BroadBand Boffin

Small Utililties for Corporate and home use

2009-06-22T03:49:00.000-07:00

Two small utils today. One to help with multi screen set ups the other to suppress screen savers, ideal in a corporate set-up up where you might not be able to disable the screen saver.

Screen savers are fine, and many corporates lock their laptops to run these for security and marketing reasons. There are times where you may not want this can the corporate lock down prevent you disabling the screen saver. Enter Caffeine, when loaded it sends a key press to Windows so you don't have to. Now you can run presentations, watch movies or on-line video, or monitor VPNs without having to touch your laptop! Excellent reliable utility. I load it only when I need it but it is a great time saver.

I'm a big fan of large screens and make the most of your screen real estate. While some folk like Ultramon this is quite a rich product.

I like multi monitor taskbar this adds a button to all application windows allowing one click push to other screen(s).

It also adds a pseudo task bar to all monitors.

Both apps are small clean and can be installed even if you do not have admin rights.

Free Multi Monitor Task bar utility...
http://www.mediachance.com/free/mmtaskbar21.exe

Free (open source) screen saver suppressor
http://www.zhornsoftware.co.uk/caffeine/index.html

A New Beginning...

2007-06-07T15:06:00.000-07:00

Sure we all know about anti-virus and hardware and software firewalls. All fine tools. Beyond that there are secure ways of using WIFI such as WPA not WEP. There are some new and interesting developments in security. If you use Windows then you must read this post.

EEYE have a great design for their security product. It is part firewall, part buffer overrun protection, part antivirus, part heuristic (should you be hitting and IP address in China?) and a lot of Smarts. I'm mean a lot. I'm not easily impressed and this blew me away. I've not seen anything as new and innovate as the EEYE offering. While they have lots of commercial offerings they also do a personal version which is free for basic use. There is also a low cost home option, available here.

While the technical details of its internal workings may be beyond your average user know this. It is the only product you need for security. My day job includes security work for the largest banks in the world (trillions of dollars a day on some systems). If there was ever a product you needed to answer the quesiton "where can I get a fit and forget security solution for Windows I'd say this is it.

Sure you can still improve thinks by

Switching from IE to Firefox (or at least turn up the security on IE and disable scripting).
If you like eye candy get tab effects ad-in for Firefox
Firefox ad-ins like adblock and flashbock will help you reclaim your screen and bandwidth.

Strong WPA Passwords

2007-02-07T15:18:00.000-08:00

WEP is easy to crack and should not be used and WPA with short passwords can be cracked.

Make sure you use a long secure password.

GRC use the RSA Bcrypt random libraries to generate free WPA key. This is a great place to get WPA keys that are strong and uncrackable.

Remember to disable WEP and unencrpted connections on your wireless access point to ensure only WPA connections are allowed.

https://www.grc.com/passwords.htm

Watching Traffic?

2007-02-07T15:08:00.000-08:00

http://packetgarden.com/

Stroll over the packetgarden great visualisation tool.

Keeping Home users PC clean and safe

2007-02-07T14:54:00.000-08:00

Kerio is a great free home firewall: http://www.kerio.com/ another good free product for home use is Comodo http://www.personalfirewall.comodo.com/

Of course you need free up to date anti virus and AVG is one of the best, small light and simple to use. Better than many commercial offerings. AVG free is a good free home AV product this will remain free even when the current v7 runs out this month. Remember AVG still has a free version of the new product! http://free.grisoft.com/doc/1

Keep only the Cookies you want...

CCLeaner is a good windows clean up tool for internet and general use. When you install it select the option to skip installation of the yahoo toolbar, the default is to install it. http://www.ccleaner.com/download/

In CCleaner I set it to clear cookies and temporary files when Windows starts. The fix problems with Windows also works very well. Good software and free. Great for ensuring private information in cookies etc is cleared out. You can also select to keep the few useful cookies that you have on your system. Also great for security and if you use cashback sites like quidco.com excellent if you live in the UK and buy things on-line, I got over £300 cash back from Quidco in 2006. Excellent site.

