Voice over IP (VoIP) course content in 2006/2007
Over the last two years VoIP content has been incorporated within our units. For example the ICT363 / ICT563 (Network Switching) topic of Quality of Service (QoS) makes use of VoIP to illustrate QoS principles. Similarly ICT368 / ICT568 (Wide Area Networks) uses VoIP to illustrate the issues and techniques for addressing problems with delay and bandwidth sensitive traffic traversing low bandwidth links.
The VoIP content of our units will increase in 2006 and we have plans to create a dedicated VoIP unit in 2007. Existing and potential students should keep this in mind when planning their enrolment. The current proposal is to merge the existing ICT366 / ICT566 (Building Scalable Networks) and ICT368 / ICT568 into one unit. The majority of the VoIP content will be removed and incorporated within the dedicated VoIP unit.
As far as changes to degree structures are concerned the two new units will replace the two old units. Students planning to take ICT366/ICT566 or ICT368/ICT568 in semester 2 2006 should either take both units or if their study plan allows take the new units in 2007. Difficulties may arise if you take one of these units in 2006 and wish to take the other in 2007 due to the overlapping content. Please discuss this with your program chair if you foresee any problems.
The VoIP platform and curriculum to be used is yet to be decided. Cisco Systems have released a VoIP course under the Networking Academy banner so this is one possibility. Positive aspects of this include the traditionally high quality online learning tools and the use of Cisco's Call Manager VoIP platform which seems to dominate the large VoIP installations.
The downside to using Cisco's curriculum are the proprietary nature of Call Manager and associated costs. The alternative is to use the open source Asterisk PBX software which is increasing in popularity particularly in smaller organisations. The advantage is the ability for students to freely implement their own VoIP PBX which improves access to the technology and engages students in the learning process.
Students in ICT368/ICT568 (WAN) were surveyed regarding their preferred learning platform and we'll be looking at the results of that and talks with the industry before we decide which way to go.