MessageNet

Category: Uncategorized

  • How to Protect Both People and Businesses During the COVID-19 Coronavirus Outbreak

    What Is COVID-19?

    COVID-19, short for Coronavirus Disease 2019, is a highly infectious disease that is caused by a recently discovered coronavirus. A coronavirus is a common type of virus that typically affects the upper throat, respiratory system, sinuses, or the nose. They spread similarly to cold viruses and nearly everyone contracts a coronavirus at least one time during their lifetime, usually during early childhood. Most coronaviruses aren’t very dangerous, but some, particularly those that cause SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) or MERS (Middle East respiratory syndrome), can actually be deadly.

    While COVID-19 is a member of the coronavirus family, it’s considered a novel coronavirus. It’s one of seven known types of coronavirus, joining SARS and MERS as one of the more dangerous types. Most coronaviruses are relatively harmless in otherwise healthy people. COVID-19, a new strain of coronavirus, was discovered in Wuhan, China, and has, as of March 24, 2020, caused 18,614 deaths, of more than 417,698 confirmed infections across the world.

    What Is a Pandemic?

    The word pandemic refers to any disease that has spread throughout a large region or even worldwide (as opposed to an epidemic, which is only widespread throughout a community). The World Health Organization (WHO), has classified the COVID-19 outbreak as a pandemic. It has spread far across the world from its original location in Wuhan, China. The COVID-19 virus has hit Italy hard and there are cases cropping up all over the world.

    The United States, as of March 24, 2020, has seen 44,183 cases, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and has seen 544 total deaths from the disease. There could be many more cases that haven’t been reported.

    What Are the Symptoms of COVID-19?

    The symptoms of COVID-19 have ranged from mild to severe and life-threatening. Symptoms can also appear as early as two days after exposure to the virus, but could take as long as fourteen days. Typical symptoms of COVID-19 include:

    • Cough
    • Fever
    • Shortness of breath

    What Are the Emergency Warning Signs of COVID-19?

    The symptoms above are common and don’t necessarily call for medical attention. However, there are emergency warning signs to look out. Anyone experiencing these symptoms should seek medical attention immediately:

    • Bluish face or lips
    • Confusion
    • Chest pain
    • Chest pressure
    • Difficulty breathing

    Who Can Get COVID-19?

    Anyone of all ages can get the virus. However, fewer children than adults have become infected with the virus and there have been no confirmed deaths in anyone under the age of 19 from the disease. There have been hundreds of thousands of cases worldwide and thousands of deaths. No one is immune and even famous people have been infected. Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson tested positive for COVID-19 in Australia and more recently, Prince Charles announced that he had tested positive for the coronavirus as well.

    Who Is Most at Risk?

    Those most at risk for experiencing severe illness or even death as a result of COVID-19 are older adults, pregnant women, people who have HIV, people who have asthma, and anyone of any age who has a serious underlying medical condition. While most healthy adults and children are unlikely to become seriously ill or die from the disease, COVID-19 is extremely contagious and the measures put in place across the world are to protect those who are most vulnerable.

    How Does COVID-19 Spread?

    Because COVID-19 is a new disease, experts are still learning how it spreads. Currently, the CDC believes that it spreads primarily from person to person through close contact (less than 6 feet) and through respiratory droplets from when someone infected with COVID-19 sneezes or coughs. Although the virus seems to spread primarily once those infected are showing symptoms, it is possible for people to be contagious even if they aren’t showing any symptoms yet.

    It is also possible for COVID-19 to be transmitted through infected surfaces. If someone touches a surface or object that has the virus on it, and then touches their face, they could possibly become infected with COVID-19. One of the reasons COVID-19 is such a risk is because it spreads quickly and easily.

    How Is COVID-19 Treated?

    People who have more mild symptoms of COVID-19 can treat the virus at home. The best thing to do is to stay at home and to treat the symptoms. Stay hydrated, stay warm, rest, sleep, and drink plenty of liquids. A hot shower or a room humidifier can help with a cough or sore throat. You can take over-the-counter medicines to help ease the symptoms. Unless you have severe symptoms, it’s recommended that you avoid going to the doctor. COVID-19 is not bacteria-based, so anti-biotics won’t help to treat it.

    If you develop more severe symptoms, including difficulty breathing, you should seek medical attention.

    Can You Take Ibuprofen to Treat COVID-19?

