This year, the Ready Campaign and Citizen Corps, with support from members of the National Preparedness Community across the nation, including a wide range of businesses and organizations, is focusing on encouraging individuals, families, and businesses to take active steps toward becoming Ready. We must work together as a team to ensure that our families, businesses, places of worship, and neighborhoods are Ready.

Check out what YOU can do in this informative podcast.

Although these are widely available, there has always been a question on their effectiveness. It seems that there was a common thread coming from those customers who started to investigate deployment, but then quickly stopped. It all comes down to throughput. Join Avaya's Public Safety BizDev Leader Mark Fletcher, ENP as he runs through the numbers and comes to some interesting conclusions, and how these systems should be multimodal to minimize the strain on the PSTN.

Since it's been nearly 2 1/2 years since I compiled my top 10 list of E911 myths, I thought it was time to take a look at the list again in reorder things to be more consistent with today. What's climbed on the list? What's dropped on the list? You'll find that information in addition to my thoughts in this podcast. And of course, what countdown would be complete without Sirius Hits 1 Countdown and APN voice dude Spyder Harrison adding in his flair ;-) Be sure to follow APN on Twitter @Avaya_APN, and give Spyder some internet love @SpyderHarrison and the Hits 1 Countdown Show.

Just as the legacy Public Switched Telephone Network is finally getting amortized off the books, Superstorm Sandy comes along and destroys much of the infrastructure. The question now? Write off, or rebuild? With several think tanks predicting the end of the PSTN within the next decade, maybe now is the time for a wide scale migration. That's fine, as long is duplicative services can be provided, but can they? Some yes, but some no. Find out who will be included in tomorrow's PSTN, and who will be left out in the cold, it might just surprise you.

In this special edition episode, APN podcast host Mark Fletcher discusses the procedures for testing 999 in 112 calls in the UK. Recently there's been some confusion on the "legality" of testing, and Fletch gets the answer directly from British Telecoms Jeff Phelan, BT's 999 VoIP Product Support Manager. Jeff provides the exact text from the BT policy on 999 and 112 call testing. As usual, there are multiple sides of the story, and the truth lies somewhere in the middle. Don't get caught up in the rumor mill, or sucked in with the hype. Important questions like this, always have very specific answers, and this podcast provides that very response.

When was the last time you checked your multimedia content for ADA and accessibility compliance? Even though we know about it, I myself was guilty of not making my content accessible to those who are deaf or hard of hearing. That will be changing very soon, and we are proud to be adding in CC to the APN Podcasts and videos at http://youtube.com/fletch911tv.

Thanks to Richard Ray of the City of LA and Tonni Dunne from Intrado for their review of the content and assistance in organizing the ASL videos from NENA 2913.

This week Fletch reflects back on the NENA 2013 Conference and Expo in Charlotte, and talks about Generation M2 or M squared and their impact on Next Generation Emergency Communications, Will 'calling' still be cool? Or will a new way of communicating via the public mesh be a possibility.

What are your thoughts and views?

One of my favorite interviews so far. I talk to Kristy Fifelski New Media Director at e.Republic (aka GovGirl) about Social Media and Government. What to do, how to do it and where agencies can go for more information. If you have not seen GovGirl before, she has a great set of YouTube videos at http://GovGirl.com. She shares her formula for success on these videos. And in true GovGirl fashion I included the out takes at the end of the Podcast, oh and watch for my premier appearance on a GovGirl video this week as we talk about . . . I could tell you but, then I would have to . . ya know. . .

This week Fletch sits down with Richard English from Avaya Professional Services. Richard and Fletch discuss what new services are available directly from Avaya that set the framework for E911 remediation within the Enterprise Network Environment. As networks become more dynamic and geographically diverse special care needs to be given for E911 engineering, and this new offering provides not only the educational workshop required to understand E911, but guidance on how and what to remediate.

The two important things here are granularity and on-site notification. I'm happy to see that they acknowledge building and floor being adequate for PSAPs resolution. After all, the 911 call taker has no idea what cube 2C231 means in your floorplan.

What else is in this version of the Bill? read on to find out . . . .