WDS the truth is out there

2007-02-07T14:48:00.000-08:00

WDS Wireless distribution service is supposed to be a consumer grade easy to set up wireless bridging system. I've noticed that the WDS interoperability is getting worse as more and more products claim to support WDS

Some tips do not buy kit with WDS unless it also supports WPA with WDS. Many product support WPA but only support clear or WEP for WDS. This makes not sense. Get stuff that supports WPA on WDS.

The vendor incompatibility is getting really bad. Phone the manufacturer and ask if the unit you plan to buy will ACTUALLY work with your set up. If they are not sure make sure you can return the kit to the store if it does not work for you.

Finally it is worth buying both WDS points from the same manufacturer this will limit the compatibility concerns.

Wireless access cheap antennas for free

2007-02-07T14:47:00.000-08:00

To get the best range and improve coverage wihtout buying new hardware check out these home antenna, very low cost, simple to make. Can be made with tin foil, glue and card or paper!

Many designed beat commercial products costing £100 or more!

http://www.freeantennas.com/

It's about time: How to use Time Servers to keep your ADSL modem in Synch

2006-06-07T23:08:00.000-07:00

I’m often asked about how to configure equipment for time servers. It is useful if equipment keeps logs of activities. These logs can be viewed to help diagnose problems or find out if things are running smoothly. It is also help if all the log entries are stamped with the time and date. The problem is that you might not want to set the date and time on every device

A timer server is an internet based server that provides time and date information. These are used for scientific work, and also for general use.

I use these servers for my broadband modem, when the modem starts up and at preset intervals it synchronises with these time servers.

The protocol used is NTP (Network Time Protocol)

bear.zoo.bt.co.uk
ntp.exnet.com
158.43.128.33
195.7.224.135
158.43.192.66

I’d recommend setting up your own NTP server if you have a lot of kit, and remember the security issues of using public servers with no authentication: Don’t even think of running eCommerce sites using public NTP.

Finally there are tier one servers, very accurate but only for astronomers and scientific use. Please do not use these as it uses up a valuable and expensive resource. Use the tier 2 time servers.

Finding, listening, subscribing and managing free pod cast content

2006-06-04T11:47:00.000-07:00

Ok you know which player to use (VLC) and also which receiver to download podcasts (Juice Receiver), but how can you find what you are after?

This is much easier than it seems. Firstly you can search podcasts by type and broad content using http://www.podnova.com/ This is a great site not only can you find and listen to podcasts using nothing but a flash enabled web browser, but you can manage your subscriptions, listen to episodes, pause playback and even export and import your subscriptions to Juice player!

So say you are starting out with pod casting and you want to listen to some shows on your PC or Mac to see what you like. You can do all of this with http://www.podnova.com/ using just a flash enabled web browser. Then say you like a show you can add this to your subscriptions. You can do this anywhere in the world, home, hotel, friend house, etc. Then you get home and want to use your http://www.podnova.com/ subscriptions on your PC or MAC at home with Juice Receiver. Simply export your subscriptions in http://www.podnova.com/ and load them into Juice Receiver.

Word Search any Podcast! Free listen to the sections a few seconds before your word search, all web based: www.podscope.com

If you want to word search pod casts by content, say all the podcasts that mention the word Unicorn, just got to www.podscape.com and off you go! This uses military and government spy technology to scan podcasts and convert them to searchable text. Try and see you will be amazed it even plays back the podcasts from just before the word occurs.

I’m often asked how I keep up to date with topics. The answer is simple I read a lot, journal, periodicals, books and the internet. I also use my MP3 player while walking, running and driving to listen to technology podcasts. All my subscriptions are managed in Juice Receiver, I just copy my daily fresh brew of podcasts onto my 128meg EZAV200 (version 1.6d firmware with book marking.)

