Greetings and welcome to the first Fall edition of Zoonini Web Services' ZooNews.

As bizarre commercials for Vonage Canada have taken over the television airwaves, VoIP has become a techno-term that many have heard but don't quite understand. In simple terms, VoIP is "the routing of voice conversations over the Internet," according to popular online encyclopedia Wikipedia.

What are the benefits of this Voice over IP/Internet telephony bandwagon, you're asking? Well, as the VoIP entry on How Stuff Works points out, "The practical upshot of this is that by using some of the free VoIP software that is available to make Internet phone calls, you are bypassing the phone company (and its charges) entirely."

Intrigued? Check out Skype's free VoIP software which has an intuitive interface that'll be familiar to anyone who's used an online chat service like MSN Messenger. All you need is a microphone – already built into most Macs – and you're ready to start making and receiving free long distance calls.

With eBay about to purchase Skype for over $3 billion dollars in stock and cash – VoIP's popularity will no doubt continue to rise.

Got a technology term you'd like demystified in ZooNews? Send it to questions@zoonini.com.

Our new site for Simply Organized has already gleaned a new client for professional organizer Lynne Freeman Haque, who says, "I am thrilled with the results! The site is more than I expected because, to be honest, it is everything I didn't know that I wanted, and more! When I first saw the initial design of my Web site I knew – this is exactly what I need. The overall design is terrific. The site not only reflects me and my personality, it also projects the idea that organizing can be fun. This is the central theme that I want people to understand."

Lynne feels strongly that small businesses must have a Web site to remain competitive. "I would advise anyone who is thinking about having a Web site designed for their (small) business to stop thinking and just do it. The Internet is THE way for clients and customers to find you. It is an investment that will pay for itself sooner that you expect. A Web site is visual, it's direct and it connects you to clients and customers in a way that no other kind of advertising does. Go for it!"

The reveal of Get Unstuck & Get Going's site remake was timed to coincide with the official introduction of this innovative "self-coaching tool" from coach, speaker and writer Michael Bungay Stanier. Designing the site with strong colours to reflect the vibrant, unique nature of the product it showcases, one of its unusual features is an interactive demo that allows visitors to "test drive" the book's unusual flip-book format. We wish the GU&GG team a fabulous launch party in Toronto this week!

This month I'd like to focus on The Top 5 Netiquette Rules – the basic tenets of twenty-first-century email manners that should govern all our online communications. For some of us, these things may already be second nature – but we can all use a reminder once in a while.

1. DON'T TYPE YOUR MESSAGE OR YOUR SUBJECT LINE IN ALL CAPS. It's the equivalent of screaming at the top of your lungs in your recipient's face.
2. Don't copy many people on your message (i.e. more than two or three) without hiding their email addresses. This is a matter of both politeness – would you reveal 20 of your friends' phone numbers without asking first? – and spam precaution. If you must send a mass email, use the BCC (blind carbon copy) field or your email program's "supress recipients" option instead.
3. When responding to a question, quote part of the original message if needed to make your reply understandable – otherwise your recipient may not remember what you're responding to. Corollary: Trim long conversations by removing the zillion back-and-forth replies below the current message if they're no longer needed.
4. Don't forward a personal message you've received to another individual without permission.
5. Always ask before sending someone a large attachment – particularly if you know your recipient has a slow dial-up Internet connection.

To learn more about Netiquette, explore this comprehensive guide.

As I sink deeper and deeper into CBC-Radio-withdrawal with the lockout entering its second month, both sides in the conflict are attempting to use the Web to their advantage. Cast-out CBC journalists have been passionately expressing their frustration via oodles of blogs and podcasts, the hub of which resides at Tod Maffin's CBCUnplugged.com. Other locked-out employees keep their editorial skills honed by posting news stories at CBCUnlocked.com (now offline).

Meanwhile, CBC management presents its side of the issue at the staid CBCNegotiations.ca – and the official CBC.ca portal becomes marred by ugly, massive Dell banner ads.

I have never paid much attention to hockey, but this year I am eagerly looking forward to the impending start of the NHL season – hoping that its lucrative ad dollars will signal an end to the lockout.

À la prochaine,

kp
aka Kathryn Presner