Intel CT ADE Sales Guide
Intel® NetMerge™ CT Application Development Environment
Sales Guide
This document presents a collection of tools designed to help sales professionals understand the product, CT ADE, its value to the development community, and answers to common questions, objections, and obstacles to selling. Please send suggestions and additional questions to the product manager, (mailto:), or call (415) 332-5656 x1310.
Product Description
What is it?
Why?
Is it a programming language or a library?
Do you have a graphical programming interface?
Does it support text-to-speech?
Does it support voice recognition?
What languages are supported in the ActiveX platform?
What operating systems are supported?
Which Dialogic system releases are supported?
What digital protocols are supported?
What about VoIP?
Does CT ADE support all Intel Dialogic products?
Does CT ADE support Linux?
Is there an evaluation version? How much does it cost?
Does Intel offer training or consulting for CT ADE?
How long does it take to learn?
How do I get technical support?
Customer Profiles
Application Models
Business Models
Developer Models
Positioning
What’s the Rapid Application Development (RAD) about?
What kind of applications is this good for?
What about performance? Is there a CPU overhead penalty?
Is CT ADE an open platform?
Does CT ADE work with Web Services?
Does CT ADE allow the application access to low-level hardware features?
Why should I use CT ADE when there are “free” APIs from Intel?
Competition
Company
Product Maturity
Environment Choice
Extensibility
Licensing Model
Compelling Events
Unavailability of older hardware models
Speech has arrived – Are you ready?
Free Rides Are Over
Dataflex Closes US Doors
Product Description
What is it?
Programming environment for telephony applications
Why?
C / C++ programming is difficult (complex, verbose, and arcane)
Hardware APIs (Dialogic or anyone’s) are difficult (complex, verbose, and arcane)
Different devices and networks need different APIs and protocols
With CT ADE, each of these is simplified into a single, high-level function set
Is it a programming language or a library?
Both are available.
ADL is a high-performance run-time platform with a C-like proprietary language with built-in telephony functions
ADX (ActiveX objects) is a library that can be used with all Microsoft Windows programming languages that support the COM interface
Example ADL code:
dec
var line : 2;
var digit : 1;
enddec
program
TrunkAnswerCall();
MediaPlayFile("GREET.VOX");
MediaWaitDigits(1);
digit = MediaGetDigitBuffer();
MediaClearDigitBuffer();
MediaPlayFile("MSG" & digit & ".VOX");
TrunkDisconnect();
restart;
endprogram
Example ADX calls in Visual Basic code
Dim line As String
Dim digit As String
VoiceBocx1.AnswerCall()
VoiceBocx1.PlayFile("GREET.VOX“)
digit = VoiceBocx1.GetDigits()
VoiceBocx1.ClearDigits()
VoiceBocx1.PlayFile("MSG" & digit & ".VOX")
VoiceBocx1.DisconnectCall()
Do you have a graphical programming interface?
ADL includes an icon based program designer that generates ADL code. This automatically-generated code can be augmented or modified by the developer.
Here’s an example – wait for a call, play a welcome prompt, play a menu of choices, and route control based on response.
Developers working with ADX can use the graphical programming tools available for their chosen programming environment.
Does it support text-to-speech?
Yes.
SAPI 5.0 / 5.1 TTS
Nuance Vocalizer
SpeechWorks Speechify
L&H RealSpeakHost
Does it support voice recognition?
Yes.
SAPI 5.0 ASR
Nuance 7
SpeechWorks 6.5
Philips SpeechPearl 2000
What languages are supported in the ActiveX platform?
Visual Basic
Visual C++
Visual FoxPro
Delphi
PowerBuilder
Javascript
C#
VB.NET
Any other language that supports the COM controls
What operating systems are supported?
Windows NT and 2000
Windows XP is on the roadmap – to follow driver support (SR 5.1.1 FP 1)
Which Dialogic system releases are supported?
