Design a Virtual Office with Open Source? 263
apropos asks: "An interesting question came up recently when discussing (yet again) starting an open-source based consulting company: 'How would you design the ultimate virtual office with open source software?' With things like fax, VoIP, web, email, security and office suites all available as open source products, what kind of useful things could be done? One idea that came to mind was emailing answering machine recordings. What would you put into your ultimate virtual office solution?"
Netoffice (Score:3, Interesting)
Off the top of my head.. (Score:5, Interesting)
What would be useful?
emailing answering machine recordings.. I don't think so. Emailing the entire answering machine recording could backfire. That could easily be used as a DoS against someone's email box ("Let's all leave a message for that ass Professor Doofus tonight!")
Not that I get a lot of faxes these days (read: "the 21st century") but it would be nice to have software that would OCR a fax then email the text to me (this one is simple enough that it probably already exists) == Less paper.
If a company were large enough to have a mail room, then scanning in snail mail and emailing images would be neat. One could always fetch the hard copy if needed. I'm far more efficient with electronic files than I am with paper. (My desk is a pigsty)
Re:Off the top of my head.. (Score:5, Interesting)
I use PayTrust [slashdot.org] for my bills - they do exactly this. What they can get electronically, they do, but any other bills go to their address and get scanned in. I get an email with highlighted information (date due, minimum payment, total payment, etc) and can set up automatic payment rules (for example, "Pay celphone bill unless its over $120 - if it is, then email me first"). And it works on anything, even little scraps of paper.
Pretty cool stuff, and very friendly.
Already done (Score:-1, Interesting)
When I tell people it's for using your PC as an answering machine, they its a terribly nerdy idea. But when I explain all the advantages to it (keep your messages forever!) they usually end up getting very interested.
Re:Hmmm.. (Score:5, Interesting)
It's really cool technology and continues to amaze everyone we show it to, so I'm surprised that it's not yet fully commonplace.
For an open source solution? Hmmm... good luck?
Linmodems (Score:5, Interesting)
Citing the site:
# Think telephone emulation (put the audio card into full duplex, and talk to the linmodem with it).
# Think telephone with a backspace key (use the linmodem to dial for you).
# Think smart telephone: "That line is busy. Do you want me to retry in five minutes?"
# Think "voice dialling".
# Think "soft pbx". Equip enough machines in an office for all the outside lines. Then do IP telephone inter-office, and go to a linmodem when you need an outside line.
# Think answering machine.
# Think pager interface. Your answering machine takes the call, phones your pager company and pages you).
# Think "contact database with integral dialler, and answering machine recognition".
# Think "call recording with no off-hook click".
# Think message detail recorder (basically a record of all time spent on the phone. Great for billing.
I guess mailing voice recording wouldn't be hard.
Re:Already done (Score:2, Interesting)
The link in the original post had instructions for setting it up in Linux, with free software.
I have been using my Linux server as an answering machine for about three years now. When I get a voice message, it is archived, noted in a log file, converted to MP3, posted on a web UI, and e-mailed to my yahoo mail account. So, I can access the message locally, or via Yahoo Mail if I'm out.
Re:Off the top of my head.. (Score:4, Interesting)
Or better yet, use voice-recognition software to translate the message to text, and send it to my email. I can read (or skim) faster than I can listen. Of course, I'd also want the recording (which wouldn't take up much space, as someone else already pointed out) in case someone left a phone number and the software didn't translate it correctly.
Usability (Score:5, Interesting)
One word: Usability.
Open Source is wonderful for what it is, its principles are beautiful, its spirit is clean, and it is absolutely no good to end users as it stands today.
Applications do not look the same, nor do they work the same. KDE and GNOME? Yeah. But there are two of them. Why? End users do not care about choice. They want something that works, and where every application looks the same and works the same. They also do not care about recompiling their kernel every time they buy some hardware, or recompiling software to alter some setting only available compile-time.
