The converging worlds of Internet Services and Mobile Phone Networks.

By Matthew Wittering

The list of amazing, new, recently launched products is stunning. We have the Apple iPhone, the iPod Touch, the new mobile phone platform, Android or... how about the Skype phone?

The Skype phone launched by mobile operator Three may be the riskiest of all the aforementioned products, but it is almost the most revolutionary product.

Skype, the service, was created in 2003 by entrepreneurs Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis to allow the user to make free phone calls across the Internet to landlines and mobile handsets across the globe. Today Skype also allows its users to engage in instant messaging, conference calling, file transfer, SMS and video calls.

For me, Skype is a fantastic product which I have used weekly for over two years to make video calls to the family computer at home from both University and Spain. I have aways found the experience of using Skype enjoyable. For example, streaming video from my webcam across the country or globe is effortless. Therefore, the ability to make calls to my contacts for free from my mobile handset is very appealing. If you do not already have Skype installed on your computer, you can get the application free from http://www.skype.com/download/.

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Tiny URL

By Chris Chaplow.

Many times you have seen an interesting web page and wanted to send it to a friend in an email. You copy and paste the web address (URL is the technical term - Uniform Resource Locator) from the top of the browser into an email. If the web address is long and complicated and runs to several lines in an email, when the friend clicks on it, the link may very well not work. If the friend is technically minded he/she may be able to piece it back together and make it work. There is a better way.

This is where http://www.tinyurl.com comes in. The website's mission is "Making long URL's usable". So far they have done 54 million, and all for free. Simply enter the long URL in the box, click on "Make Tiny URL" and accept to add the URL to your clip board. Now paste (Ctrl + V) it into an email. For example; if you wanted to send the Google Maps location of the Andalucia Web Solutions office, which is better? This http://maps.google.com/maps?q=36.41722,+-5.15611+ or this http://tinyurl.com/2ogsb8 That combination of only six letters and numbers gives nearly two billion URL's

International colour awards

Company director and in house photographer, Michelle Chaplow, receives a nominee in the category of Architecture at the 2nd Annual Photography Masters Cup.

The Photography Masters Cup is a global online awards show recognizing excellence in colour photography. This celebrated event shines a spotlight on the world's finest photographers. The awards jury represents the most influential art directors, agencies, editors, galleries, and publishers from the world of photography, advertising and entertainment. The jury was passionate about viewing the images, spending eight weeks reviewing entries online before making their final selections.

Over 15,000 images were received from 69 countries and Michelle Chaplow´s image received a high percentage of votes overall. Certainly an outstanding achievement. Well done!

Follow the link to view the nominated image