What Is Online Meeting - Essay Example

What is Online Meetings? Table of Contents Executive Summary 3 Introduction 4 2.Objective of Report 4 3.Main Discussion 4 3.1. Advantages of Online Meetings 4 3.2.Disadvantages of Online Meetings 5 3.3.Online Meeting Systems 5 A.Adobe Connect 5 B.BigBlueButton 6 C.iLinc 7 3.4. Recommended System 7 4.Conclusion 8 5.Citations 8 Executive Summary Owing to the increased number of software applications and the easy access to the Internet, the trend of conducting online meetings has increased. In the present times, online meeting is being used in nearly all walks of life where the collaboration of diversely located individuals is required. Online meeting is being used in business, medicine, engineering, small scale organizations, education, creative productions, research, etc. Being a technology of the present times, it is important to understand what online meeting is, how it is being used, its requirements, the advantages it offers and the issues related to its use, the options of systems available online and the features they offer and how to chose a system that would fulfill our requirements. This report briefly covers all major aspects regarding the online meeting technology. The report also discusses three online meeting systems available in the market. It recommends the better system of the three after briefly comparing the features that each product offers. Online meetings is the trend of meeting in the present times. Therefore, having an awareness about the technology is important so that its pros can be utilized and cons can be addressed or overcome. From the various options of online meeting systems available in the market, having knowledge of the features can be helpful in selecting a product that suits one’s needs. 1. Introduction A meeting is defined as an event where the participants meet face to face to discuss an agenda. Online Meetings (also known as Web Conferences) are real time interactions over the Internet that use features such as audio, video, chatting tools and application sharing (EduCause, “7 things…”). The participants of these online meetings are not required to be physically present in the same location where the meeting is taking place. Rather they use specialized software applications that enable them to conduct the live meetings, conferences or presentatations in a virtual conference room over the Internet regardless of their being in different parts of the world. The only requirement of online meeting is that the participants must have a computer with Internet, a headset, webcam and an Online Meeting software application (Citrix, “Online Meetings”). The software application connects all the participants in a way that all the participants in a virtual private room are able to see and communicate with one another. Through the screen sharing technology of an application, a participant can even share his/her screen with all other participants of the meeting. Furthermore, the feature of remote control over a participant’s computer allows the participants to work together on the same project at the same time. Through easy access to Internet and increasing number of software programs, the trend of online meetings has increased. Online Meetings are presently being used by business personnel of all areas (sales, marketing, project management, training or general management). Even small organizations, creative professionals, sales persons, telecommuters, contractors, students and instructors or any geographically diverse group of individuals can use online meeting technology when face-to-face collaboration is not possible. 2. Objective of Report This report provides a brief overview of the online meeting technology presenting. It discusses how the technology can benefit us and how it can raise certain issues. Furthermore, since the market is teeming with online meeting systems, this report also provides a comparison of three online meeting systems and by comparing the various features that each product has to offer, it shows how one product may be more productive than the other. 3. Main Discussion As the use of online meetings has increased in the present times, it is important to understand the ethical stance of the technology by studying how it affects the lives of people. Technological advancements have always aimed at facilitating the lives of people. Online Meeting aims at aiding the process of holding meetings. However, like various technological advancements, online meetings also raise certain issues that need to be addressed to justify its claim of facilitating the lives of people. 3.1. Advantages of Online Meetings Following are a few ways in which Online Meeting have proven to be very useful (Whiteheadm “Conferencing…”; DeVann, “The pros and Cons…”). 1. Cost Reduction: Rather than making travel arrangements for participants to reach the meeting location in time, a participant (employee, student, manager, salesperson, trainer, etc.) can simply participate through a computer. This saves travelling costs, the involved fatigue and allows efficient use of time. Secondly, the high costs of telephone calls are also avoided. 2. Easy Scheduling: Since a participant can use the Internet and join into a meeting from anywhere in the world, it is easy to schedule a meeting where the participants may be mobile or too busy attending meetings. 3. Less Stressful: Unless the meeting involves use of a webcam, the participants can be present in the meeting without ignore certain formal ettiquettes of meetings. 4. Backup: As the meeting session is conducted on a computer, the progress can be recorded and in case any member misses the meeting, the recorded session can be retrieved to catch up with the meeting details. 3.2. Disadvantages of Online Meetings Following are a few issues that have surfaced regarding Online Meetings (Whiteheadm “Conferencing…”; DeVann, “The pros and Cons…”). 1. Required Technical Skill: Since online meetings require the partcipants to be proficient in use the of computers it may pose a problem for the participants that are not familiar with the use of computers or for those who prefer the traditional face-to-face manner of meeting. 2. Less Secure: Even though the online meeting systems are embedded with some sort of security feature, the fact that private information travels through Internet which is a public network makes the online meeting not as secure as an in-person meeting. 3. Lack of Focus: As an online meeting takes place on a computer, there are many tasks that can distract a participant while attending a meeting e.g. the participant may indulge in checking emails, playing a game, browsing Internet, etc. 4. Misinterpretations: It may happen that the chat messages exchanged in a meeting or the gestures visible from the video get misinterpreted due to the incomplete view of body language in video conferencing. After studying the pros and cons presented above, it can be seen that the advantages accosiated to online meetings somewhat outweigh the disadvantages. All of the disadvantages presented above can have a remedial solution. E.g. use of computer can be learned even if it is to the extent of participating in an online meeting. Secondly, in order to ensure security, various encryption1 techniques have been added to the available online meeting systems by which the information would still remain safe in case of a leakage over the Internet. 