Internet Radio is Dead, Long live internet Radio: Choosing a Reciver

2006-06-03T19:33:00.000-07:00

I covered getting a good quality player for audio and video in the previous post, but what about content?

Internet radio or streamed programming (this is where you can listen to the audio only while your computer is connected to the internet, this is live and is also known as internet radio). Examples of this include traditional radio station who “broadcast” there radio play live on the internet. If you want your own music stations with your tastes try www.pandoara.com just point your browser there and enter a song or artist and create your own radio station!

One of the biggest problems with streamed media like internet radio is that you need a special player that will often include adverts and the quality can be very poor. Pandora gets around this with high quality feeds and a great player that work in any flash enabled browser! Ok so streaming has it limitations, it does not work on the road, on a train or on a plane, but most of all you have limited control of content, playback and quality!

So what software should you use to receive programs on the internet? I’d recommend avoiding iTunes (Slow and bloated) and Microsoft Media player instead use a program called Juice Receiver: http://juicereceiver.sourceforge.net/download/index.php

This is a great free program, no adverts or Spyware. It is very fast even when you subscribe to loads of shows. It has one click operations, and it recovers from errors and lost internet connections automatically.

With Juice Receiver you can:

Subscribe to shows you like
Once subscribed new ephisode are download automatically.
Locate old ephisodes and download them at the click of a button

Simply the best

2006-06-03T19:23:00.000-07:00

Before you start listening to any internet audio or video you will need a good player. This is a program that converts the downloaded files into sound and video. The players that ship with most PCs are poor quality. Windows media player has an appalling quality, and poses several security threats AVOID. The “free version” of ReadAudio’s players are full of ads and like Microsoft Media player RealAudio Player is bloated and slow AVOID.

I only use and recommend one player for all my Video and Audio it runs on many platforms Windows, Mac, Linux, Pocket PC etc.. it is known as VLC. This tiny program is fast to download and install, and the quality of the sound and video is amazing. It comes complete with drivers and codecs installed! The interface is simple but very powerful and the quality of playback is better than commercial software costing thousands. Download a copy from http://www.videolan.org/vlc/ it is free, has no Spyware or adverts and rumour has it it will play any format even salamis. For converting 5.1 sound to listen on headphones, watching movies on a laptop, or large home cinema installations the ONLY PLAYER YOU WILL EVER NEED!

Common mistakes and myths about internet audio

2006-06-03T19:00:00.000-07:00

Getting started with Podcasts and Internet Radio

There is a lot of talk about podcasts and many people are still confused by them. Here are some common misunderstandings:

“I need an Apple iPod to listen to Podcasts”: This is not true: You do not even need an MP3 player, just a PC or MAC with an internet connection. Ok lets deal with the iPOD myths first. There is a lot of hype around these devices, the reality is that they are reasonably well designed portable MP3 players but they have a lot of drawbacks. iPods are sold for ease of use, but this comes at a huge price, not just financial. Did you know that Music you buy from the iTunes Store does not belong to you? Nor can you transfer the music to CD say to play in your car? Worse still if you have load of titles purchased from the iTune store and your iPod crashes / breaks /is stolen you could loose your music for good and have to repurchase the music!

iPods all have internal batteries, so forget trying to use them on long journeys. A Basic player that takes AAA batteries can beat any iPod for travellers as the batteries can be purchased anywhere in the world. Also high capacity NiMH rechargeable batteries last longer than alkaline batteries! I use a set on my MP3 Player, and they last longer than 20 hours! When your iPod battery does die (usually after 14 or 18 months of use) a replacement may cost you more than a new iPod Nano! There are cheaper, better designed, and more flexible options to consider. People bang on about the build quality of iPods and they are well put together with a nice interface, but there are products with MUCH better build quality and better interfaces. If you want a reliable and robust player get one that does not have a hard disk. These units use flash memory and so have no moving parts. I like the range made by EZAV. I’m not suggesting you do not buy an iPod, but look at some of the options and decide for yourself! Finally there is no need to carry an entire collection around with you on some huge capacity player, an external hard disk for your MAC or PC is cheaper and simpler to manage, to can backup the files and even burn them to CD or DVD. Remember prices are plummeting, so if you want a unit with replaceable batteries, a voice recorded, bookmarks, etc get one with ALL the features you need. If you find one that takes SD card, even better as you can always buy more cheap SD cards and upgrade your player.

