We’ve got e-mail from here to Baguio

Destination: Baguio to catch the Panagbenga Flower Festival.

Travel time: Didn’t matter as long as we made it.

Travel mates: My two friends and a trusty Globe WiFi, GPRS and EDGE phone, which was lent to me for the trip. WiFi, or wireless fidelity, enables cell phones that are WiFi-ready to receive information whether indoors or outdoors, so long as they are within reach of the base station.

General Packet Radio Service, commonly known as GPRS, allows information to be carried through a mobile network with speeds of up to 24 kbps.

EDGE, which stands for Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution, is a 3G technology that brings broadband-like data speeds to mobile devices. EDGE is about four times faster than the regular GPRS.

After all, communication is a must. And, for this trip, it meant talking not only with my two passengers, but also with my other friends through e-mail.

Off we went.

First stop, Pancake House in Sta. Lucia, Tarlac.

Globe connection made. I logged on to my e-mail to check on what was happening in the world of my e-mail friends. It was great. I was connected in a matter of seconds through EDGE technology. Although there was not much happening as it was still quite early that Saturday morning, I did get a few laughs from the e-mail jokes I read.

Breakfast over. Stuffed we were and off we went.

As I drove along and my companions opted to look out the window and enjoy the scenic drive, I got to thinking about the Visibility package of GlobeQuest and GlobeSolutions.

In a world where decisions are made on the go, getting data across in the fastest way has become a necessity. Every day in the modern world people are looking for – and techies are creating ways – to make communication faster, clearer, and more accurate.

Look at the developments in the telecom industry – no longer are these businesses considered simply phone companies – they have become service industries that have ventured into all forms of communication. Of course, the phone will always be the first mode of communication when we want to talk, but the computer, PDAs and even pocket PCs have also become today’s necessary staying-in-touch tools.

On this trip to Baguio, especially as it was a leisurely one, there weren’t really any pressing matters for me to attend to. But if it were a business trip, then the need to stay connected with the office could really be a matter of life and death – for the really busy executive or the highly-wired journalist.

Because of the developments in the telecom industry, people have learned to appreciate and use the cell phone for more than just texts and calls. It is no longer uncommon to hear of people who use their time while traveling to get their lives – working lives, that is – in order. And, mind you, no longer is it just catching up on office files or reports as they quietly sit in the car. With the Globe Visibility package, wired people are able to send all the information they need to the office right from their PDA phone or even laptop computers while in the comfort of their cars. Documents, pictures, graphs, letters, presentations and even inventory lists. You name it, they can send it.

"The important thing here is that communication promotes collaboration which is very important for many people," said Harvey Libarnes, GlobeSolutions business development-industry solutions and segments management. "What we are trying to do here is to put communication gadgets (mobile phones, PDAs, laptops) and communications facilities (GPRS, WiFi, Edge, dial-up) together to make it easier for people to stay connected."

The Enterprise Business Group (EBG) of Globe Telecom and Innove Communications conceptualized a project that makes the process simpler. They call it Visibility, a new convergence service that provides all their clients with the ability to communicate whenever they want, and wherever they may be – seamlessly. And all this with the use of the device of their choice.

EBG is composed of GlobeSolutions, the corporate wireless group of Globe and GlobeQuest, the corporate division of Innove. With the convergence of these groups, a Globe customer now has the power to be connected effectively – through a fixed line or wireless service.

Staying visible when one needs to be seen is what the Group EBG has turned to reality. Gone are the days when an employee or a writer (late in meeting deadlines) could go missing for days because Visibility assures the boss that they can be seen – no matter what.

"There are many times when the boss needs to gain access to his e-mail ASAP," said Lery Briones, GlobeSolutions senior product manager, at the launching of the Visibility projects a few months back. "And this is what we have addressed – seamless points of access to any desired destination or any business information anywhere."

Convergence, that point where everything gets connected. And EBG has made sure that all points are covered. First they have made sure that customers are provided multiple access under one account. And then there are the devices used. This means that whether a PDA, laptop or desktop computer is used, these must all be connected in one go. And there are the application components which will allow users to connect to the network.

EBG, because of its desire to make its clients visible at all times, has bundled all these important components together.

"This is what we want, not just unlimited access, but keeping people in touch in the best way possible," Harvey said.

With its integrated fixed and mobile solutions, Visibility makes keeping track of everyone at work and those in the field much simpler. And Globe has four plans to address the needs of each consumer.

There is the Universal Access Plan 2500 where one has unlimited GPRS, EDGE, WiFi and dial-up; the Universal Access 1700 which offers unlimited GPRS and EDGE with per-minute WiFi and dial-up charges; the Universal 1500 is a flexible consumable plan and the Universal Access 0 where charges are made per amount of data transferred.

EBG customers who get the Visibility package have the option to avail themselves of a wide range of connected devices – PDA phones, PC cards and laptops – which will enable them to connect to the Internet or their corporate network from almost anywhere.

There is the MobileOffice, which allows customers to share office data, e-mail and other files through a secure network connection, thus assuring information availability at critical times. And better yet, the MobileOffice allows the user to receive access to data through a wireless handheld device that acts like a remote control. This gives the user full access to his desktop even if he is out of the office. How’s that for no more "I left my information on my desktop at the office" lame excuses?

And for the busy traveling executive, EBG has a solution, too. A mobile traveler can access his files through EBG’s international Internet roaming partners like iPass and GoRemote, where it has made a wide range of GPRS roaming agreements.

It was a long trip and there was much time to think about making the right connections.

As we got closer to Baguio I began to feel the cool breeze and smell the fresh air. I made one more stop at a gas station. I logged on to my e-mail. No problem. I also took the opportunity to do a little surfing on the web as my companions took a toilet break.

An hour later we reached our destination. The City of Pines was all decked in flowers and the air was a bit nippy.

There is nothing like feeling really secure with a great connection. It’s like I never left home.

Perfect.