Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/244624
48 Information Technology maltatoday, SUNDAY, 19 JANUARY 2014 Moving to IP Telephony Mark Bishop IP Telephony is a generic term that refers to the practice of making and receiving phone calls over the Internet as opposed to the plain old telephone service. Other common terms for it are Voice over IP (VoIP) and Internet Telephony. Following the shift from analogue to digital, IP Telephony further harnesses the power and versatility of the online era by integrating into the worldwide network that is the internet. The traditional telephony system used within businesses and organisations is called a PABX (Private Automatic Branch Exchange), which would typically be a closed box with support for a fixed number of phone sets, called extensions, and also offer limited functionality. Some highend PABX systems would support modular enhancements such as call recording equipment and Interactive Voice Response (IVR) systems which greet the caller and offer options prior to passing the call to a person, but these would be costly to implement. With IP Telephony, the concept remains the same however the PABX is replaced by software running on a server and is naturally referred to as an IP PBX. If an organisation does not want to incur the extra hassle of managing an IP PBX, there is also the option to rent the service through a service provider. This essentially works by having IP Phones connect to an IP PBX which is hosted and operated by a third party, and obviously relies on an internet connection to do so. A major advantage of an IP Telephony system is the ability to grow according to need. If a business needs to add more phone sets, this can be easily achieved by configuring additional extensions An IP PBX can connect to a wide range of telephony services and equipment, some of which might require additional hardware such as a gateway in the software. When it comes to phone sets, there are a lot of options on the market today, which range from the simple set with a standard number pad to a full-size receptionist set with hundreds of buttons. Many phone sets also in- corporate video conferencing capabilities but these must also be supported by the IP PBX or service provider. Since the core of IP Telephony is based on software, additional features and functionality are very easy to implement and depending on the choice of IP PBX software, it only entails an additional software license cost. Some of the most interesting features are the ability to customise voice prompts, ring groups, call recordings, and out of office messages with ease. An IP PBX can connect to a wide range of telephony services and equipment, some of which might require additional hardware such as a gateway that would convert a plain old telephone line to IP. Call quality with IP Telephony is usually superior but is also susceptible to network quality. If the network is over-utilised, especially if the IP phone call is travelling over the internet, call quality will suffer. This problem however can be easily mitigated by means of traffic prioritisation within the network equipment, which would always give first preference to voice traffic. A drawback of IP Telephony is the inevitable security risk that is implied when using anything in conjunction with the internet. An IP PBX, like any other software service on the Internet, can be vulnerable to attack, which when successful can result in financial loss through unauthorised phone calls. It is therefore imperative to lock down an IP Telephony system and keep all software constantly up to date. Mark Bishop is the head of the Alert eBusiness Data Centre www.alert.com.mt Wejla by Tartarun to open at SmartCity Malta THE family-run fish restaurant, 'Tartarun' will be opening its doors at SmartCity Malta next Spring. 'Wejla' will also specialize in local fish which will comprise of a 50cover restaurant and an outdoor dining area, overlooking the marvelous dancing fountain and the panoramic Ricasoli coast. The restaurant will be within the SmartCity Malta designated Food and Beverage hub. The restaurant's name 'Wejla' is the forgotten small boat used commonly by sailors and fishermen sighted in the Grand Harbour in the 1900s. Designed by Pippa Toledo, 'Wejla', is set to have a modern fresh design with beautiful woodwork and a charming aqua colour scheme complementing the beautiful blue of the expansive lagoon below. 'Wejla by Tartarun' will offer genuine local produce for an exquisite fish dining experience. The brothers, James and Stephen Schiavone will be overseeing the operations and customer relations, while working closely with their team to ensure quality and consistency. Speaking about the opening of 'Wejla' at SmartCity Malta, brothers, James and Stephen Schiavone said, "We are pleased to be opening a new restaurant in a stunning location and be part of SmartCity Malta. SmartCity Malta will be the perfect destination for business lunches and intimate dinners. Like 'Tartarun', the food at 'Wejla' will be our take on local fish and seafood, right next to the spectacular dancing fountain of the Laguna Walk."