    The World Health Organization recommends that people with COVID-19 avoid taking medicines with ibuprofen or any other anti-inflammatory medication because there’s a risk that it could make symptoms worse. The current theory is that the anti-inflammatory properties of ibuprofen boosted an enzyme that made coronavirus symptoms worse. The WHO is still investigating the claims, but in the mean time has advised that people take paracetemol rather than ibuprofen unless otherwise prescribed by a doctor.

    Is There a Vaccine for COVID-19?

    There is not currently a vaccine for COVID-19, although health organizations around the world are working on developing one. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) began a clinical trial into an investigative vaccine for COVID-19 on March 16, 2020. There are in total about 35 academic institutions and companies working to create a vaccine and already at least four have candidate vaccines that are being tested in animals. In addition, the World Health Organization has announced a global trial in search of an effective treatment for COVID-19.

    What Does it Mean to Flatten the Curve?

    The words “flatten the curve” have been appearing online and in the news a lot since the outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus. But what does it mean? The term refers to the graph below. The first curve shows what happens if no steps are taken to curb the outbreak. The second curve shows what happens when measures are put in place.

    CDC Covid-19 Coronavirus Flatten the Curve Graph

    It’s so important to flatten that curve because hospitals only have so much equipment to go around. There are only so many health care workers. If everyone who is going to contract the COVID-19 coronavirus is infected at the same time, hospitals will be overwhelmed. There won’t be enough doctors and nurses to care for everyone who is ill. There won’t be enough face masks to go around. There won’t be enough ventilators to help the seriously ill breathe. More people would die. By flattening the curve and having more people ill over a longer period of time, there could be enough medical supplies for everyone who needs them.

    What Can People Do to Protect Themselves and Others?

    The best way individuals can protect themselves is by avoiding exposure to the virus. They can help protect others in the same way by avoiding spreading the disease.

    Practice Social Distancing

    Social distancing is the practice of staying at least six feet away from other people. The virus is primarily spread through person-to-person contact, so staying out of close contact with others can help prevent the spread. If you are able to stay home from work, do so to avoid exposure. Social distancing also means avoiding large crowds and mass gatherings.

    Wash Your Hands

    Despite the news stories about people buying up and hoarding hand sanitizer, the best way to protect yourself is to wash your hands with soap and water, making sure to do so for at least 20 seconds, especially after being in a public place, sneezing, coughing, or blowing your nose. Soap can break down COVID-19 particles that might be on your hands if you wash for at least 20 seconds. Then, any particles remaining will wash away with the soap.

    Hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol is a good option if soap and water aren’t readily available to you. Make sure to use enough that you can rub your hands together for 20 seconds. The disadvantage of hand sanitizer is that although it can help break down COVID-19 particles most people don’t use enough of it for that to happen. Plus, it stays on your hands, so it won’t wash away any COVID-19 germs with it.

    Clean and Disinfect Everything

    Use household disinfectants to clean and disinfect commonly used surfaces. This includes countertops, tables, light switches, doorknobs, phones, and more. Anything that is used by more than one person should be disinfected regularly to avoid contamination. If new items are brought into the house, such as groceries, those should be disinfected, too.

    Don’t Wear a Face Mask

    If you are not sick and are merely taking precautions, don’t wear a face mask. They’re in limited supply and should be saved for those who are sick, medical professionals, and people taking care of someone who is sick.

    What Are Governments and Organizations Doing About COVID-19?

    State governments have been issuing executive orders regarding what people and businesses should do during the COVID-19 outbreak. Indiana’s governor, Eric Holcomb, issued a Stay-At-Home order that Indiana residents should stay home except for:

    • Going to work
    • Taking care of other people
    • For health and safety
    • To purchase necessary supplies

    Large gatherings of 50 or more people are canceled. Non-essential businesses have been ordered to close, although essential businesses and organizations were allowed to remain open because of the type of service they provide.

    Restaurants are able to remain open provided they only provide food for carry-out. Sporting events have already been cancelled. Schools and universities are running classes online. THis will prevent lots of people gathering in one location. Grocery stores are implementing measures to keep people from standing too close to each other in line and many are installing sneeze guards to separate customers and cashiers at the check-out line.

    What Can Businesses Do to Protect Themselves and Others?