“I have to pay for all podcasts; if I do not then I am pirating music.” Most podcasts are available for FREE AND LEGAL DOWNLOAD.

“I need to buy special PC or MAC speakers and amplifiers to get the most from internet music and podcasts” Rubbish, most audio equipment from computer manufactures is overpriced rubbish. Get a good quality amplifier and Speaker use the ones from your hifi, all you will need is a 3.5mm jack from the back of your PC to your amp (usually phono or RCA jacks) get some quality leads made from Oxygen Free Copper. The quality of the leads (known as interconnects) is critical to get quality sound. Today even the most basic soundcards have optical out use this if you can the connector is usually an SPDIF, of course your amp needs a spare optical input. Ask at your hifi store not your computer store!

What else can I do with Broadband?

2006-06-03T18:38:00.000-07:00

I’ve got broadband what can I do now?
Of course there is surfing the web, chat, on line gaming, and all the top sites, Google, eBay, Amazon, wikipedia, news and information galore…and I have already explained how to make and receive free calls in the internet without having to have your PC on, and using a regular phone, even a cordless one.

So what else can you do with a broadband connection?

Did you know you can quite legally get thousands of songs and spoken work audio and video programs for free?

Here's what you will need and how to go about getting the most out of your broadband.

Before we start I should point out that I will not listen to low quality recording or TV programmes, so the programming I’m taking about is BROADCAST QUALITY or better. This sound will be as good as cable or satellite radio and TV, yes some programming is even High Definition, yes entire programs not trailers all 100% legal. Many of the site I will recommend are run with the approval of the RIAA and are run by large corporate broadcasters.

I’ll also cover the software you will need to get the highest quality video and audio; you will be surprised that the best players are not the ones you might expect! I’ll also tell you what software to avoid because it does not produce reliable high quality playback. All this software is free and 100% legal and free from advertising and Spyware.

All you will need is a PC and MAC and a connection to the internet.

To start with I’ll talk about getting audio such as Music and spoken word recordings off the internet, firstly there is more content and secondly it is easier and faster! Then we will move on to video.

Disable Non Genuine Windows Warning Messages: WGA remove WGATray.exe WGALOGIN.DLL rescind Execute permissions, Workarounds

2006-05-31T06:06:00.000-07:00

In this month's bundle of Patches for Windows XP there is an update to the Windows Genuine Advantage software. Windows Genuine AdvantageWGA ensures that you have a certified or valid XP licence. A number of people with legitimate licences have had problems with this new Genuine Advantage software. The result is that they get nag screens on start-up and also once they have logged in despite having a valide licence. The advice they get from the sbucontracted support from Microsoft includes "Reinstall Windows", eaier said than done if you do not have a CD (Dell and other charge extra for this) or you have lots of other software installed.

It is best if when the Windows update is run you select expert options and uncheck the option to install the new genuine advantage software. However if you have installed and it is giving you problem these are the step to remove the nag screens. Please do not use these tips unless you do have a valid licence. Contact Microsoft to check the status of your licence if you are not sure.

There a couple of ways of turning these nag screens off. There are 2 steps

1) Remove the Pre Logon nag screen, but removing execute permission on the DLL that generates it.

2) Remove the program and registry settings to run the system tray nag screen that appears after you log on.

These are the steps in more details:

1) First backup your system to ensure you can get back to the system in its current configuration.

