Video Conferencing A Checklist

Writen by James Hunter

What do you wish to achieve?

• Point to Point – two locations only at any one time
• Broadcast Live – from one site to many – watch and listen
• Broadcast pre-recorded – from one site to many – watch & listen
• Multipoint – three or more sites with Q&A between any, relayed to all
• Multipoint - three or more – plus broadcast from any to satellite sub-groups as a watch and listen.
• Live with session taped for future edit and distribution
• Person to person/s with video & audio & data manipulation across participants – e.g. sharing documents, drawings with or without live edit and audit of changes made.

  With whom do you wish to communicate by videoconferencing?

• Only inside your company
• From your company to sister/ contractor/ supplier companies
• With your customers
• With your prospects

  Frequency of system use

• Ad hoc
• Estimated use per annum (min/max)
• Weekly
• Monthly
• Quarterly

  Installation type

• Custom built static installation – i.e. a designated room
• Desktop location/s – i.e. from the office desktop PC
• Mobile "roll-about" system -
• Off-site facilities required – going to a dedicated videoconference facility

  Options required

• Record, Edit & Distribute by hardcopy (CD/DVD)
• Record, Edit & Distribute by softcopy (Web cast)
• Broadcast live via direct links to named recipients/ groups
• Broadcast pre-recorded across one or more time zones
• Log who watched and listened and when
• Multiple persons at One or Two (group to group videoconferencing – e.g. design teams, board to local management)
• Multiple participants at Three or more sites

  What are your current IT capabilities?

• ISDN 1
• ISDN 2
• ISDN 30
• LAN – Cat5/ Cat5e/ Cat6
• LAN – Fibre
• LAN – wireless – type?
• WAN – bandwidth?
• VPN – bandwidth?
• Internet access, dial-up 56k
• Internet access , Dial-up 128K
• Internet access , Broadband 1Mb
• Internet access , Broadband 2Mb
• Internet access , Broadband 4 Mb
• Internet access , Satellite link
• Internet access , permanent fibre/ cable link
• T1 / T2 / T3 / T4 (aka DS-1/ DS-2/ DS-3/ DS-4)
• OC-1 / OC-3 / OC-12 / OC-38

  Impact on your system – to be considered

• Bandwidth load
• Current capacity used & unused & reserved (max/ min for each)
• Planned bandwidth use – excluding video conferencing
• Contention ratio
• Speed
• Video quality – predominantly static (talking head – Yes/No)
• Hardware at point of display
• Hardware at point of transmission
• Hardware at point of distribution

  Points to consider

• Budget
• What do you spend currently on flights/ travel/ accommodation per annum?
• Write-off period for cap ex
• Leasing options
• IT infrastructure
• Cost and timescale of increased capacity and hardware -if required

James Hunter works for Status AV, a premier provider of video conferencing solutions in the UK.

A Brief Guide To Audio Conferencing Services

Writen by Steve Valentino

Audio conferencing provides a way for businesses and other groups to interact, without having to travel to each other's offices. The savings in time and travel expenses quickly make up for the cost of audio conferencing services and equipment. Audio conferencing usually involves other types of teleconferencing technology, such as video and collaborative software. Collaborative software is software that one user may send to other users for simultaneous viewing and modification. For example, if the group wants to work on a diagram, it can be seen and drawn upon by anybody in the conference via a special electronic whiteboard.

An audio conferencing system can be rented, bought from a vendor or reseller, or hired as part of a full audio conferencing solution. Such full-service packages include human support services like management, marketing, and tech support.

When audio conferencing services are rented, the communication is routed through the vendor's server software. The client is charged according to the number of users or "seats" who will be participating, the length of time each seat will be participating, and any initial equipment rental or purchase costs. The vendor can charge a per-seat and per-minute fee (for example, $0.15/seat/minute). Alternatively, a client can rent the service by the week, month, or year, with a maximum allowed number of seats per conference or session. For example, a one-week service for five seats could cost $100 a week, while a one-year service for 100 people could cost a few thousand dollars. Rental audio conferencing services are best for small to medium sized businesses where the initial equipment purchase costs would far outweigh the savings on travel.

When audio conferencing services are bought, the communication is routed through the client's server software, which is bought and licensed from the vendor. The client chooses how small or large a package he or she wants. For example, the client can buy software that allows for 100 seats, 1000 seats, or much more. The client can decide whether to include any of a number of high-tech add-ons such as whiteboard capabilities, and whether expandability is important. The client buys all the necessary equipment and software to run the system. The initial cost can be tens of thousands of dollars, so these are best suited to larger numbers of seats over the long term. However, tech support will always be a necessity, so the client should subscribe to the vendor's expertise.