Whatever functionality (which is normally Open Source developers' focus) the office solution gives, it is absolutely worthless if it takes a Ph.D. in Rocket Science (or two hours of trial-and-failure) to understand how to reach the wanted end results.
So usability would be my primer choice for end result.
I dare not count how many Open Source projects actually start out creating a logo, a hompeage, and an implementation of themes, a particularly pointless feature. Somehow that says everything. For most of them, anyways.
Re:What about Asterisk (Score:2, Interesting)
That's not including the ISDN PRI that you going to have split into 24 different trunks, either...
Accounting or Whatever (Score:5, Interesting)
But that's just an example. It could have been something else. It could be Illustrator. Or Photoshop (yes, I Love The GIMP, but I'd switch if Photoshop was free). The productivity of users in the long run is far more significant than even, say, a $15,000 accounting package.
My wife is currently taking the Becker/Conviser course in preparation for her CPA exam. Yup, we have to have Windoze for the practice software. Fortunately, OpenOffice runs very nicely on her XP box.
I think that, as long as you're prepared to build and *support* heterogeneous systems with perhaps a blend of "Whatever The End User Needs", you are fine. You can suggest ways to save money, but keep your eye on productivity - it's arguable to me that OpenOffice is in some ways *better* than MS Office, for example. If you walk in *telling* users they should be happy with, say, Abiword, you're already on the wrong foot, IMHO.
Mark
Re:Hmmm.. (Score:5, Interesting)
Your point is valid for companies that have > 3 people and are (more) secure financially but I will be without physical office for a while and need to hire good technologists first.
So the original question, how can I use my existing or modified infrastructure and intelligent software to help cover that gap until then?
I am working on building the tools I need and I love open source for this. People have touched on great packages such as mgetty and I would add wiki, egroupware (fork of phpgroupware), squirrel mail, horde, etc. etc.
I am building a suite of tools that I am giving back to the community (as they are based on open source tools to begin with) that may be a nice package for virtual office needs. See rexiliusgroup.com for some of the code (still being developed).
Re:Off the top of my head.. (Score:4, Interesting)
Please don't forget the following... (Score:4, Interesting)
Coffee Maker [cam.ac.uk] (this one needs an Java-Dispenser SNMP agent [agentpp.com] badly)
We're almost there...
Been thinking about this for a while now... (Score:5, Interesting)
1a. File-sharing across multiple locations. Haven't done this because bandwidth isn't quite cheap enough yet, but perhaps in the near future, I'll be setting up rsync'd shares between the 3 locations so we can work from the same file base. Hasn't been a problem when working on separate projects but with more joint projects, it is starting to get messy with people keeping their own project directories.
1b. Search interface to files. Heirarchical file structures suck for trying to find things. Good for filing once, but I reckon I could retreive files quicker with a google-like interface. So, I want a prebuilt web front end that can automatically provide a search interface to samba shares. I should be able to treat each share as a collection, so I can chose to search just one collection or many. This would be very useful.
Personally, I want to work towards the following solution.
* samba shares of heirarchical folders that can be mapped and synced to laptops
* a web search interface to the samba shares that understands doc/xls/pdf etc a la htdig
* rsync to maintain similar shares across multiple sites
Alternatively, it would be interesting to investigate peer-to-peer as an alternative - as long as files could still be synced to go on the road. Cool P2P features would be to define how many copies should be stored of each file on the network (to force backup) and to have the primary files migrate to where they are used the most to cut down bandwidth transfers.
2. Groupware - I've been meaning to look at the OSS groupware packages available, because with more shared projects, we need a centralised way of managing projects, tasks, calendars and contacts. These should be able to be accessed from Outlook ideally (Outlook 2003 is pretty good I have to admit). It would be nice to have faxes received via a modem in a linux box arrive in the groupware where appropriate staff can access them from wherever they are at the time. The groupware would naturally be a good home for the web interface to the samba file shares.