    Unless businesses are considered essential, many have been ordered to close by state executive order, as is the case in Indiana. MessageNet Systems is able to remain open to support our customers because all staff are able to work remotely from their homes in an effort to protect both employees and customers from the virus. Any business, whether essential or not, should still plan a response to the outbreak in order to protect both customers and employees

    Operate Remotely if Possible

    If possible, businesses should operate remotely. Employees should work from home and limit the amount of time spent in the office whenever possible, communicating with each other via phone, email, and instant messaging services. Of course, this isn’t possible for all businesses, but any employees who are sick should stay home. This may mean offering paid sick leave where possible.

    Minimize Employee and Customer Contact

    If working remotely isn’t possible, businesses should limit the face-to-face contact their employees have with each other and with customers. Employees and customers should practice social distancing and maintain at least a six-foot distance from each other. Try to assign tasks that minimize employee exposure to the virus. Also try to prevent large groups from gathering in one place. Restaurants, for example, are operating on a carry-out-only basis, preparing food only for consumption off-premise. Other businesses may also be able to prevent the need for customers to come into the business by offering carry-out services.

    Clean and Disinfect Everything

    Any surfaces or objects that are touched by more than one person should be regularly cleaned and disinfected. This can help prevent the virus from spreading through indirect contact.

    Have a Plan

    Companies need to plan for a variety of possible scenarios in order to keep businesses running during the outbreak. What will the company do if employees are sick and have to stay home? What are the functions most essential to running the business? What can be done remotely? Because of the pandemic, times are uncertain. It’s important to stay flexible and have a plan for a variety of different scenarios, especially with so much unknown about what will happen with the spread of the virus.

    Communicate

    Communication is key to managing any crisis. With more employees than ever before working remotely or avoiding close contact with each other, online communication and digital technology will be more important to the functioning of businesses than ever before. Organizations can use their existing emergency communication systems to keep employees in the loop on any developments. With the MessageNet system, organizations could send one message that is then forwarded on to signs within the organization’s location, but also sent to all users’ email address, cell phones, and even Twitter.

    —

    , ,

  • How to Use PA in a Noisy Environment

    Noise levels can be a constant problem for many organizations. Hospitals constantly receive complaints from patients about high noise levels. Any location where manufacturing takes place can be extremely loud. Retail environments can fill with loudly talking customers. Schools can have students shouting in the hallways or in the classrooms. In normally quiet environments, it can still be noisy for individual people who could be using headphones or earbuds, preventing them from easily hearing a PA announcement. Or a normally quiet environments could easily become noisy in the event of an emergency. So how can you still use PA to get an emergency message across to those who need it?

    woman wearing headphones

    Increase the Volume

    The most obvious solution to making sure that people can hear a PA message in a noisy environment is to increase the volume. But this isn’t necessarily the best option. Not only might this make the announcement too loud at times when the environment is quieter. In addition, depending on the decibel level of the environment, increasing the volume above the noise level in the environment, the decibel level of the PA announcement could end up being so loud it’s dangerous for human ears. It’s best to consider alternative means of supplementing a PA paging announcement in order to ensure that people receive emergency messages.

    Visual PA

    MessageNet’s solution to this problem has been to add a visual component to paging to create audiovisual PA. The visual element of PA ensures that a message can be seen even when it can’t be heard. Things like headphones and ambient noise can prevent people from hearing an audio-only page during normal circumstances. Plus, anyone who is deaf or hard-of-hearing won’t be able to hear a PA page no matter what the ambient noise level is. On top of that, an emergency situation can either raise the noise level with people panicking or loud sounds like gunshots or an explosion, which could also render people nearby at least temporarily, if not permanently, deaf.

    Adding a visual component to your PA system with LED or LCD signs, or with an all-in-one device like the MessageNet Omni, which has both a screen and speakers, as well as flashers that can get people’s attention, not only means that your organization is able to reach everyone in an emergency, it also helps you stay compliant with ADA regulations.

    Multiple Methods of Communication

    Because in noisy environments audio PA and paging are limited in their effectiveness, another option is to include other forms of communication in your emergency communication system. These alternate forms of communication can be visual PA, texts, e-mails, all-in-one devices, and more. The more methods used to get an emergency message out to the people that need it, the better chance they have at acting on the emergency.

