Episode 267: The Altispeed Origin Story Ask Noah Show

The team from Altispeed Technologies join Noah this episode to tell the story of how Altispeed Technologies was born, where it is today, and where the team is headed!


01:15 Altispeed Today


Help Desk - Issac
Installation and Support - Kenny & Peter
Backend R&D - Richard & Simon
Administration - Sarah & Jess


02:28 Epoch 1


02:30 Origins of Altispeed
02:40 Why Open Source
05:50 Professional Development Program
07:50 RHEL 5.0 & Red Hat
11:15 Dec 2009 Altispeed is Born
12:25 Noah does everything
13:50 Altispeed Mission Statement
14:55 Philippians 2-4
15:08 Matthew 20-28


17:00 Epoch 2


17:20 Altispeed's First Hire
18:38 The 3 Hiring Questions


Do they get what we are trying to do?
Do they want to do what we are trying to do?
Do they have the capacity to do it?

Value People and Relationships above all else
19:40 Buck Stops with Me
20:00 Employees are a mixed blessing


21:42 Epoch 3


Remote Services & Support
Podcast Starts
A Complete Disaster
Success is standing on a pile of failures


26:18 Epoch 4


Covid 19 Hits
28:50 Going forward decisions
30:15 How to serve better
30:46 Peter & Kenny Join the Disscusion
31:00 Kenny's Take
34:30 RpiSurv
37:15 FOSS Polish
39:02 ANS Outreach & Service
41:55 Noah can work "on" not "for" Altispeed
43:43 Noah's dedication to ANS & the community
44:50 Ask Noah Show Studio


48:30 Epoch 5


The Future of Altispeed
49:28 People stay when they can directly impact the work they do
50:22 How to serve clients going forward
52:32 More than a show tag line
58:16 Tony from Jitsi Asks


How do you control what you support?
Virtualize
Define things up front
Altispeed rejects "monkey hands jobs"
One place to call has value
Being the "middle man" allows you to introduce FOSS alternatives

1:14:36 Today people ask "what can technology do for me" not "what can I do with technology"
1:16:40 How Altispeed does cloud better
1:19:35 Radio likes to be self sufficient
1:20:22 Build Modular Solutions
1:22:55 Plans for 2022
1:24:05 Software is more than a tool
1:24:44 Learn from others


Dave Ramsey - Podcast
Franklin Covey - 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Book
Rabbi Daniel Lapin - Thou Shalt Prosper Book

1:27:48 Reducing friction and setting boundaries


Altispeed Tools


1:29:52 Element/Matrix


Channels
Reply Chains
Reactions
Federation
Spaces

1:40:02 SeaFile


Beautiful UI
Able to be White Labeled

1:42:24 Nextcloud


Deck
Gets better over time

1:44:30 OSTicket


Lacking Solid Mobile App
Open API

1:48:08 Simple Help


Proprietary
Intuitive UI
Unstable on Macs
Self Hosted
Extra tools that reduce friction



Audience Questions


1:50:52 Kpovoc Asks


I’d be curious to know how often your clients have problems that might be easier solved by a custom written software vs finding an applicable existing FOSS solution?
Many times combining/modifying open source solutions works best

1:54:30 Tony Asks


I'd be interested in knowing if you charge customers extra if they want to make changes to an already working solution. Would that be a charge to not have them abuse your time/technician time?
Managed Service Contracts
Hourly Service
What is your most popular service?
Access Controls and Cameras
Networking

1:57:42 AtypicalKernel Asks


How do you deal with clients who don't communicate their needs clearly?
Discovery Process
R&D Phase
Presentation
Execute
Circle back to Discovery
Project Planning recommendations
Follow up
How do you deal with a client who blames the solution rather than acknowledging their own mistakes and/or short comings?
Teach the user
Help them understand the limitations of their technology

2:09:30 Tony Asks


Are you able to share how you price a solution/support contract?
Price hourly
Contract Services are locked down
What access control systems do you typically deploy?
Axis A1001 Door Controller
Powerful integrations
HID Readers
Proxy III
Adams Rite door strikes
Completely Modular
Understand your threat vector
HID SEOS
Why Noah like HID products

2:19:50 Kpovoc Asks


Do client