Latest supported release is SR 5.1.1 SP1
SR 6.0 (PCI and cPCI) in the works
Normally CT ADE works without update on new system releases
What digital protocols are supported?
T1 CAS
ISDN (PRI and BRI)
SS7
E1/R2
Any protocol supported by Dialogic’s Global Call library – PDK or ICAPI
For ISDN, all major switch protocols are supported, e.g. 4/5ESS, DMS 100, QSIG, CTR4, …
Transfer is supported for Two B-Channel Transfer (ISDN), Hook-Flash (T1 CAS)
What about VoIP?
Just released CT ADE v8.2 SP1 that includes support for IPLink boards – features include:
H.323
Embedded Stack
G711 (64k Alaw and Ulaw), G723.1 (5.3k and 6.4k), G729 (Annex A and B), GSM Full Rate
Media streaming through the GlobalCall API, not IPML
V8.3 (expected Q1 2003) will support HMP 1.0
Does CT ADE support all Intel Dialogic products?
Just about. See the support matrix:
The release notes shipped with CT ADE provide our customers with earliest notice of problems that real applications will encounter, whether using CT ADE or the C API. For specific cases, review the release notes on FDBL (and below) – search for “PTR.”
Does CT ADE support Linux?
Our sales team is working now to define the business potential for Linux application development tools. Like any other investment decision, if we see the business case that will justify the development expense, we will follow the market requirements. If you have interested customers, we’d like to know. Please forward functional and price-point requirements to the product manager.
An alternative being considered is to interface CT ADE with the Intel OPS high-availability platform. The client would be a CT ADE Windows NT/2000 application; the server would be an OPS hardware platform running Linux. This would be less expensive to develop but has a more restricted market. Again, let us know if you find interest in this solution.
Is there an evaluation version? How much does it cost?
The evaluation software provides all of the development features but a restricted run-time that works only with a simulated phone line (software included in the kit). Works on any PC, including laptops, that have a sound card.
It’s free! Download from - Download your version
Does Intel offer training or consulting for CT ADE?
Yes.
Visit then link to
Consulting – Jumpstart service - fixed price training and development service. Consulting services can also be customized to fit specific needs of your customer, if the JumpStart as defined service does not. For additional information and sales support, contact Mark Karan at , (973) 967-5223.
CT ADE Training – Scheduled classroom training available in New Jersey and Santa Clara
How long does it take to learn?
For ADX, if you already know VB, C, Delphi, or other COM compatible language, you need a day or so to work with the sample programs and extensive on-line help
For ADL, you can be productive following one week of training or self-study – can follow sample programs for most of the major trunk types and media operations
One of the quickest ways to learn any new skill is by following examples. Here is a list of sample programs provided with each development kit.
How do I get technical support?
Provided by your Intel Dialogic distributor – backed up by Intel factory support engineers
Customer Profiles
The sections below identify several of the “markets” for CT ADE. These definitions are intended to highlight the particular mindset a prospect might have when considering the application development choices available. It is important to understand, however, that CT ADE is a development tool that can be used effectively in –all- Windows NT/2000 telephony application development cases – all application types, for all telephony technologies, and by all development shops. There may be non-technical obstacles that derail the sale, but there is no technical basis that will disqualify its use.
Market segment and customer profile strategies will be even more effective when targeting the sale of telephony hardware. Once the appropriate avenue has been determined and the hardware sale is proposed, then offering CT ADE as the development platform is universally appropriate. In some cases the revenue from CT ADE is equivalent to that of the hardware and the profit margins significantly higher, so it makes sense to include a discussion of development methods during each of these opportunities.
