Features

Adobe Connect Pro has most of the same features of both Webex and Live Meeting including the following:

• Up to 80,000 participants in each meeting
• Support for Win/Mac/Linux
• Screensharing
• Whiteboard
• Chat / Notes
• Keep documents and data in a meeting room
• Full VOIP capability
• Include video and MP3 in your meeting
• Reports
• Polls
• Events page
• Content library
• Specialist e-learning features

The admin for setting up meetings and ontrolling participants is done through Adobe’s web-based system which is fairly clear. Inside you can manage meetings, and set up events. You can also schedule training events, as well as view any reports or results of polls that have been conducted during the meeting.

There’s so much in the admin section here that it’s easy to get confused. For one thing, Adobe separates seminars from meetings, which could easily cause confusion if you didn’t know.

A meeting room can be opened from the admin site, and the client is entirely web based. This means you can use it on any computer that’s running one of the main browsers (i.e. Internet Explorer, Firefox). The opening screen for Adobe Connect Pro gives you three options – share your screen, open a whiteboard or collaborate on documents. The left hand side of the meeting room shows you participants, the chat window and notes.

It’s really easy to invite participants, and they’ll receive a very basic email saying “please click on this link”, and from there the console will load in your participant’s browser. Easy!

In larger meetings, participants can use the ‘raise a hand’ feature which can be used during a Q&A session, or if a participant is having trouble in the meeting – Live Meeting also has this feature.

As soon as the video and voice is connected, a little box comes up in the corner to show the person speaking.In our trial, we only got one way video to work. If you want a participant to be given the chance to speak in a meeting, they must be granted microphone rights. Useful for large meetings, but fiddly for small ones.

For e-learning, Adobe Connect is also pretty strong with a ‘learner tracker’ system. This means you can teach and assess students, uploading relevant course materials and tracking their progress. Faciliate discussions between students, and record meetings for future use (or for those students who couldn’t attend the live session). You can also set up ’self-paced’ training – effectively offering students a list of pre-recorded meetings to watch, and the possibility of answering a quiz at the end. Much like Live Meeting you can set pass/fail rates for those quizzes to help you manage students better.

Overall, Adobe Connect Pro is a very nice-looking piece of kit and loads quickly. It is however, a little tricky to get going although we were impressed by the clear emails that are sent as invitations to participants. Good e-learning features, and a lightweight web-based interface make this a good choice for e-learning.

The main benefits of Beam Your Screen are as follows:

• Show anybody what’s going on your screen (i.e. any application/website/document)
• Browser based – no need to download a separate client
• Conference bridging facility; people can ring into the meeting, phone number provided
• Easy to create and send invitations
• Very simple to use
• Annotation tools
• Launch from your task-bar
• Record conferences
• Beam Your Screen to up to 25 participants

Who’s it for?

• Delivering remote training (especially training on new software or IT)
• Screencasts
• Webinars

Beam Your Screen sits in your taskbar and will give you notifications as and when people join your conference.

Beam Your Screen gives a lot of options, and an easy way to invite participants. Clicking on ‘Email Session Information’ automatically formats an email that includes all relevant information for anyone wishing to log into your conference. They simply open the link in their browser to see your screen.

Choose whether you want to share your whole screen or a single application. Also vary the quality according to your connection speed.

You can also record a Beam Your Screen session pretty easily. It won’t upload to a server but you can save it to your hard drive.

• Works on any computer (Mac, Windows, Linux etc)
• Entirely browser based
• Speech and video facilities
• Option for recording and storing conferences/meetings
• Free to try, and basic version is also free
• Colourful, fun and easy to use

Wizard-style intro means you can easily start collaborating by sharing your screen, opening a whiteboard or giving a presentation

Start your meeting by setting up the name, and choose scheduling options.

Lots of options here, especially considering this is web-based.

Web meeting in a web browser; video box can be moved around and here we’re using a whiteboard. You’ll also notice there’s a US phone number you can call if you want to use phone instead of built-in microphone.

Here we’re sharing a PDF document and annotating with the annotation features. Again, this is all inside the web browser so no client was required for the person I invited to the conference.

There’s also the option to record your meeting.

For webinars, Adobe has the largest capacity (80,000) which is unrivalled.

However, it’s far from the easiest to use. It took us a long time to get any video at all, and we could only manage one-way. Setting permissions for each individual attendee is a pain for small, quick meetings.

