Skype Vs Vonage

n a way, the Internet is a paradox. Getting access to it in your home almost always requires you to spend some money. But once you have that access, you can use the Internet to save money. You can shop around for lower prices on everything from electronics to airline tickets. You can also send e-mail messages, pictures, music and videos without paying for any type of postage. With Voice over IP (VoIP) services, you can make phone calls -- even long distance or international ones -- for free.

Currently, there are several VoIP services on the market. The two most well-known ones are Skype and Vonage. Although both of these services use VoIP technology, they're quite different from one another. In this article, we'll explore how each of these services works, and we'll give you the information you need to decide if one of them is right for you.

Skype and Vonage are similar in that they're both VoIP services. When you make a VoIP call, you use your computer's built-in microphone and speakers, a headset, an IP phone or a phone plugged into an analog telephone adapter in place of an ordinary phone. This equipment and your computer translate the analog signal of your voice into a digital signal. The digital signal travels over the Internet. Once it reaches its destination, the telephone or computer that answers the call translates it back into analog sound. Check out How Voice over IP Works to learn about this process and how it's different from plain old telephone service (POTS).

Voice over IP uses a technique called packet switching to send a call over the Internet.

Skype and Vonage are also similar in that they can be significantly less expensive than traditional phone service. This is especially true if you make a lot of long-distance calls. Depending on how you use it, Skype can even be completely free. But the two services have more differences than similarities, starting with the steps you need to take to open an account.

To start an account with Skype, all you have to do is go to the Skype homepage and click "Download Now" to download a free program. This program is the Skype soft phone client, which includes an on-screen keypad you can use to make calls.Click here to read more

Dell Ubuntu PCs debut today

Dell Ubuntu PCs finally started shipping from today with Ubuntu 7.04 pre-installed. The three PC models available with Ubuntu are these.

• XPS 410n
• Dimension E520n desktops
• Inspiron E1505n notebook

The above systems will be available for customers today by 4 PM CST from here. Starting price for the E520n desktop and the E1505n notebook is $599; the XPS 410n starts at $849.

Hardware support will be provided by Dell. Users can also get help from Linux section of the Dell Community Forum or from Ubuntu Forums.

Windows Messenger to show Xbox live friends

Microsoft is launching a new service called Windows Live Messenger on Xbox 360 which will enable users of these two services to merge their friends lists. That means xbox live users can see their friends lists in windows messenger and vice versa.

NotifyChatDash, originally uploaded by Major Nelson.

Scratch: Programming for kids

Scratch is a tool aimed at kids to make animations, games and interactive artworks, scratch is developed by MIT media lab.

With scratch anyone can create animations or games with out knowing any programing language. One can import pictures from the computer and start animating it, the program provides buttons that have programmed to do activities like move forward, backward, rotate etc. Adding sounds to the presentations and some other characters is easy, the characters colors and costumes can be changed in few mouse clicks. Overall kids will enjoy doing stuff like this.

Your creations can be posted to the scratch site to share with the world and comment on others creations.

“With Scratch we want to let kids to be the creators. We want them to create interesting dynamic things on the computer.”

The program works by making the act of creating a computer program more like building with Lego bricks.

“Kids make programs by snapping blocks together,” said Professor Resnick, whose position is in part supported by the toy company.

Objects and characters, chosen from a menu and created in a paint editor or simply cut and pasted off the web, are animated by snapping together different “action” blocks into stacks.

Scratch is now available to download for free and works with both Apple Macs, Windows and Linux version expected in the late 2007.

Scratch site is currently down after it hit digg front page.