Videoconferencing

Draft

Definition

• “A discussion between two or more groups of people who are in different places but can see and hear each other using electronic communications. Pictures and sound are carried by the telecommunication network and such conferences can take place across the world.” (FolDoc

• “A videoconference (also known as a videoteleconference) is a set of interactive telecommunication technologies which allow two or more locations to interact via two-way video and audio transmissions simultaneously. It has also been called visual collaboration and is a type of groupware” (Wikipedia, retrieved 19:16, 26 June 2006 (MEST)).

Use in education

• teleteaching (all levels of technology)
• e-tutoring (often with low end technology)
• learner-to-learner interactions within project-oriented learning designs (see also more sophisticed groupware like cscw)

Technology

Formats

(to do ....)

Delivery

• Not to big files can be put on a normal webserver (but the user has to wait until the whole file is downloaded)
• Video streaming

Links

General

• Wikipedia Video conferencing (includes a list of software pointing to further entries)

• Videoconferencing - WeboPedia Definition

• video conferencing definition - Free On-line dictionary of computing (FOLDOC)]

Free products

• (not really free) MS Windows comes with Netmeeting
• MarraTech (has a free version)
• Elluminate (integrates with some free/commercial LMS

Commercial products

• WebEx
• Centra, now a product line of Saba
• Placeware, c.f. Microsoft
• Breeze (now Adobe Acrobat Connect Professional)