David Byrd : Raven Call
David Byrd
David Byrd is the Founder and Chief Creative Officer for Raven Guru Marketing. Previously, he was the CMO and EVP of Sales for CloudRoute. Prior to CloudRoute, He was CMO at ANPI, CMO & EVP of Sales at Broadvox, VP of channels and Alliances for Telcordia and Director of eBusiness development with i2 Technologies.He has also held executive positions with Planet Hollywood Online, Hewlett-Packard, Tandem Computers, Sprint and Ericsson.
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December 2008

You are browsing the archive for December 2008.

Chili and Choice

December 31, 2008

Christmas was a cacophony of foods, sounds and sights. However, most of it is based on traditional elements, ham, turkey, greens, pies, etc. When I married my wife I was introduced to a new tradition, chili on Christmas Eve.  Therefore, today's recipe is my version of Texas Chili  as it has evolved over the last twenty plus years. I follow this pretty much with the exception of cubing the beef before browning.

On Vacation...

December 29, 2008

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Season's Greetings, Happy Kwanzaa...

December 24, 2008

Today is Christmas Eve and you will no doubt hesitate or think about how to wish someone well. Corporate cards have gone out and most will have said Happy Holidays or Season's Greetings. I am fine with that and usually change my signature line to reflect the same.

Why?

The Cheese Soufflé wins...Ethernet and Embedded VoIP

December 22, 2008

It's the holidays and cold in Dallas. I fixed a bunch of great stuff but decided to give you one of my favorite non-original recipes, Alton Brown's Cheese Soufflé.

"But", you ask, "what was in the running?".

Over the weekend, I made chicken potpies, eggnog ice cream, strip steak with peppercorn sauce and a crab quiche.



The end of Yin and Yang?

December 19, 2008

I have been speculating that the new administration may be good for us ITSPs as we compete for business in 2009. Looking at key members of the transition team such as Susan Crawford, a professor at the University of Michigan Law School and Kevin Werbach, an Assistant Professor of Legal Studies at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. I saw an opportunity to address important telecom issues that had languished under Bush. My chief concern remains, are we going to do the typical Republican to Democrat seesaw with regard to policy.

It is very tiring for us as a nation to be led by ideology focused politicians, rather than someone who may be actually seeking the best answer.

French Onion Something and Enhanced Local Numbers...

December 17, 2008

Mondays are the day for food but yesterday I made something startlingly good and very simple. I will not be providing a recipe, as that takes time and, in my case, advance notice. I normally cook without a recipe and, so it was yesterday when I decided to make French onion soup. We had an ice layer in Dallas and it seemed like a great day for it.

Paprika and the state of things...

December 15, 2008

A few years ago, I was invited to speak at a conference in Oslo. As a guest, I was catered to and shown the city each day I was there. On my last evening, my host was busy and I was to find food on my own. I am a serious walker and after a bit of traversing the city on foot, I found a small Hungarian restaurant. It was run by a couple that had only recently moved to Norway.

SIP Trunking Cost Savings

December 12, 2008

Broadvox has claimed that it has saved 70% for some of the businesses that have switched from POTS/TDM to SIP Trunking. Earlier this week I read a column that questioned that amount of savings. They focused on the difference between long distance plans offered by traditional carriers and SIP Trunking providers. While this is usually as source of savings, it is seldom, if ever, going to represent a 70% savings.

It's the Opportunity, Stupid.

December 10, 2008

Yesterday, while working on a press release I reviewed a quote written for me. (Having the partner write the quote is usually a quick way to learn their priority for the release.) As I read the quote, I initially felt it was appropriate but later I decided it was the wrong tone. Since the release is pending, I'll paraphrase, "The economy is bad, we must limit business spending."

So what's wrong with that?

Risotto and All-in-One PBXs

December 8, 2008

Interesting weekend for food. I made pork chops with a dill mustard sauce and cherry tomatoes, and grilled lamb chops with creamy Asparagus and Peas Risotto. I like to add vegetables to my entrées and pastas. It keeps me from having to prepare a vegetable side dish.

Whoa! Good news!

December 5, 2008

I had planned to spend today addressing certain features of IP PBXs for small business but was distracted by the news of an additional push by the Congress, Industry leaders and quiet support from the new administration to spend more on providing broadband to rural areas. While I now live in Dallas, I grew up in rural Virginia. Going home to visit my mother has always been a bit frustrating, as I needed to switch to 56k dial up service. This is good for her, America and me.

IP PBXs for SMBs and IT

December 3, 2008

Premise based IP PBXs offer many benefits to SMBs over hosted solutions. As this is not a discussion on hosted PBXs, I'll cover that subject a later day. The most important parameter is to purchase a system that fits the size of your company today and will meet your needs for the near future. That should be a minimum of three years with five years considered.

1000 degrees and counting...

December 1, 2008

I took the infrared thermometer gun home over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Remember, Jeff said "no", but I heard "later".

It is a cool device. First, I tested my stovetop burners, a whopping 960O.

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