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More data and applications need to be stored in a .tel domain! Obsolescent |
Jens all these things are possible now. But you can't expect them to be hosted on your .tel. That's not what it's for, it's not a web site, its a fast, mobile friendly contact and link data display. It's internet not web based. However, with a small web based site (Google and BT are giving them away free at the moment) using the css and html from your .tel proxy, you can easily create an almost identical site, linked to from your .tel with contact forms, guest books, videos, pictures etc. etc. Add web links from your .tel to the appropriate pages, that way your .tel stays, lean, fast, and mobile friendly. Linking back from your web based site to your .tel also gives you a leg up in Search engine indexing. If you want all the things you mentioned, now, you can have them. Dialaroom.tel needed a CV, images, contact forms, hence dialaroom.info and dialaroomdottel.co.uk. Imagine your .tel as the hub around which all your requirements revolve and the sky's the limit. Or you could just wait for Telnic to add all of these features and hosting. For £10 or so a year I think you might have to wait a long time. |
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We need hosted by Telnic embedded web Apps for the side bar, telfriends to become a kind of social network of sorts, and the ability to do more with our control panel akin to how Wordpress is set-up with traffic stats integrated and plug ins. OpenID is a big one we need! Frankly I was for the whole this is it and we should not expect anything else but over time I realize we need more from the web side and be allowed to run a little wild :eek: I would not mind paying a little more for a premium telnic package if cost is an issue. The mobile side will always be the same it's practically a done deal, because theirs not much you can do with it due to bandwidth restrictions, and it does what it's supposed to deliver my data to the end user to contact me. But the web side? well that's a different story. http://www.telnic.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1154 :p[/size] |
Things that make sense like a contact form or guest book are great ideas. I in general like the idea of adding more embedded widgets at the discretion of the .Tel owner. Things that are already deemed mobile phone apps, but presented off the main page to ensure .Tel remains lightweight. I also agree with the feedback given, that .Tel must remain trim and contact information oriented. |
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I think you're right. The privacy issue presents a great opportunity for .tel: Notice how you can sign into many sites with your facebook or twitter? Why not .tel??[/size] |
I have a question related to the above thread. What is the most efficient way to provide voice messages (say 3 minutes max) to a person on a mobile phone who requests a specific message? The requirement is for a village heritage garden where a tourist would ask for information about a statue, or a wall of remembrance, from a mobile phone. The issues of concern are things like download speed; how best to host the voice messages and in what format; I can see .tel giving an easy route to a web address, but can the audio play back automatically? I realise like the original question above -- this is mostly a question about web, but I think .tel could be perfect for a customer interface into these downloads or streams. My local village is hoping to do something of the sort in their heritage garden. I'm hoping someone has already looked into this... |
Hi Holmfirth and welcome to the forum! I think one of the ways you can take voicemails and process them intelligently is by using a routing solution to have Voicemail to Email. There are services out there like eReceptionist.co.uk, eVoice, etc. that offer call routing and voicemail to text or email solutions. Either you want visitors to call and leave a message that somebody listens to and then responds (via SMS, email, callback), or that's translated into a text you can read and address accordingly. I'd say out of the two, the latter is preferable because you can't always decipher what people say easily, or you have to rewind and listen again for any details you may have missed. Many of these services offer free trials, so you should be able to get an idea of how this works. Another option would be to record a number of preset answers about the main objects that people listen to, and route any other questions to voicemail or an active phone line. Also, I'd probably use .tel to publish basic information about the key landmarks, each as a separate Note or Web link or Phone number (with extension, for example) so that tourists can look up your .tel, read about what they see, and if they have more questions, they can call up a phone. A .tel page will provide them clear information without having to dial up somebody and wait for a callback, especially on roaming. |
Thanks for the welcome, nadya! I like the separate note idea as this would be in the .tel and be optimised for the mobile. I think we should certainly do that.However the plan was that the mobile user will not get to speak to anyone directly, or leave a message of any kind. They would simply select Wall of remembrance in .tel and then hear a commentary explaining about the Wall, which can be pre-recorded by a local historian. The question then is about what format will faster download or stream to the mobile and how/where the recording is stored. Is it embedded in a webpage or is it in a voicemail system or is it streamed or downloaded etc. The requirement is for something that will work when a coachload of tourists swarm into the garden. Even if .tel could include an audio file it might not work. A voicemail-type system with a clever "music on hold" delivery would work but be very expensive and there is after all nowhere to put a telephone system in the middle of this garden. So we are left with a web delivery of a voice file -- either AAC or another format. I confess I don't know how to do this and I got nowhere with BT who could only recommend the purchase of a clever telephone system.I've got a website I could potentially embed voice files into but I admit I don't actually know how to do it! This is tricky |
Holmfirth, I am no specialist in audio guides and related technology, but I see a few options for your audio guide, which is effectively what you're trying to achieve, right? 1. Pre-recorded .AIFF or other collection for a self-guided tour that can be available as a download from your .tel page and your website (hosted as part of website) that students can download and listen to. 2. Pre-recorded cell tour with a separate number for each landmark. Here's a blog post of a museum using cell tours, and more info is on the Wiki. 3. Streaming internet radio channel with soundtracks being separate recordings. Whatever option you choose, any data or cell connection will cost your visitors money, so a mobile-optimized textual description is usually cheaper than an international phone call or downloading Megs of audio data. Perhaps, you can create a little directory of folders in your Garden.tel with specific landmarks each having a folder with basic text, followed by related web and audio links and more text description in Free text keywords. Those who are comfortable dialling in or downloading audio files can do so, but it's optional. |
I think that's excellent advice, Nadya! I'll look further into this and get back to you. I am hoping to demonstrate this to the local business association in a week's time... Regards Holmfirth Tiger |
@Holmfirth Tiger, There could be a simple way, although it might not be exactly as you want. You say you have a web hosting account. Why not set up small images of the garden features on seperate web pages with an auto loading and looping mp3, mid or other audio file of the description of the feature. Add "Play Audio" as the description to a web link to each feature page, from your .tel, when clicked, it opens the web page with its small image of the feature and plays the recorded description. Add a return button to the image, for your guests to click when they have heard enough, and it goes back to the .tel so they can find the next feature. Sorry, haven't had time to try it, but should be simple and cheap. |
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Thanks for your input. I've been working on it. I now need to test with mobile browsers, though. I won't have the photos just yet because the garden is just being built, so I'll probably just show a logo.[/size] |
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I totally agree with you, I was the same. But it appears there needs to be more visible reasons for people to get a .tel. Such as atleast one bigger image, ability to add polls, forms etc.[/size] |
Best thing to do is to stream the audio/video, I suggest you look at RSTP (same as what YouTube mobile uses). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real_Ti...aming_Protocol |
good idea about streaming ( Audio / Video ) could be too costly just like i am using blackberry and too much hidden charges on streaming ( but they call it unlimited internet usage ) so incase they make it for a web based interface that would be nice but for a mobile ( as to what .tel is for ) it's not a good idea |
Hi guys just a quick note to say that I've been able to produce the solution with your help here. Youtube videos work very well as long as you have a good internet connection, but also audio files embedded in web pages work well too. The key to resilience appears to be to split the audio files into maybe several smaller ones rather than trying to accomplish with large(r) files. I've got unlimited hosting on a couple of sites so that's what I've done. The youtube works great or not at all -- because the file is so large.even for a short message. I'll probably do both. When the service is live I'll get back to you so you can have a look at it. Thanks for your ideas and help! |
Sounds like a fascinating project Holmfirth Tiger. Please keep us updated as I'd love to see the finished results. |