Application Models
Opportunities to sell CT ADE will not only be recognized by the type of company or development organization, but also by the nature of the application being considered. Some of the more common systems that will apply are
Contact Centers – can be in-house, service bureau, packaged system
Unified Messaging – variation on call center using telephone, fax, and e-mail forms of customer contact
Interactive Voice Response – customer access to data routed through prompt and response interactions
Debit Card / International Call-Back – applies least cost routing and/or pre-paid calling concepts
PBX – local site telephone switching via trunk-to-station device; options might include voice mail, follow-me
Conferencing – enterprise or service-bureau facility for multi-party conversations
Chat-room – combination of IVR and conferencing to route caller to desired conversation
These are only a few of the common applications whose development will be accomplished faster with the help of a toolkit and associated expertise embodied in our product’s features, sample programs, and support services.
Business Models
Telephony applications are built, deployed and/or operated by companies with diverse business models:
Independent software vendors / original equipment manufactures
Companies who build and sell their own software products that are or can be integrated with our products
Offers opportunities to market each other’s products
Lets the ISV or OEM focus on their business solution competency, using CT ADE to handle the telephony technology
Telephony application developers / system integrators / value added resellers
Companies building and selling telephony applications
Build business solutions and let CT ADE address the many different trunk types that will be encountered as the application is sold to a variety of customers using different hardware configurations – and even speech technologies
Build business solutions that can be sold in international markets with the aid of international phrase grammars
Offer them advantages of Intel’s partner programs – Converged Communications Developer network
Telcos
Companies providing telephone connection services - These basic telephone service offerings often need value-added voice applications such as calling card administration and customer service. These customers often require high-density, high-capacity deployments.
High-density deployments require high-performance designs – ADL state machine with multi-tasking features
Keep up with the rapid changes in high-density technology – DM3, IPT
Telephony application service providers
Companies building telephony applications and selling the use of those applications
Combines both worlds of application resellers and high-density deployments
Enterprise in-house developers
Companies building or integrating telephony applications for their own use using in-house technical staff. Users of these applications may be enterprise customers, suppliers, or internal employees. In-house developers are usually found in vertical industries for which telephone applications are strategically critical such as finance, travel/hospitality, retail and health care.
Reduce investment in learning and maintaining telephony expertise in-house; focus on business competence
Developer Models
C/C++ Programmers
Use ADX for telephony components, focus energy and money on business logic
Use ADL or ADX for proof of concept – get to market with the product faster and cheaper, replace with own C/C++ library after
High-density will require state-machine application design and/or multi-processor platforms – ADL is already optimized for high-density configurations
Graphical Language Programmers
VB, J++, Delphi – Use ADX for telephony components
Use multi-processor platforms for high-density deployment
Business/Data Programmers
Provide end-user access to application data via telephony – drag and drop it in!
Web Programmers
ADX can be embedded in web pages and driven by VBscript, Javascript, J++ and other script languages
ADL and servers built with ADX can interact with other subsystems using web methods such as Microsoft .Net and J2EE
.NET Programmers
ADX works in .NET environments since Visual Studio languages such as C# and VB.NET have native support for .NET communication methods
ADL can interoperate with other subsystems via.NET communication methods through the use of RLL plug-ins.
Positioning
What’s the Rapid Application Development (RAD) about?
•Sample application provided with R4 (single channel) was 2,100 lines of C code
versus
• Same application in ADL was 280 lines! (plus it automatically supports multiple channels!)
An order of magnitude difference in the number of lines of code means significantly less developer time (and cost) and far shorter time to market - for every version the developer releases.
What does API transparency mean to me?
It means using your development resources (and budget) for new applications – not rewriting the same ones because the underlying technology changed.
CT ADE’s Resource Manager resolves disparate trunk, media, and speech technologies to a set of consistent application functions – answer a call, make a call, play a prompt, recognize an amount. Whether using any of these technologies
- analog channel on a 4-port board
- digital channel on a T1 with ISDN
- digital channel on an E1 with an R2 protocol
- virtual channel on an IP network
- voice operation on a DM3 board
- voice operation in Host Media Processor
- speech recognition with SpeechWorks
- speech recognition with Nuance
all are accomplished with the same high-level function calls: MakeCall, AnswerCall, PlayFile, VrPlayAndRecogMoney.
What kind of applications is this good for?