2) Open the process list in task manager: ALT+CTRL+DEL, Task Manager, Processes, sort the list by Image name (click on the column header) to locate WGATRAY.EXE. Select this process and right click select “End Process” and confirm.

3) Click Start, Search, Files and Folder enter WGATRAY.EXE as the file you want to delete. Find the file and delete it. Empty the recycle bin. If you have system restore on it may restore the file, turn off system restore in Control Panel, System if required.

4) Check that the WGATRAY.EXE program is deleted and not running, just to make sure you have removed it successfully!

5) Run Regedit (Start, Run, Regedit)

6) Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\ Windows NT\CurrentVersion\WinlogonNotify. Delete all references to WGATRAY.EXE. Be careful only to remove the sections for WGATRAY.EXE

After this you will still see the nag screen before you logon. Even if you have auto login set up the nag screen will appear. This is because the Windows Login process is calling the WGALogin DLL. This DLL also start up the WGATRAY.EXE when boot. To stop this remove execute permission to the WGALOGIN.DLL file. With execute permission denied; the nag software will not start.

Before you can rescind execute permission you need to turn off Simple File Sharing. To turn Simple File Sharing on or off in Windows XP Professional, follow these steps:

1) Double-click My Computer on the desktop.

2) On the Tools menu, click Folder Options.

3) Click the View tab, and then select the Use Simple File Sharing (Recommended) check box to turn on Simple File Sharing. (Clear this check box to turn off this feature.)

Now we can rescind execute permission: Right click the file WGALOGIN.DLL in your Windows System32 folder in Windows Explorer and open the Security Tab. Press “Advanced”, clear the Inherit checkbox, Click the “Copy” button, then Press OK. Select each listed user/group and remove the "Traverse & Execute" permission for the use/group. Finally Press OK to apply the permission changes and close the file properties dialog.

Restart the machine.

You can now turn "Use simple file sharing" back on, and system restore if required.

The text message for the file permission varies in different versions of Windows even for the same language. There are various release of Windows, Home, Professional, and several release of each all slightly different: Your milage may vary!

Firewall Configuration, Free AntiVirus for Home use and other Security Tips

2006-05-27T10:08:00.000-07:00

The basic settings on the Speedtouch 716 are fine but there are a couple of changes you might want to make.

First the basic setting for the modem is to allow all traffic in and out. This is a poor choice as it allows in all incoming attacks and malware. It is far better to select the standard security profile that stops all incoming traffic and only allows traffic out. Even better is to take the secure profile, that lets nothing in or out, and modify a copy of it to allow our port 80 and 443 for HTTP and HTTPS respectively. You can of course open other ports as and when you need them. The default of allowing nothing and adding only what you need is a good approach for security.

Secondly the universal plug and play or UPnP feature is enabled. This might seem like a nice idea: UPnP allows applications to automatically configure ports on your firewall to allow traffic in and out as required. The problem is that this also allows Trojans, Spyware and virus programs to do the same! Select the option for uPNP and disable it!

If you have Windows PCs it is a good idea to turn of this feature in Windows. If you need it later you can turn it on by the click of a button. This is a great utility to allow you to turn the UPnP on and off as you require. Check out WWW.GRC.COM for their great Spinrite program, podcasts (Security now) and free utilities.

If you need a good AntiVirus program free for home use try AVG from here.

How to wire it all up

2006-05-27T06:15:00.000-07:00

The wiring for a combined, phone, low cost router, microfilter, ADSL VOIP Wireless modem and computers can be complex so I've drawn a quick sketch.

The basic layout is quite simple but it is easier to work from a digram, there is a sample configuration on this previous post.

This diagram was created using a free web based tool called Gliffy. Only used it once to draw this but it works and is free, simple to use and reliable!

For more information on low cost calls, broadband deals, and lots more visit www.moneysavingexpert.com

The truth about wireless security, what they do not tell you. It does not work!

