society. They have bigger expectation about what they want to gain from life. Some want to be stay-at-home Mums in the traditional sense but they have more of a choice.

Andrew Marshall ©

Divorce Solicitors London

Divorce Solicitors Bath

Colocation vs. Managed Hosting

Web Hosting is crucial to the success of any website. There are a large number of options available to you when you are picking a host for your website and the best option depends on many factors. Factor around the individual site are important as different sites need different things from their hosting. Your own experience and expertise are also important; if you are a novice you will need assistance but this may not be necessary if you are knowledgably around the subject. Other factors, like budget, may also come into the decision making process.

There really is no definitive answer as to what the best type of hosting is; it does all depend on your situation. Here though, we’ll look at two of these types -Colocation and Managed Hosting. Colocation is where customers rent rack space from at a data centre and host their server there. The customer provides the server and all the equipment and runs the hosting themselves. Managed Hosting is, as the name suggests, where the hosting company manages the hosting for the customer, allowing them to concentrate on their core business.

The amount of control and amount of help you want is important to your decision. With Colocation you get complete control as you are only renting rack space. You are in charge of your hosting, which can be a negative when things go wrong, but it does allow you to have more of a say. If you don’t want this control and want everything taken care of by somebody else then Managed Hosting may be preferable. It means you don’t have to be too concerned with the hosting as experts are looking after you website. If you have no hosting knowledge but need complex hosting this could be the best option. There are many different types of managed hosting though, from partly managed to fully managed (although different providers have different definitions of fully managed).

Technical support is one of the main features of managed hosting. So if you need plenty of expert assistance this is the way to go. 24/7 monitoring is usually included which will put your mind at ease. Colocation doesn’t normally include support but many are starting to offer this with some packages. You may consider this if you think you might need a little support from time to time. This support will not be at the same level as Managed Hosting but depending on your circumstances, could be sufficient.

Your specific requirements are obviously key to your decision. Both Colocation and Managed Hosting are good for large websites, but not usually necessary for small, simple ones. For small sites basic hosting may be more cost effective.

Price shouldn’t be the only reason why you choose your host, but it can be a determining factor. Everyone has a maximum budget that cannot be exceeded so this needs to be thought about. If you can’t afford a particular package then you will have to choose something else. This is an area where Colocation has an advantage over Managed Hosting, as it is significantly cheaper. Managed Hosting is quite expensive but if you need your web hosting managed for you it can be very cost effective.

Andrew Marshall ©