    —

    ,

  • How to Prevent Message Fatigue

    Modern technology makes it easier to stay connected all the time. We’re constantly getting texts, making phone calls, and checking social media. This can get exhausting after a while, even when the constant contact is personal and not work-related. Whether it’s the same type of contact we’re receiving or not, it’s tiring and only natural for people to either start to avoid contact after a while or to gradually tune it out.

    Man using cell phone and laptop

    What Is Message Fatigue?

    Message fatigue occurs when people are exhausted from receiving messages. You can get message fatigue simply from getting too many messages all at the same time. You can also get it from gradually receiving too many messages about the same subject matter. Either way, the frequency of the messages or the repetition ends up reducing the message’s effectiveness and causing the recipients to tune out. Since the message is technically received but no longer comprehended or remembered, it defeats the purpose of sending the message.

    The Boy Who Cried Wolf

    This can even be true of emergency messages. If people receive too many and then see no results of the emergency they’re being warned about in the early messages, people may begin to disregard the messages as a false alarm. This could later endanger their lives because they didn’t take action to protect themselves in time. It’ll feel to them like the boy who cried wolf – because the earlier messages didn’t immediately result in a wolf, they assumed that the later ones wouldn’t, either.

    Desperately Seeking Confirmation

    On the flip side of this, when it comes to emergency messages, people often don’t act upon the first message they receive. Instead, they seek confirmation that the message they received is valid. Perhaps it’s because people don’t want to believe that an emergency situation could actually happen to them. Whatever the reason, people usually don’t act immediately upon receiving an emergency notification and instead look for corroboration that it is, in fact, real, before they take action. People looking for corroboration on a message they receive is connected to message fatigue. If they’ve received too many false alarms or weren’t sure of the actual severity of a message, people might look for conformation before taking action.

    Ignored Tornado Warnings in Joplin, Missouri

    The Joplin, Missouri tornado is an example of both of these thing. Reports after the disaster reported that residents of the town ignored or reacted very slowly to the emergency tornado warnings, which could have resulted in more people dying because they didn’t take shelter in time. Many residents waited to take cover because they sought corroboration from other sources that the danger was imminent. They checked the TV or looked outside to see what the weather was like in order to assess the risk to themselves. The tornado siren was sounding, but there had already been two in the half-hour before the tornado actually hit. This meant that many people weren’t sure of the actual risk levels and tried to look for confirmation from other sources.

    Preventing Message Fatigue

    What can we do to prevent message fatigue? Statistically, a lot of tornado sirens end up being false alarms. While it can be argued that it’s better to sound the alarm with no tornado than to not sound it when there is one, it does mean that a lot of people start to think that maybe they’re more likely to be false alarms than not and wait for corroboration from another source, like a text or the TV before acting. Message fatigue doesn’t only happen in a short period of time. It can occur gradually over long periods of time, too.

    Different Severity Levels

    After the Joplin tornado, residents said that they would like to see different types of sirens to warn of different levels of severity. That way, instead of one standard alarm for everything, there would be a more urgent-sounding alarm to let people know that extreme danger was imminent. Having a way to differentiate the severity of the emergency or type of emergency can go a long way toward preventing message fatigue. If people get the exact same warning for a minor event that they get for a major, life-threatening disaster, they’ll have now way of knowing how much to pay attention to it. And because minor events will occur more often than major ones, people may begin to assume that the warning only means minor events and therefore fail to take action quickly enough when something major does occur.

    Different Messages for Different People

    Emergencies affect different people differently. In the case of a tornado, it will hit harder in some areas than in others. Some people may only be under a watch, while others nearby may be under a full-blown tornado warning. If people receive an emergency message that they don’t really need, this can contribute to message fatigue over time. Another suggestion following the Joplin tornado was that text messages be sent out to those in the areas in the most danger. This would not only provide the confirmation that people had been looking for, but it also prevents people who aren’t as affected from getting messages that they will learn to ignore.

    Confirmation and Corroboration

    Even when they’re not experiencing message fatigue, people look for confirmation that the emergency message they got is real. The best way to handle this is to provide the confirmation that people are looking for. For a tornado, having text messages and scrolling warnings on the TV in addition to tornado sirens can provide that corroboration. Within an organization, sending texts and e-mails in addition to a PA announcement and a visual PA announcement on LCD screens and LED signs will give people the backup information that they’re looking for. This is one of the reasons why MessageNet systems can send messages to a variety of different devices and can also connect with systems you already have, including SIP phone systems, e-mail, and text.

