the finger-keyboard synapse - July 2004 Archives

July 2004

Can you hear me now? (11:26) - The delay in more news about the voice chat certainly isn't because there is nothing to report (I love double-negatives). Indeed, the voice chat has been shaping up very quickly. Since my last post, many additional elements have been added in: alert preference for voice invitations, an incoming voice chat request window (that can flash), encryption of the voice data, real-time bitrate changes, display of the actual bitrate, mute for incoming and outgoing sound, display of icons and loading voice... | 6 Comments

Voice chat gets preferences, control, initiation and a UI (11:50) - So after my preliminary tests with voice chat on Saturday, I've been playing (working isn't the right word to describe how much fun this is!) with getting the voice chat implemented in BitWise. Last time, all I had was hardcoded parameters, no UI... just encoded audio being sent and received. So much has happened since then, in only 2 days. A UI window was created showing some information about the voice chat session and giving you control over several quality... | 1 Comments

The first BitWise Voice Chat (23:08) - I must confess that I am surprised by how "easy" it was to get some solid proof-of-concept voice chat working in BitWise. It's only been a few days that I've spent any time playing with it (probably 2 solid days or so), but with impressive results. Today, my old friend Matt in Houston, TX, spoke (literally) to me over BitWise. He came through loud and clear, without any hiccups (though unfortunately I couldn't talk back at him due to a... | 1 Comments

Next BitWise Frontier: Voice or Video? (17:29) - One big decision that will be made "soon" is whether we'll consider voice chat or video chat as one of the next major features in BitWise. While such posts would normally go in the "New Feature Ideas" forum, this one is significant enough to have a bigger appearance. So here I am. This is long, I apologize, but it has to be, there's lots to think about. I am frequently asked, "Does BitWise support voice chat?" and/or "Does BitWise support... | 10 Comments

I, Robot -- My "armchair critic" review (12:52) - I don't intend to make a habit of doing the "armchair movie critic" thing, but since I, Robot has a strong focus on technology (AI, specifically) and I had the oppurtunity to see it on opening day, I thought it might make for an interesting post. No spoilers here, this is a "safe" post. I, Robot begins and never lets you go. For a two hour movie, it has a brisk pace taking you to the end before you think... | 3 Comments

Microsoft and IM interoperability (for a mere $1,000 minimum) (22:30) - Several people were kind enough to inform me of some "big news" in IM (and yet another did as I was writing this)... Microsoft has announced interoperability with AIM and Yahoo in its next version of Live Communications Server (CNN Story). My reaction to this news is largely ho-hum, because I'm not sure what's really going on here. The article says that it was a feature highly demanded by businesses, but I guess I'm not sure why. It seems like... | 1 Comments

You shouldn't make fun of your "customers," but... (22:12) - The biggest drain on any service-based company is customer service and support. However, there are times when support can be highly amusing. While I really don't want to make a habit out of poking fun at people, this customer support request today was simply too much. Plus, I don't really feel that badly about it, this person isn't a BitWise user despite asking for a password reset. One of the services that we provide our BitWise users (a very rare...

The perils of new price packages (22:58) - Over the weekend was the big push for getting the new OxONet site finished and released. We succeeded at that, but more importantly, the new site contained some very improved packages, offering more for less (reflecting the changes in the market since our last pricing structure). This is all very well and good, except that we have to migrate every customer from an old plan to a new one. Which isn't really that big of a problem other than it...

Why proofread what nobody reads? (19:31) - I like to know how to properly use the software that I have. In a perfect world, software should be intuitive enough that manuals aren't needed, but any reasonably complex piece of software is going to have a few procedures complicated enough to need some documentation. I'm one of those who still wants a nice printed manual with my software, a luxury that seems to have gone the way of the Amiga. So it is with much passion that I... | 10 Comments

Releases, Licenses, and Reality (23:32) - Today's been an exciting day! At long last, BitWise 1.0.2 was released, featuring many enhancements (small and large) over 1.0.1. After the delay last week, it felt really good to finally release it. One very important change, not related to functionality or features, is the new license agreement with 1.0.2 (retroactive after 30 days to previous versions). Until now, the free BitWise could be used for any purpose, but we can no longer offer such generous usage. Now, non-personal usage...

DOS attacks, birthdays and desks (00:31) - As announced two weeks ago, BitWise 1.0.2 was scheduled for release on July 2nd (my birthday!). Some of you may have noticed that July 2nd has come and gone, and 1.0.2 isn't out. There's a very good reason. On Thursday, July 1st, through the night and into the morning we were experiencing some severe slowdowns and connection anomalies. Our upstream provider switched off the IP address to our main web server, which, of course, caused services to be inaccessible. The... | 2 Comments

IM, vulnerabilities and responsibility (00:17) - PC Magazine ran a story the other day about instant messaging and how it's a big virus threat. I understand that it is a threat, but I don't understand why because I can't imagine what goofy things most IM programs let you do with them when you connect. According to the article, people leave their IM programs on 24/7, even at work, and that these are gateways for viruses. It's not talking about the "someone sends you a link and... | 3 Comments