So we had a contest last week….the gist of which was for our readers to submit their ideas concerning novel uses for Asterisk.

I was doing some research online today and I came across BootyDialer.com, which is certainly one of the most creative applications of Asterisk I have come across.

The application itself is hard to describe, so I grabbed the text below from the blog of one one the creative geniuses behind BootyDialer, Adam Simon. You can also click on the BootyDialer flowchart thumbnail below the quote, for a visual interpretation of the app.

For our Redial midterm, Corrine and Marc and I are creating Booty Dialer, an automated booty call system. The notion is that you sign up on the website, and enter the phone numbers of your potential booty calls. When you’re out and about and decide you want some booty, you call in, and it puts you on hold while it calls your contacts, whom it asks if they would like to talk to you. If they do, it connects the calls. If they don’t, it goes on to the next one, saving you the embarrassment of being rejected by returning the same response for a “no” as a person who didn’t answer.

We’ve got a loooong list of features we’d like to implement (including booty blocking, booty networking, proximity integration for finding nearby booty, and booty recommendations), but for this week’s midterm we’re just aiming to have basic contact list management and call bridging working properly…which means more adventures in AGI!

Adam is apparently an alumnus of NYU’s “Interactive Telecommunications Program”. Where was this program when I shrugged apathetically in the office of my high school guidance counselor when he suggested I pursue a major in “Communications” at a regional college? Oh well, it turned out okay….

My BootyDialing days are behind me….but that may not be the case for many of our readers. BootyDialer.com is free of charge, and appears to still be up and running.

Increasingly police departments, such as this one in Buffalo, N.Y., are installing IP Cameras at intersections to catch those who speed through red lights.  While an annoyance to some, this could help stop thousands of accidents a year.  Think twice the next time you try to beat that light!

Critics of VoIP often point to safety concerns surrounding the availability of reliable 911 services for consumers of VoIP services. The FUD surrounding the 911 issue, which certainly has some merit, has been a rallying cry for those who would seek to slow the adoption of IP telephony.

It’s been hard to miss the widespread, mostly negative media coverage concerning VoIP and 911.

Back in 2005, the FTC passed legislation mandating that all VoIP providers offer enhanced (E911) services.

This new legislation is a mild victory for independent VoIP service providers, and a minor defeat for traditional telco operators such as Verizon and AT&T.

For some, the original FTC mandate created a business opportunity, and a host of E911 providers sprang up to help VoIP service providers meet the new compliance regulations. Amongst these are Dash 911, RedSky and e911ToGo.com.

Now that traditional telecom operators cannot impose measures to block VoIP service providers from accessing 911 networks, the business model created by the original e911 compliance mandate may no longer be viable.