3. Office software - OpenOffice.org appears to lack the ability to track changes - essential for multiple people working on a project. Compare document is not enough. You need to be able to identify changes, and add comment bubbles for the development and review process. Additionally OOo needs to have a basic project management tool, drawing tool, and even a note taking tool a la MS Project, Visio and OneNote. That would cover most business needs.
4. Security phpki looks interesting and useful for managing email certs. Naturally most network communication should be encrypted between locations with SSH tunnels or similar.
5. Intelligence. Haven't seen anything like this but it would be very very useful for any business. There needs to be a web interface to an intelligence gathering and searching tool. So I hear that "so-and-so is planning to do this" I can record it in a database. Later, someone could search for so-and-so and be provided with the gossip from the different sources within the organisation. Could be a very useful tool. Perhaps something like an OSS version of the NSA's Intelink software - a means of providing, sharing and searching business intelligence.
6. Timesheet. A good OSS web based timesheeting system would be very useful.
7. NNTP. Thats right, I want to use good ole newsgroups. I tried web forums, but they didn't go down well because you had to be online. With NNTP you can use an offline reader, and reply offline. I reckon I can get my technophobe partners to use that because its so similar to email. Email is a bane for internal communication because of the cc's and everyone archiving mail. It would be easier to move as much as possible to a newsserver and use email only for direct communication between two people. Then a web interface from the intranet would be nice as well!
I'm not asking for too much am I?
Re:Off the top of my head.. (Score:2, Interesting)
You have a good point. I'd use Caller ID and send myself e-mail telling me when the message was received and who it was from.
mp3 player && telephone (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Off the top of my head.. (Score:3, Interesting)
Maintainability - The AK47 Virtual Office (Score:5, Interesting)
I think the most important thing is not usability as an earlier poster claimed though that is important but maintainability. Owners of small businesses with a dozen employees can't afford to have a full time network or systems administrator. So the responsibility usually falls on someone who is an engineer or administrative assistant but who is more interested in computer stuff than their average co-worker. If you put together a package that requires them to call you back in at $120 an hour everytime something strange happens, it will put the brakes on adoption. Make your money and your reputation on doing installs and never needing to come back. Make your product and service the AK-47 of the SOHO world. BTW, if any readers don't know, the M-16 has better range and accuracy but jams when not cleaned regularly whereas the AK rifle can be dragged through swamps and get sand and mud in the chamber yet keep on firing happily, at least that is the reputation. (If any godless communists with personal experience with it want to correct me, feel free.)
As for specific cool ideas... Take the voicemail to email one step further: maybe you could get voice recognition software to translate the message to words (or just phonemes when it is unsure of a word), send that to email, and act as a proxy allowing a reply email from, for example a two way pager, to be translated back into speech by voice synthesis software, then redial the original number found by callerID, read off the reply and ask for a certain touchtone or the word 'confirmed' to be said if the correct recipient got the reply. Like this:
Virtual Information (Score:2, Interesting)
And why is it a virtual office, of you use physical computers? If it is the work place at home, call it Soho, or call it the workplace of a telecommuter, but I dont see what the virtual here is, besides a disturbing buzz-word.
And by the way, did I miss the content of this article? It is just listening some well known web sites. Where is the news?
opensource vs freeware? (Score:1, Interesting)
Are you really looking for open source, or free (as in beer)? If it's free (as in beer) but not open-source, is it considered as evil as someone who asks money for the product?
Phone automation (Score:5, Interesting)
Forget about the office (Score:1, Interesting)
Create a product, get a customer, and *then* think about how geeky your office can be.
Re:Been thinking about this for a while now... (Score:3, Interesting)
Cheers Gav
I just gave a talk on Asterisk! (Score:3, Interesting)
If you're interested, the slides and notes from the talk are here: Fun with Asterisk and Perl [moertel.com].
The talk was for the Pittsburgh Perl Mongers and shows a four examples:
if you use gentoo, fill out case study at gsp wiki (Score:2, Interesting)
hehe... I think I've got the format memorized for the wiki address... www.subverted.net will get you to it if I goofed up.