    —

    ,

  • The Benefits of an All-in-One Device

    When it comes to an emergency communication system, the more methods of communication, the better. But if you wan’t signs and screens and speakers, that results in an unsightly mess of devices cluttering up your wall. Plus, people aren’t sure which device they should be looking at. On top of that, all of these different devices are expensive to purchase and expensive to install. You don’t want to miss out on something that could potentially save lives, but you also have to stick to a budget and there’s a limit on the amount of wall space and network ports available. The solution is an all-in-one device.

    emergency devices installed on a wall

    What Is an All-in-One Device?

    An all-in-one device is a single device that has multiple capabilities. For an emergency communication system, an all-in-one device should at minimum have speakers and a text board so that it can deliver both audio and visual messages. Some have more capabilities than that. For example, MessageNet’s Omni device has speakers, an LCD screen (which can display not just text-based messages, but also images and videos), a microphone, wireless panic buttons, a camera, and flashers, all built in to the same device. On top of that, there are many other benefits to having an all-in-one device.

    Easy Installation

    An all-in-one device is a lot easier to install. There’s only one device that needs to be mounted on the wall, only one device that needs cable pulled. The wall isn’t cluttered up with a lot of different devices that compete for space, attention, and power outlets.

    Lower Cost

    An all-in-one device may be more expensive than each single device individually, but the cost of devices with only one feature each adds up pretty quickly. Investing in one device saves money overall because the value an all-in-one device provides is far greater than any other device by itself. If you think about the cost of a single, one-feature device as the price you pay for that feature, then add them all up to see how much it would cost to have each of the features of the all-in-one device, the all-in-one device will end up being less expensive per feature.

    Plus, an all-in-one device is much less expensive to install. If you hire an installer, they’ll only need to pull cable for one device and hang one device on the wall, saving you money on the installation cost as well. Some devices, like the MessageNet Omni, may not even require an installer because they’re so easy to hang.

    Easier Maintenance

    An all-in-one device is also a lot easier for your IT and maintenance departments to manage. With only one device needed per location, staff only have to troubleshoot and maintain one device instead of several. This also makes it easier to manage the network, since fewer devices need to be on it. IT and maintenance staff are often overworked as it is, so it’ll make their jobs a lot easier and free them up to focus on other tasks if they don’t have to manage and maintain more devices for your emergency communication system.

    Messaging Convenience

    Getting an emergency message out to those who need the warning is also a lot easier with an all-in-one device. The notification’s recipients don’t have to try to decide which device to look at if they’re all going off at once. They’ll know there’s only one device that they’ll need to look at in the event of an emergency. That one device will provide them with all of the information they’ll need and, in the case of the Omni, can even alert them to the fact that there’s a message that needs their attention with its flashers.

    —

    , ,

  • How to Change Comm Control Preferences

    The Communication Control, or Comm Control, screen is where users can set how they want to be contacted. It is accessible either from the User Directory or from the User Database Manager by clicking on the Comm Control button in the upper right corner of the window. Either location will take you to the Communications Control screen. Higher levels of user, such as MGR, can access the Comm Control for any user – from the User Directory, click the check box next to the user’s name before clicking on the Comm Control button and from the User Database Manager, navigate to the user’s account first, then click on the comm control button.

    Comm Control Screen

    Text Device Control: See How to Set Up Text Device Control

    In/Out Whiteboard: The User Directory shows whether each user is ‘In’ or ‘Out’ and that status can be changed here.
    Forward Communications: To forward all communications to another user, select the user’s name here.
    Cancel Forwarding: Click this button to cancel all message forwarding.
    Sign Group: To assign a sign’s text functionality (LED, MediaPort, IPSpeaker, or PC Alert) to a user, select its Sign Group.
    Audio Group: To assign a sign’s audio functionality (MediaPort or IPSpeaker) to a user, select its Audio Group.
    Display Pages on Signs: Select yes to have all pages and text messages displayed on the sign selected in Sign Group.
    Authorization List: To limit which users can contact this user, select an authorization list.
    User Note: Enter any helpful notes that the user wants visible to other users.

