|
Web
conferencing is used to conduct live meetings or
presentations over the Internet. In the early years of
the Internet, the terms "web conferencing" and "computer
conferencing" were often used to refer to group
discussions conducted within a message board (via posted
text messages) therefore not live, but the term has
evolved to refer specifically to "live" or "synchronous"
meetings, while the posted message variety of discussion
is called a "forum", "message board", or "bulletin
board".
In a web conference, each participant sits at his or her
own computer, and is connected to other participants via
the internet. This can be either a downloaded
application on each of the attendees computers or a
web-based application where the attendees will simply
enter a "URL" or website meeting address to enter the
live meeting or conference.
A webinar is a type of web conference, that tends to be
mostly one-way, from the speaker to the audience with
limited audience interaction, such as in a Webcast,
which is transmission of information in one direction
only, like watching a concert on the internet. A webinar
however, can be very collaborative, and include polling
and question & answer sessions to allow full
participation between the audience and the presenter. A
webinar is 'live' in the sense that information is
conveyed according to an agenda, with a starting and
ending time. In most cases, the presenter may speak over
a standard telephone line, pointing out information
being presented on screen, and the audience can respond
over their own telephones, preferably a speakerphone.
There are a few web conferencing technologies on the
market that have incorporated the use of VoIP audio
technology, to allow for a truly web-driven
presentation, removing the need for any external
devices, such as a telephone.
Features
Other typical features of a web
conference include:
-
Slide presentations (often created
through PowerPoint)
-
Live video (via webcam or digital
video camera)
-
VoIP (Real time audio communication
through the computer via use of
headphones and speakers)
-
Recording (for viewing at a later
time by anyone using a unique web
address)
-
Whiteboard with annotation (allowing
the presenter and/or attendees to
highlight or mark items on the slide
presentation. Or, simply make notes
on a blank whiteboard.)
-
Text chat (for live question and
answer sessions)
-
Polls and surveys (allows the
presenter to conduct questions with
multiple choice answers directed to
the audience)
-
Screen sharing/desktop
sharing/application sharing (where
participants can view anything the
presenter currently has shown on
their screen. Some screen sharing
applications allow for remote
desktop control, allowing
participants to manipulate the
presenters screen, although this is
not widely used.)
Web
conferencing is often sold as a service,
hosted on a
web
server controlled by the vendor, either
on a usage basis (cost per user per
minute) or for a fixed fee (cost per
"seat"). Some vendors make their
conferencing software available as a
licensed product, allowing organizations
that make heavy use of conferencing to
install the software on their own
servers. Some webconferencing software
is distributed free for hosting on the
MC's server. There is also software
available that is installed on the MC's
computer and does not require server
configuration software.
An
important capability of Web conferencing
software is
Application sharing, the ability for one
party in the conference to share an
application (such as a web browser,
spread sheet, etc.) from their desk top
with every one else in the meeting and
pass the control of the application to
someone else in the meeting.
Read Full Article at Wikipedia |