I would start a layer deeper... (Score:4, Interesting)
Then I would like to see all applications coming with freely configurabel toolbars, menus and mous-actions. Any of these would make use of the same functions available at the scripting-demon.
Now, add an Office on top of that and you get really really powerful.
Also I would like to see all the desktop being task based, as I would like to see the Office being task based, rather than applicaiton-based.
The system would sense the context in which you are working and adopt. Maybe by learning your habits.
The Office would be fully modular. Wide support for answering-machines, voice-modems, fax. (Hylafax could be addressed due to modularity and scripting).
Then I would love to see code being reused:
- completly stylesheet based. No own stylesheet, just extensions to CSS1, CSS2, CSS3)
- spreadsheet in "classic" mode and "Lotus Imrpov" mode
- full use of relational databases anywhere
- full use of LDAP anywhere
- no new Fax software. Use Hylafax and/or getty.
- no monolithic applications. Instead function-modules, that can 'dock' into each other
- status monitor lists recent emails along with contacts. Full integration of IM and email without forcing the user upon certain MUA.
- export all to: Web (stylesheets!), PDF. PS, Latex, MS formats etc.
- since all is modular people disliking WPCs could replace it with a special TeX editor
- visual database designer
- visual LDAP schema designer
- and many more...
I want all information accessible anywhere in such a complex application.
Re:What about Asterisk (Score:5, Interesting)
its really cool to see how far its all come (yeah, XML-RPC!!) and yet its so much one of those 'hidden success of linux' stories.
its like, the operating system that was so good at doing what it does, everyone forgets its even there, or what it is. "never mind the 'war for desktop', who is taking care of the telephones, and the billing, where is the 'policy' computer, etc?" heh heh
Virtual offices and groupware (Score:4, Interesting)
The first company I did this with was almost entirely virtual and we used primarily telephone and email. This is good and worked OK where the projects were small enough they could be designed and implemented by 1 or 2 persons (basically isolated development). The largest project (multithreading a legacy kernel) was 3 people and I probably spent 3-4 hours a day on the phone in some phases of it.
This pattern served well enough for the next 2 companies as well (one a startup and one a large corp), but in both cases a lot of travel was involved to keep everyone in their loops.
Its not as much the software used as the mindset that everyone has to be involved in what used to be 'hallway' talk. While you have to have some additional process other than hallway talk for a project, it is very valuable and cements a group together (if all you ever experience of your co-workers is spec and design email exchange its hard to develop a feel of how they think/work, and IMO empathy with your co-workers greases the skids significantly).
To finally get to the point: based on something I read on slashdot back in 99 or so when we did the next 'virtual' startup I pushed hard to use a broader range of tools. After 4 years of trying various mechanisms some have stuck and some have not, here's what is working really well for a smallish group of sr developers (5-10) and worked OK for a larger group (25ish) of mixed sr and jr people doing development of a 500kloc scale project involving kernel work (database and OS/networking):
We set up UnrealIRC as the server (with a hack to disable the throttling so people can paste blocks of code or debug output w/o getting limited to 1 line per second) inside a firewall. Everyone uses an SSH tunnel to get to it. For clients everyone uses Xchat or mIRC.
The most important trivial sounding thing about this setup is that everyone set up a trigger that watches for their name or traffic on a
We use TWiki: it keeps everything in RCS under the covers and lets you easily attach binary files to any page (for drawings and such). There are lots of fancy plugins.
Re:The Ultimate Tech's dream (Score:4, Interesting)
Real World Example (Score:4, Interesting)
Linux OS. I probably should have switched a year earlier, but it's definitely ready for most business users now. Wars have been fought over which distro to use, but Xandros [xandros.com] can definitely help a small company be productive right now.