2006-05-26T17:06:00.000-07:00

There is a common problem with many wireless security products: They do not work very well. Take the WEP standard. This is a very weak form of security can be broken into quite easily. Even the current WPA 2 (personal or enterprise) is can be broken if you choose a short key.

The solution is simple, make sure you use a product with WPA, and use a key of at least 63 characters. Ideally use a randomly generated one. Get your free random password here or from GRC.COM. Just cut the key and paste it into your WPA equipment. Remember to key a copy of the Key you are given so you can cut and paste it for new wireless devices. This is too long and random to type, so use the clipboard and store it safely in a document to use later.

Ok let’s run by those facts again:

WEP is broken do not use it!
WPA can be cracked if you use a short key that is not random. Use a password generator, pressing keys on the keyboard at random is “random enough.”

Which Firewall?

2006-05-26T13:16:00.000-07:00

"I want a firewall" You have some choices there are 2 type of firewall

1.Software
2.Hardware

You really need both. Don’t worry you can get BOTH types free

Hardware Firewalls
The good news is that the free voice ADSL modem I recommend has a firewall built in! If you want a more advance firewall without having to pay Cisco an arm and a leg try IPCOP click the link on the left of the IPCop home page to see the amazing screenshots. IPCOP is better than most commercial firewalls!

Software Firewalls
Even better Windows XP (SP2), Macs and Linux all ship with firewalls. I also use and recommend the Kerio Personal Firewall from Sunbelt software. This runs in demo mode for 30 days, after this time some of features stop working, but the excellent firewall still works!

Free Web, File, Print, Mail and FTP server

2006-05-26T12:35:00.000-07:00

If you need a rugged virus proof server than you can manage via a simple web interface, that works with PCs, Mac and Linux. Try the SME Server. This free software is very robust, it has a very secure mail server, file server, FTP server, and Web server built in.

Bullet-proof operation, server will run for years unattended
Mail server built in include POP3, SMTP and Web Mail
Run multiple domains and website on the same server
Simple to use web interface
Software RAID built in no need to purchase new hardware for RAID
Will run on an old PC, even a Pentium with minimal RAM
Free community support if you need it, paid for commercial support if you want it
FTP server, Firewall, Domain controller, AppleTalk support, all built in

How to install

Download the ISO and burn the image to CD (Don’t copy the ISO to a CD that is not the same as burning an image) You can buy a CD from any good supplier do not pay more than £5 including P&P.
Get your old PC and pop in the Boot CD.
Set the BIOS to boot from CD.
Follow the simple installation program
Configure via the web interface
Sit back and enjoy your new server!

Why you do not need to pay for Static IP addresses

2006-05-26T12:25:00.000-07:00

It is a common misconception that you need to have a static IP address to run a web site or email server this is NOT true.

To get a free Dynamic DNS address pop to any of the free providers and get a free account and address. I'd recommend www.dyndns.com click the link to go to their free page, you can select any of these domains. Then enter your new login details on your free voice modem and now people can use your new dyndns address to go to your web site! Remember to open port 80 and 443 on the modem to allow access to your web server. If you do not like the free domains below, you can buy one. I'd recommend www.easily.co.uk just by a basic domain, no web or email. The basic domain comes with 50+ emails and free web redirection. So just point it to your new dyndns domain. On your web server alias your dyndns and purchased domain.