3.3. Online Meeting Systems There are many online meeting systems available in the market that come with different sets of features. This section presents an overview of three of these systems followed by a discussion of the features that each system offers. A. Adobe Connect Adobe Connect is a proprietary2 product that is deployed as a hosting service3 and software and supports unlimited number of users simulataneously. Basic Requirements: A participant is minimally required to have an Internet enabled device, with the software installed (or can even be accessed directly from online hosted site), an account and a headset. Features Offered: It supports both audio and video conferencing. The sessions can be recorded. Chat, Desktop sharing, screen sharing, slide show, whiteboards, Co-browsing4, access across firewalls and file upload is also supported. One time password is required to start meeting or share desktop. Unique Feature Offered: The quality of video can be adjusted between the VGA, HQ and HD5. This enables participants with high as well as low speed Internet connections to participate in the meeting. Secondly, a meeting can be attended or hosted from even a mobile device. Supported Systems: Abode Connect works on all of the three major operating systems i.e. Linux, Windows and MAC OS X. Mobile devices of iOS, Droid and RIM are supported. Cost: After a trial period of 30 days, the service plan comprises of two options; the per host plan or the pay per use plan. The per host plan can be annual costing $45/month/host or monthly costing $55/month/host. The Pay-per-use plan costs $0.32 per minute per user. B. BigBlueButton BigBlueButton is an open licensed product deployed as a software that supports upto 80 users simultaneously. Basic Requirements: A participant is minimally required to have a computer with Intenet as well as the software installed and a headset. Features: Both audio and VGA quality video conferencing with recording capability is provided. The software supports chat, desktop sharing and file uploads. Mobile devices are also supported. Meetings can be attended by android based phones. Unique Feature Offered: The licensing is opensource6. System Requirement: BigBlueFish works on all systems i.e. Linux, Windows and MAC OS X. Mobile devices of only Android are supported. Cost: BigBlueButton is an opensource product therefore there is no buying fee. C. iLinc iLinc is a proprietary product deployed as a software that supports a meeting comprising of 25 participants. Basic Requirements: The participants are required to install the software on their system, have an Internet connection, a headset and a webcam to start a meeting. Features: Allows video conferencing. The sessions can be recorded as well as edited. The software supports chat, desktop sharing, file transfers, screen sharing, slide shows, whiteboard, break-out sessions and application sharing. One time password is required to commence a meeting or share desktop. Meetings can be conducted from behind the firewalls as well. Unique Feature Offered: iLinc supports unlimited video feeds and cross-platform remote control. It integrates with Microsoft’s outlook express which is useful for sending emails. System Requirement: iLinc works on only the Windows and MAC OS X systems. Cost: iLinc offers a 15 day free trial after which a monthly subscription of $39 is required. 3.4. Recommended System Despite the variety of features offered by an online meeting system, there are a few specifications that must be considered while making a selection. Firstly, the feature of desktop sharing must be present; With the support for mobile devices, a meeting can be resided or hosted even while travelling and not carrying a laptop. With the feature of encryption, meetings sharing confidential and private information can be conducted online. The quality of video should be good as in case of a presentation the words should be clearly visible and readable. Support for only audio meetings should also be present as sometimes an online meeting is taken as a cheaper alternative to telephone calling. The cost with view to the feature set offered. Considering the systems presented above, Adobe Connect although does not offer encryption but it supports all operating systems and mobile devices with a range of video quality settings to choose from. The BigBlueButton although free, only supports android phones and that too only to attend the meetings not host them. Secondly, the video quality is limited to VGA. In iLinc, the software is not supported for Linux systems. Additionally audio meetings cannot be conducted. So the webcam is an essential requirement to hold a conference (“Find the best unbiased, data driven comparisons”). Keeping in view the comparison of features presented above, Adobe Connect seems to be the recommended software. 4. Conclusion Online meetings are an easy software solution that facilitates worldwide collaboration on projects. It offers a cheap way of achieving high productivity. Even though there are certain issues related to its use, the advantages of online meeting outweighs them in most scenarios. There is a variety of online meeting products available in the market providing a wide range of features. By drafting a set of usage requirements, a suitable online meeting system can be selected. Depending upon the type of usage, certain features may not be a requirement altogether. For instance, for informal meetings, a good quality video conferencing may not be a pressing requirement. But in cases where the nature of meeting is highly secretive and the information exchanged is highly confidential, online meetings should be avoided unless conversations are encrypted. In cases where the online meeting is used to overcome the costs of telephone bills, the support for audio conferencing is a mandatory requirement. Online meetings technology is a very useful technology. And in the present times where Internet has become a commodity and the use of smart phones is increasing, nothing would be wiser than increasing awareness about the features developed and offered with regards to online meetings. 5. Citations EduCause. “7 things you should know about...Virtual Meetings”. February 2006. Web. 17 December 2012. http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7011.pdf “Find the best unbiased, data driven comparisons”. Web. 17 December 2012. http://web-conferencing.findthebest.com/compare/16-34/Adobe-Acrobat-Connect-Pro-vs-iLinc Adobe Connect. Web. 17 December 2012. http://www.adobe.com/products/adobeconnect/features.html BigBlueButton. Web. 17 December 2012. http://www.bigbluebutton.org/overview/ Whitehead, Bob. “Conferencing online versus face-to-face meetings”. November 14, 2005. Web. 17 December 2012. www.web-conferencing-zone.com/4051-conferencing-online.htm Citrix. “Online Meetings: Success in 9 Steps”. https://news.citrixonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Online-Video-Meetings-Success-in-9-Steps.pdf iLinc. Web. 17 December 2012. http://www.ilinc.com/products/meetings/ DeVann, Stuart. “The Pros and Cons Of Online Meetings”. Web. 17 December 2012. http://pcma.org/Convene/Issue-Archives/March-2003/Digital-Marketing-The-Pros-and-Cons-of-Online-Meeting.htm Read More