OpenOffice for word processing, spreadsheets, and even HTML authoring (until Nvu [nvu.com] becomes available soon). OpenOffice has a good user interface, ease of use and interoperability. Like most open source products, it just keeps getting better.
Mozilla for email and web browsing. I'll switch to Firefox soon. From what I've read, Outlook refugees (poor bastards) would like Ximian Evolution. [ximian.com]
Fax via email. I chose MaxEmail [maxemail.com], but there are others. Way cheaper, better and less hassle than a fax machine. I strongly prefer email. MaxEmail allows technoweanies to send a fax and we can still handle it as email (choice of PDF or TIFF). They also provide voice mail systems, but we don't use them.
Cell Phones. This sounds a bit cheesy at first glance, but the world is moving to wireless, almost forcing employees to have a cell phone anyway. Unless you're running a call center, cell phones meet all the phone needs of a typical small business. Voice mail is included. The concept of a receptionist, or worse an automated attendant system, is outdated. Putting customers on hold and transferring them three times is not a "feature" anyone should want in a phone system. VoIP and hacking together open source voice mail systems are neat technologies, but they're overkill for typical small business. If you need a small phone system, Siemens makes the GigaSet line that is well engineered with voicemail and wireless. When I last looked, they were about $350 + $80 per handset, maximum of 8 users. New models include routers and other cool stuff.
QuickBooks. Definitely NOT open source, but hopefully someone will create an open source program that can read QB data, or at least a native Linux version of QB. For now, QB Pro 2000 runs under CrossOver, but it's ugly. QB can actually be used for a lot more than accounting. If you like, it'll manage a customer/contact database, track time for hourly employees, provide rudimentary project management, etc.
In the perfect world, there would be one system that did everything. It'd be well integrated, easy to use and open source. That world will never exist, but we can come close. The goal should still be as few systems as possible, less complexity, lowest cost, and maximum ease of use. It should scale well when new employees are added. A small geek company like mine could easily go broke trying to create the perfect system. There are times when close enough will have to do, so you can get to the paying work and the never ending stream of government forms and accounting.
Re:The people resources (Score:2, Interesting)
When you are doling out 600k/year for 10 or so virtual employees, and this number is growing, you still need to have a feel for the daily operations of your business. It's not the same as micromanaging. You need to know where there are issues and bottlenecks and how they are being handled on a day to day basis. Virtual companies don't eliminate the need to manage daily operations, and daily operations are not micromanaging. Operations management is a fundamental part of running a business.
It isn't easy to be purely results oriented. What do you do whan results are under par after 6 months of work? How do you account for and change things?
It goes both ways, too. I spent over half my career working at home for clients, and I learned to physically appear and demonstrate what I produced on a weekly basis, to offer assurance. Yet, even with this, the virtual employee/contractor still lacks the same means to obtain recognition and promotion. "Out of site, out of mind" was what one client said when he accidentally gave away my cubicle to another contractor.
Let's say in results oriented management you conclude that the team was successful for the past 6 months. Sure, that's reason to be happy. But you'll have to wonder to what extent the individuals contributed, both to reward your best workers, and possibly to weed out slackers. Yes, slackers do exist. There are bound to be at least one or two out of every ten. Perhaps they have learned ways to appear productive when indeed they are not, simply because you don't have any real solid metrics to assess personal productivity, and don't have the traditional model where everyone is aware of what their teammates are truly doing.
Virtual enterprises can succeed. It is simply a great challenge to build a company solely on a large pool of virtual employees. This challenge tends to be more related to people than technology.
Virtual Offices of Tommorrow (Score:2, Interesting)
My methods are fairly primitive, but they do work.
IM is a good medium for messages.
TeamSpeak or Ventrilo for voice communication.
and of coarse E-Mail.
What I have been going after is eGroupware. This web based application is very very nice and clean. A pain to install but worth the frustration.
I have quite a few ideas and how to put them together. Not impossible and usefull to say the least. Anyone got a project going that would be interested in some idea's?
Hesperant