ath.cx
blogdns.com
blogdns.net
blogdns.org
boldlygoingnowhere.org
dnsalias.com
dnsalias.net
dnsalias.org
dnsdojo.com
dnsdojo.net
dnsdojo.org
dvrdns.org
dyn-o-saur.com
dynalias.com
dynalias.net
dynalias.org
dyndns.biz
dyndns.info
dyndns.org
dyndns.tv
dyndns.ws
ftpaccess.cc
game-host.org
game-server.cc
getmyip.com
gotdns.com
gotdns.org
ham-radio-op.net
hobby-site.com
homedns.org
homeftp.net
homeftp.org
homeip.net
homelinux.com
homelinux.net
homelinux.org
homeunix.com
homeunix.net
homeunix.org
is-a-chef.com
is-a-chef.net
is-a-chef.org
is-a-geek.com
is-a-geek.net
is-a-geek.org
isa-geek.com
isa-geek.net
isa-geek.org
kicks-ass.net
kicks-ass.org
merseine.nu
mine.nu
myphotos.cc
podzone.net
podzone.org
scrapping.cc
selfip.biz
selfip.com
selfip.info
selfip.net
selfip.org
servebbs.com
servebbs.net
servebbs.org
serveftp.net
serveftp.org
servegame.org
shacknet.nu

I hate having to dial 0044208 etc just to call London!

2006-05-26T11:51:00.000-07:00

I hate having to dial 0044208 etc just to call London!

This is a common problem, as SIP providers may require you to dial the international form of all numbers. Even local ones!

Don't worry help is at hand.

If you have gone for the free Voice modem then simply create a dial plan. At the command prompt on your PC enter, telnet bebox, then login to the modem and enter these commands to program your modem. After this all your 11 digit UK numbers starting 01 or 02 will be converted to international format.

voice dialplan add prefix=02 defaultport=FXS1 fallbackport=FXS2 priority=NA fallback=enabled minimumdigits=11 maximumdigits=11 posofmodify=1 remnumdigits=1 insert=0044 rescan=no action=none
voice dialplan add prefix=01 defaultport=FXS1 fallbackport=FXS2 priority=NA fallback=enabled minimumdigits=11 maximumdigits=11 posofmodify=1 remnumdigits=1 insert=0044 rescan=no action=none

Which Countries are Free to call?

2006-05-26T11:41:00.000-07:00

This changes often so check before you purchase credit. The credits are very cheap 10 Euro so you do not risk much!

If you want an uptodate list check here

Which SIP Provider?

2006-05-26T11:32:00.000-07:00

Ok hopefully you know now that the way to make cheap calls is to use the SIP protocol. You can do this using a free program on a PC, Mac, Linux, or Smartphone but which provider should you use?

I like the VOIPStunt offering it works well provides access to over 55 countries at no cost, and is only 11.60 Euro for 120 days. You get 300 minutes of free calls per week, after that it is one euro cent a minute. No connection fees!

If you want to try the service for free, download the software and run it. This will create an account for you. Once the account is created, make a note of your username and password. You can uninstall the software. Use the information on the SIP section of the site to setup your SIP hardware or SIP phone and use your new VOIPStunt username and password. You will be able to make free calls but they will only last for 60 seconds. This is a great way to try out the service and configure your hardware for free!

If you like the service, top up your account with credit and you will be able to make unlimited calls! If you want to know which countries are free see my seperate post.

If you just want a free incoming line with a UK number, then try Sipgate. You can even get 2 numbers from them and enter the details into your free voice modem and have 2 phones connected one for each of your new numbers! No monthly line rental. If you only want to make a few out going calls, you can always configure 1899 to use your new VOIP numbers and call the freephone access number. Alternatively you could sign up for a Sipgate outgoing account, but this would cost more. To get your modem to dial the freephone access number just use this dialplan. At the command prompt on your computer type telnet bebox then login and enter this command. Then just dial * and the modem will connect you to the 1899 service. Remember to register your free SIP number with 1899 first!

voice dialplan add prefix=* defaultport=FXS1 fallbackport=FXS2 priority=NA fallback=enabled minimumdigits=1 maximumdigits=1 posofmodify=1 remnumdigits=1 insert=08081708708 rescan=no action=none

Avoid the 0845 and 0870 VOIP providers they skim money off call to these numbers. Very costly!