Partial list of applications successfully developed and deployed using CT ADE:
IVR – DTMF/Speech Enabled / Automated assistantUnified Messaging / Follow-me services
Voice Mail / Talking email
Call/Contact Center / Intelligent call routing
Conferencing/Chat / Voice-activated dialing
Call-Back/Debit Card / Fax-on-demand
Soft PBX
Any application type you can write in C you can write with CT ADE
CT ADE is a C++, object oriented, high performance, field-tested application that supports all Intel telephony products and features. There are no technical limitations to the kind of CT application that can be implemented with these tools. To demonstrate, please review the following application summaries:
What about performance? Is there a CPU overhead penalty?
In order to achieve its goal of API transparency, CT ADE inserts a resource management layer that unavoidably introduces some overhead. However, that overhead has been minimized through optimized program design, as demonstrated in real applications in the field.
In any application, CPU usage varies according to the program design.
Easiest development effort, Heaviest CPU load – multiple exe, Windows process switching
Medium development effort, Medium CPU load – multiple thread, Windows thread switching
Most difficult development, Lightest CPU load – single thread, state machine task switching
ADX (CallSuite) operates at the medium CPU load level, comfortable at up to 100 lines with a single processor
ADL (VOS) operates at the lightest CPU load level, comfortable at over 500 lines with a single processor
Fact is CT ADE operates much the same as any special purpose library. If a developer does not use the CT ADE resource management capability, they will have to develop their own – probably incurring a greater level of overhead.
Here are some actual performance results, in our lab and in the field.
Intel benchmark results
Configuration / Density (Ports) / Platform / Memory / CPUWindows 2000 Server
Pentium III 650 MHz / 288 (144 in, 144 out) / ADL / 33MB / 15%
250 MB RAM / ADX / 43MB / 30%
DM/V960A-4T1
SR 5.1.1
CT ADE v8.2 SP1
Application makes/answers calls, plays a prompt (streams audio), disconnects and repeats
Customer applications
- Miami – 16 T1s (384 lines), debit card, < 30% CPU [500MHz]
- Vancouver – 20 T1 + 4 (484 lines), chat line, < 40% CPU [1.26GHz]
- Portland – 16 T1s (384 line), debit card, < 50% CPU [650MHz]
- Israel – 16 E1s (480 lines), 40k calls/hour, < 30% CPU [500MHz]
What's the highest density deployed today?
- 500+ ports in one PC in production today
- 10,000 ports in a LAN configuration – pre-paid calling card system
Is CT ADE robust enough for telco deployment?
CT ADE is the application platform for local and long-distance telephone companies in the US, UK, Switzerland, Korea, Philippines, Spain, Peru, Argentina, Columbia, France, Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia, Brazil, and more.
Is CT ADE an open platform?
CT ADE offers more than one platform - one proprietary and one that supports a wide range of standard programming languages.
ADX (ActiveX objects) can be used in C or any other Windows programming language that supports the COM interface. The underlying telephony resource manager is designed to support multi-threaded, event driven application programs using a separate thread per network channel. Since the ActiveX interface on our C++ library is very thin, we expect this will satisfy the majority of customers who want to write their apps in C++ but don't want to take on the low-level device API. We can look at packaging the class library itself if we find that the ActiveX interface falls short of developer's needs and the demand warrants, but it is not in our Product Roadmap at this time.
ADL, our high-performance proprietary platform, can be used as one of several languages applied by the engineering staff. ADL is a C-like language with built-in telephony functions. C and other open languages can be used for the remaining features of the application – database, accounting, etc. Data between these components can be bridged with a high-performance, memory resident link – NetHub.
Does CT ADE work with Web Services?
As back-office data is increasingly available through web services, how are the telephony applications going to migrate to this new inter-process communication protocol? Well, if you are working in Visual Studio with CT ADE’s ActiveX objects (ADX), you get web services automatically when you upgrade to Visual Studio .NET.
Does CT ADE allow the application access to low-level hardware features?