    Phone & Voice Mail Settings
    Active Phone Call At: Select which of the four phone options is the user’s active phone. This is the number the system will dial to contact the user by default.
    PC Alert Caller ID: Choose whether or not calls with caller ID are announced on the user’s PC Alert.
    Work Phone Number Control: Select whether the user’s work phone number is listed in the User Directory and/or dialable.
    Other Phone: Enter a phone number to be the user’s ‘Other’ phone.
    Home Phone Number Control: Select whether the user’s home phone number is listed in the User Directory and/or dialable.
    Auth List: To restrict who can contact the user’s home phone number, select an authorization list.
    Cell Phone Number Control: Select whether the user’s cell phone number is listed in the User Directory and/or dialable.
    Autho List: To restrict who can contact the user’s cell phone number, select an authorization list.
    Other Phone Number Control: Select whether the user’s other phone number is listed in the User Directory and/or dialable.
    Voice Mail Greeting: Select which pre-recorded voice mail greetings to user.
    Edit VM Greeting: Select which pre-recorded voice mail greeting you want to edit, then click on the microphone to record a new message or the speaker to listen.
    Note: The voice mail greeting option is only available if the MessageNet system is managing phone calls rather than connecting to a pre-existing phone system.

    Email Signature: Enter an e-mail signature that will appear at the bottom of any e-mail messages sent by this user.

    —

  • How to Set Up User Devices

    User devices are personal devices or contact methods by which a user can be personally reached. These include e-mail addresses, phones, PC Alert, and text devices such as pagers or cell phones.

    Text Devices (cell phones and pagers): each device requires a license that can be purchased from MessageNet Systems. The license is per device, not the user, so if a user has multiple text devices, a license is still required for each one. Once licenses have been purchased and added to the server by MessageNet support staff, the System Administrator must define each device. Then, the device must be saved to each user’s profile in the User Database Manager.

    PC Alert: this is MessageNet’s PC pop-up program. It cannot be used for emergency communication, but can be supplementary or used for everyday messaging. It can be downloaded onto either Macs or PCs and each computer would require a license purchased from MessageNet. The PC Alert software does auto-define itself on the MessageNet system, but the System Administrator would still need to connect each one to the correct users.

    E-mail: e-mail addresses do not require a license and each user can have one e-mail address entered into their user profile. However, the server does need to be set up to connect to the customer e-mail server. This can be done either by creating an MX record for the MessageNet server or by providing MessageNet support staff with an e-mail relay, which they will then program in to the server.

    Phones: phones (for audio messaging, not texts) also do not require a license. Each user can enter up to four phone numbers into their user profile: Work, Cell, Home, and Other. The server needs to be set up to connect with the customer phone system. MessageNet is no longer compatible with T1/PRI cards, so if your phone system is not SIP-capable, then you would need to purchase a Digium VoIP Gateway that would convert the T1/PRI traffic to a SIP connection for the MessageNet system.

    All of these devices, once set up, can be added to user accounts in the User Database Manager and then set up to receive messages in Text Device Control.

    sample user database manager

    —

  • How to Set Up Text Device Control

    Text Device Control is where a user can set up how they want to receive messages, independent of how a message is set up. For example, a user that wants to receive all messages via e-mail, regardless of whether the messages were configured to go to e-mail, can set this up in the Text Device Control screen. This screen appears in two locations (User Database Manager and Comm. Ctrl), but any changes made in one location will be saved in both locations. To access it, either click on the Comm. Ctrl. button in the upper right corner of the User Directory, or navigate to the User Database Manager from the Other Screens tab.

    Text Device Control

    Each selection has a check box and corresponds to a device or communication method that can be added to a user’s account. To select devices on which to receive all messages, check the box next to the appropriate devices. Some devices, such as pagers (the name is pager, but it can really be any text device, including cell phones), must be checked in order for a user to receive any messages on it, even if a message is configured to send to that text device.

    For phones, enter a 1 in the empty box next to the field’s check box. This number may differ depending on the organization’s phone system, but 1 is generally standard. The 1 instructs the system to bypass the voicemail message. This is important because the MessageNet system cannot tell the difference between a person answering the phone and voicemail picking up. If the voicemail picks up and plays its message before allowing a recording, the MessageNet system will have already played all or most of the message prior to the beginning of the recording. Entering a 1 bypasses the voicemail message so that the recording will begin as soon as the message begins playing.

    Users can only change their own Text Device Control settings if the User Allow Change box is checked. This box is only in the User Database Manager version of the Text Device Control and the System Administrator must check it prior to the user changing their settings.