Skype and Vonage

2006-05-26T11:27:00.000-07:00

Skype and Vonage, I’m often asked about these 2 products. They are not the same!

Skype is a proprietary peer to peer network developed by the programmers who developed Kazza. It can be used for free PC to PC communications, and can provide excellent call quality if you assign a fixed UDP port on your firewall. It is not so good for calling landlines and mobiles as the call cost are high. In fact indirect calling providers like 1899 and 18866 are much cheaper and that is using a real phone to call another real phone! Skype is great for conference calls where everyone is on a PC. The video in Skype is a great feature. Do not buy any skype phones as these will not work with SIP. They are called VOIP phone but in reality you need to have a PC running to use them. With a SIP phone you do not need a PC. Do not use Skype unless you have a firewall otherwise Skype will use your network for other Skype users calls!

Vonage is a really expensive way of calling. You purchase a Vonage adapter and phone for not much money, and then pay them a monthly rental to make calls. They do include some free calls but it is expensive to run. It is worth buying the Vonage kit if you can unlock it and use it with a SIP provider of your choice. This is a real bargain at you can buy the kit for £20 and if you know how to unlock it, you can plug it in, configure your preferred SIP provider and make calls! Not for the faint hearted, and you loose your warrantee!

You are better of getting one of the free ADSL modems with SIP and phone lines built in and using one of the low cost SIP providers!

Why bundled Phone and Broadband is not always the best

2006-05-26T09:47:00.000-07:00

The downside with bundled offers like the carphone warehouse and Bulldog options where you no longer have a BT line is that you loose out on the carrier switching AVAILABLE ONLY ON BT LINES. This can be a major consideration.

If you want maximum control of your options it can be worth sticking to a BT fixed line, and cherry picking the best ADSL and call providers. This is more work but it allows you some interesting options.

To check if you can get BE Broadband in your area, Pop your phonenumber and post code into the BE site, click here. If you are going to order it mail me I'll give you the promo codes you need to quote to get a month free, and pay £20 per month not £24.

So for £11 per month line rental to BT and £20 a month to BE for their 22meg ADSL, a total of £31 what do you get?

1) Faster MUCH faster broadband

2) The option of 2 new phone lines either incoming only or outgoing only or both. Yes that is 2 separate lines in addition to your incoming BT line! No computer or headset 2 real phone lines. You can connect an answer phone, cordless dect phone etc.. There is a huge range of call plans for these lines many include FREE (Zero connection and unlimited talk!) for a small monthly fee e.g. 10 euro for 120 days! This includes unlimited international and national calls with no need for a PC or headphone just a normal phone! This does NOT involve using Skype or Vonage. You need no additional equipment just the 22meg broadband from BE and one or two any regular telephones. Clearly if you only want one line you only need one phone. You can also connect these lines to a PABX if you have one at home.

3) Free evening at weekend calls to any UK landline on your BT line! You need to register a CPS service to get this but there is no fee or rental for this service!

4) Automatic lowest cost time of day routing for all outgoing calls on your BT Line. Mobile calls from 4p peak or 2p off peak, free national and international calls 3p connection. To do this you do not need to dial any number before calling just pick up the phone and dial. A low cost call router needs to be fitted to the line. This normally costs £28 in vat and delivery, but contact me I will tell you how to get it for <£20 including VAT and delivery.

5) OH you also get a hardware firewall to protect your PCs, you can connect 5 PCs to the internet using this and it also has the latest 54meg wireless with WPA for great security. The unit also does QoS (Quality of service) and voice prioritisation, so even when you are downloading video your voice calls are not effected!

Of course you do not need the 22meg broadband from BE to add the addtional phone lines. Simply use your existing boradband provider or order a wirefree deal and just buy a ADSL modem with 2 addtional phone lines built in. I'd recommend this model. You can get it for just over £90 inc VAT and delivery from here. I've not used this outfit buy hear they are good, if you find it cheap let me know!