Canadian IT Company Creates Innovative Technology Connecting Past and Present

WHITEHORSE, September 28, 2016 – History was made today when the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge used Telegraph to Tweet technology developed by Canadian IT company, Make IT Solutions, to post a message on Twitter using a one-hundred-year-old telegraph key. Converting a message written in Morse code to a tweet, the launch of the technology was timed with the Royal’s visit to the MacBride Museum in Whitehorse, Yukon as part of the Canadian Royal Tour 2016. To follow Telegraph to Tweet, visit @telegraph_tweet. 

Created by Seamus Venasse, Senior Software Developer with Yukon, Calgary, and Vancouver-based Make IT Solutions, the project and technology are the result of a partnership with the Government of Yukon’s Department of Tourism and Culture to support a digital guestbook for the MacBride Museum, home to the Yukon’s historic Telegraph Office. The inaugural guestbook entry reads The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, September 2016, Whitehorse, Yukon and is the first telegram to leave the Telegraph Office in over 80 years.

With Douglas Bell, the former Commissioner of Yukon and telegraph operator, typing the message in Morse code, the Duke and Duchess then held down the telegraph key allowing the Telegraph to Tweet technology to transmit the message to Twitter.

The Telegraph to Tweet project combines numerous types of technology including hardware and software, web services and cloud technologies, says Seamus Venasse, Senior Software Developer, Make IT Solutions. The challenge of bringing these different facets together, and adapting them to a vintage telegraph key was a fascinating and creative task that I’m thrilled to have had the opportunity to develop a solution for.

While the message is being transmitted in Morse code, the length of time that the telegraph key is up versus down is recorded by a microcontroller with built in wifi. That data is then translated to text using an algorithm that converts the dots and dashes used in Morse code to actual letters. The message is then sent to a server by holding down the telegraph key which allows it to be posted to Twitter. 

The development of the Telegraph to Tweet technology is a historic event that merges the old and the new, Chris Lane, Partner, Make IT Solutions. Relying on a great depth of knowledge and imagination, the creation of this device showcases how far we’ve come in terms of the technology behind the way we communicate, but also that when broken down, Twitter and the telegraph offer a similar solution to the same communication problem.

Make IT Solutions develops custom software platforms and delivers strategic IT solutions for clients across North America. Previous notable projects that they have worked on include developing the energy industry’s first browser-based electricity Ancillary Services trading system for Calgary-based TMX Group and the creation of an app that provides dynamic, real-time insights for Nordic skiers using wearable technology by Canadian tech company Proskida.

For more information on Make IT and the Telegraph to Tweet technology, visit makeit.com.

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:

• Twitter: @makeit_HQ, @telegraph_tweet
• Facebook: Facebook.com/MakeITSolutions
• Hashtag: #telegaphtotweet, #royaltour, #royaltelegraph

About Make IT

Make IT Solutions is a Canadian IT company that develops powerful software platforms, and provides IT Advisory and Infrastructure Services that help organizations become more effective, profitable and sustainable. Established in 2006, they have offices in Whitehorse, Vancouver and Calgary and work with clients across North America. They have developed highly successful IT systems for organizations operating in Commodity Trading, Oil and Gas, Telecom, Energy, Government, Healthcare and Shipping/Logistics. For more information, visit makeit.com.

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