Audio Conferencing Info provides detailed information about audio conferencing services, equipment, software, companies, plus online audio conferencing, and more. Audio Conferencing Info is affiliated with Original Content.

The Benefits Of Online Audio Conferencing

Writen by Steve Valentino

Audio conferencing used to be limited to telephones and televisions. In that setting, one group would get together in one room and audio conference with another group, who are located in another room (and most likely in another city or country.) The two groups could hear each other, and in most cases, see and interact with each other's software.

Now, with the ubiquitous proliferation of the Internet, online audio and web conferencing is taking the place of telephone technology. With online audio conferencing, individual users can meet electronically. Each person is equipped with special headsets that have microphones and earphones and web cams for feeding their image to the rest of the participants. Also, computers involved in a web-conference can be networked so that the conference utilizes the full power of every computer. Users or "seats" can send each other anything from documents to movies to sound files, and offer the material for modification.

Anyone can engage in audio and web conferencing. All you need is a computer, a current web browser such as Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator, a phone, and an internet connection of 56 kbps or faster (that's 56 kilobytes per second – your typical cable or DSL connection.) You then download and subscribe to any of a number of web conferencing software services, sometimes for as little as $0.15 per seat per minute.

A special Internet-supported phone system called VoIP can be used instead of a regular phone connection. This software program allows you to talk over the Internet as if it were a regular telephone, but without the massive long-distance charges of regular phones. You do have to buy a headset for this, but it's peanuts compared to long distance charges over time.

For additional fees, you can also add recording, archiving, registration, event planning, operator assistance, and more.

The benefits of online audio and web conferencing are immense. You save on long-distance phone time, travel expense, and time spent organizing the conference.

Audio Conferencing Info provides detailed information about audio conferencing services, equipment, software, companies, plus online audio conferencing, and more. Audio Conferencing Info is affiliated with Original Content.

Web Conferencing Services Types

Writen by Diane Parker

You may already have recognized the need for web conferencing within your organization. You have heard all about the many benefits and have decided it is the way forward for your company. Now all you have to do is decide which type of web conferencing would best suit your company's needs.

A quick investigation into the types of web conferencing available will result in a myriad of information. For the uninitiated, unraveling what is available can be confusing and time-consuming.

Below you will find a quick guide to the types of web conferencing currently out there. Each organization will have its own individual requirements and it is important to be clear about what you hope to gain from web conferencing. For example, is it a fully interactive virtual meeting place that your organization needs, or do you require a document sharing system that will allow employees in different geographical locations to work together on projects? Once you understand how you want web conferencing to work for you, analyzing the types of web conferencing and how they could work for your organization will become much easier.

Web Meeting

With growths in international business and a growing trend towards home working, the need for a virtual meeting place is increasing. A web meeting is just what it says - a meeting that takes place over the Internet. This facility has the capabilities to hold real-time conversations and share documents. Web meetings can be fully interactive, allowing participants to converse in real time and for information to be exchanged between delegates.

Web meeting set-ups vary in terms of sophistication and a very rudimentary system can be set up using just a digital camera and a broadband connection.

The Webcast

As the name would suggest, a webcast is a type of broadcast similar in nature to a television broadcast except, of course, a webcast takes place over the Internet. The broadcasting nature of this facility means that there is little opportunity for the presenter and delegates to interact with each other and therefore its function is primarily as a presenting tool. The other main feature of a webcast is that it can be broadcast simultaneously to hundreds of recipients.

If your requirement is for a presenting tool that also offers the interactive features of a web meeting, then you should consider a webinar.

The Webinar

As the name suggests, the webinar is a facility that allows you to conduct a seminar over the web. Allowing a greater level of interaction than the webcast, a webinar enables the presenter to conduct question and answer-type sessions with delegates. However, you should remember that a webinar does not afford the same degree of interaction as a web meeting.

Other Uses For Web Conferencing

Online Presenting

Web conferencing can also be used for conduction online presentations. Online presenting is ideal for sales pitches, performance reporting or providing training for other members of your organization. Add on features include slide shows, web based conversing and audio/video streaming.

Online Collaboration

This is by far the most commonly used type of web conferencing and is the ideal solution for organizations who have multi-location sites yet require collaboration between their employees on projects and documents. Online collaboration has file sharing capabilities that updates changes and alterations to documents in real-time to avoid errors.

Diane Parker is a web content writer who specializes in internet related topics. Her conferencing articles include: web conferencing software, choosing a web conferencing tool and internet conferencing.