    —

  • Getting Started with the Connections Mobile App

    The Connections Mobile application is available on mobile devices and on computers. The app itself is currently only available for iOS, with an Android app still in development. Android devices can still access the Connections Mobile interface, but until the app version is released, access the app the same way as on a computer.

    iOS:

    To get started with Connections Mobile on Apple mobile devices, go to the App Store and search for msgnet to find our app, which will have the MessageNet logo as its icon. Download and then open the app on your device. When prompted, enter your MessageNet server’s IP (or node name), and select whether it uses HTTPS or not. If you do not know those details, then you should contact your MessageNet system’s administrator before continuing.

    IMPORTANT CONNECTIVITY NOTE: If your server is only accessible on your organization’s local area network, then you will only be able to access it while connected to a Wi-Fi network that has access to that LAN. If you desire being able to remotely connect to your MessageNet system, then you will need to make sure your network provides an external port forwarding for port 80 to your MessageNet server; in which case, you would just configure your app with whatever external IP or domain name is applicable.

    Once the App successfully connects to your network, you’ll be prompted to enter your MessageNet log in information. If your system allows it, the app can use automatic log in after you’ve logged in for the first time. The system administrator would need to set this up if it’s allowable without your organization’s security requirements.

    Android:

    The Connections Mobile App isn’t yet available for Android devices, but the Connections Mobile interface can be reached on any web browser just like on a computer. To open the Connections Mobile interface, open a web browser on your device and log in to MessageNet Connections the same way you would on a computer – just click the Connections Mobile button to log into the Mobile interface. Keep in mind that if you’re outside the network on which the MessageNet server resides, depending on your organization’s network and security settings, you may need to use an external IP address to access Connections Mobile. Consult your on-site MessageNet system administrator for more information if necessary.

    PC/Mac:

    You can access Connections Mobile the same way you can access the Connections Administrative Interface. Go to any web browser and enter the MessageNet server’s IP address into the browser bar. Click on the MessageNet logo to open the log in window (you may need to allow pop ups for the site) and enter your user name and password (if you are a new MessageNet user and don’t have these yet, consult your on-site MessageNet system administrator). Click on Connections Mobile to open the mobile app.

    Connections Mobile is the same across all devices and any messages you save to the app will appear wherever you have logged in. Any changes you have made to the organization or to the messages will be saved to your account and will follow you from device to device. For ease of use, Connections Mobile looks the same, whether it’s opened on a mobile device or on a computer.

    —

  • What Is Connections Mobile?

    Connections Mobile is both a user interface and a mobile app, designed to be While some administrative tasks will have to be performed by the on-site system administrator in the Administrative Interface, Connections Mobile is designed to be the primary user interface for most users. The new interface is vastly simplified for ease of use and removes the need log in to the Administrative Interface for most regular users.

    Connections Mobile Interface

    It’s available on computers, tablets, and smart phones and functions the exact same way regardless of the type of device you use. Messages saved to the app are tied to your user log in and so can follow you from device to device as you log in. Messages can be saved to Connections Mobile from within any message directory and can be then reorganized and edited by each individual user with their app without affecting the original message, allowing users to create their own custom interface that is accessible from any web browser.

    There is an official app for iOS devices available in the App Store that can be downloaded and installed on Apple devices. For computers and Android devices, Connections Mobile is available from the web browser, accessible in the same way you were able to access the Administrative Interface. Logging in to Connections Mobile anywhere is as easy as selecting the Connections Mobile option when following the same steps you always have for logging in.

    —

  • How to Set Up Remote Access to the MessageNet System

    All of MessageNet support is done remotely, so it’s vital to maintain remote access to the MessageNet server for the MessageNet support staff and to keep them apprised of any changes with it that could affect access to the system. SSH access with a remote IP address is preferred, but a VPN is also acceptable. For security purposes, ssh remote access to the MessageNet server is limited, so any changes made to the network also need to be updated on the server by MessageNet support staff. If this change isn’t made, remote access to the user interface for all users will be broken until MessageNet staff update the remote IP address on the server. For VPNs, it can be time-consuming to make any changes and it’s best to test remote access with MessageNet support staff to ensure that it’s working as soon as the changes are made so that support tickets are not affected by a wait for VPN adjustments.

    —