Colman Carpenter is the MD of Voicespan, a Kent-based company that offers Asterisk-based systems to the SME market across the UK. He is an IT professional of over 20 years standing, with experience in diverse areas such as IBM mid-range software development, Lotus Notes and Domino consultancy, Data Management, E-marketing consultancy, IT Management, Project Management, Wordpress Website Design, and lately, Asterisk consultancy. He is a qualified PRINCE2 practitioner. Voicespan (http://www.voicespan.co.uk) offers Asterisk-based systems as the cornerstone of a holistic VoIP-telephony service for SMEs. They offer companies a one-stop shop for implementing a VoIP-capable system, encompassing Asterisk-based systems, endpoints, trunks, telephony interfaces and network equipment, and the consultancy necessary to bring it all together into a coherent whole. This is his first book. David Duffett delivers Asterisk training and consultancy around the world through his own company (TeleSpeak Limited, www.telespeak.co.uk), in addition to designing and delivering training for a number of companies, including Digium, Inc. A keen Asterisk enthusiast, David also enjoys podcasting, radio presenting, and teaching public-speaking skills. He is a Chartered Engineer with experience in fields including Air Traffic Control communications, Wireless Local Loop, Mobile Networks, VoIP, and Asterisk. David has been in the telecoms sector for nearly 20 years and has had a number of computer telephony, VoIP, and Asterisk articles published through various industry publications and web sites. Ian Plain has worked in the telecoms industry since 1981 and has designed some of the largest PBX networks in the UK. Since the late 1990s, he has been involved with VoIP initially for links between systems, and with IP PBX systems since 1999. Since 2003, he has been running a telecoms consultancy based near Bath in the UK, working primarily on high-availability Asterisk-based solutions for corporate customers.