Ease of Use: 2/5

Features: 5/5

Number of users : 5/5

Value for money: 3/5

Compatibility : 5/5

Editors Opinion : 4/5

It’s a shame that Connect Pro is difficult to get up and running, because you can do absolutley anything with this software – from a very basic video conference between two participants to a large-scale conference with 80,000 participants.

Having said that, if you’re prepared to figure out how to use it Adobe Connect could prove very rewarding, espcially if you want to run a course or e-learning event. The great ‘reports’ feature is well designed and looks better than the main competitors Live Meeting and Webex.

Positives:

• Lightweight (web based)
• Works with all computers
• High capacity meeting rooms
• Great reporting and e-learning features
• Looks good

Negatives:

• Difficult to get going
• Some features a little clumsy
• Risk of doing too much – makes backend complicated

Price : $45 (£32) per seat per month

Click to get started with Adobe

Contact us for more information

Ease of Use : 5/5

Features : 4/5

Value for money: 5/5

Compatibility : 5/5

Editor’s Opinion : 4.5/5

Positive:

• Really good value
• Super fast browser and quick to get up and running
• So easy to use
• Compatible with all browsers and operating systems

Negative:

• Only a USA number provided for conference bridge
• Not as many features as some other solutions
• Cannot share Powerpoint presentations

Overall we’d say DimDim is best for small organisations, professionals, charities and other individuals. It’s unlikely to be used by more demanding customers because it doesn’t have many of the features of Webex or Live Meeting. On the other hand, it’s so amazingly simple to use and is excellent considering everything is managed in a browser.

Price: $25 (£16) per month

Click to get stared with Dim Dim

Contact us for more info about Dim Dim

Take Control

One of the most popular e-learning situations is showing people how to use software. Conducting training in an ‘over-the-shoulder’ way can really help your trainees to learn. Some possible uses -

• Present material to trainees such as powerpoint or video while you explain core concepts
• Share your desktop to show what you’re doing
• Upload a handout for your training session
• Allow trainees to interact with a whiteboard and Q&A functions

Record and Replay

Most software we review on this site has the ability to record meetings, and that content can also be replayed by your trainees or yourself.

Some collaborative software (notably Live Meeting) has the option for you to store those recordings on the server, which means anyone you grant access to can download the recording at a later date. You might also consider more complex scenarios where a training event consists purely of recordings, which can be accessed one by one.

Remote Classroom

Although it stretches slightly into the realm of full-blown video conferencing, there’s also the opportunity to broadcast video in a classroom, or record classroom-based teaching which can then be broadcast online. Some software is better suited to it than others, but this is fast becoming a popular way to use video conferencing software.

What are your options?

Most of the software we’ve reviewed on this site has the capability for basic e-learning situations, and as we stated before the most common e-learning useis for IT training where they all do a great job.

Microsoft Live Meeting

Live Meeting professional is in our opinion the most feature-rich solution for e-learning. If you’re doing anything more than simple IT training, then you’ll appreciate the ability to create public event pages, and also set up your own tests which you can then login to see results. A well-thought out package.

Read Overview – Microsoft Live Meeting

Read Review – Microsoft Live Meeting

Citrix Goto Meeting

Dubbed as one of the simplest to use, GoToMeeting is very easy to get up and running and it’s possible to run very quick e-learning sessions with this application. Your participants do need to download a small client, so it’s not entirely web based. Again though, it’s easy to set up.

Overall, although it doesn’t have all the features of Live Meeting, it’s simple and fast to use.

Read Overview – Citrix GotoMeeting

Read Review – Citrix Goto Meeting

DimDim

Alternatively if you want something that doesnt’ require any software at all and can be conducted on any computer with any browser, then definitely consider DimDim. It’s very fast and has a lot of features considering it’s browser-based. Recording training is also a possibility with DimDim. The price is also a standout feature of this – typically costing far less than many of the other similar applications, and aimed at small businesses and professionals.

Read Overview – DimDim

Read Review – DimDim

Beam Your Screen

Sometimes all you really need to do is show someone your screen and phone them up to talk through it. Simples! Beam Your Screen doesn’t have some of the advanced capabilities of Live Meeting, but it will let you conduct very basic IT training sessions. It’s pretty fast to get up and running and is browser based, but there’s no video link. A telephone conference bridge is provided.

Read Overview – Beam Your Screen

Read Review – Beam Your Screen

Webex

Market leader Cisco in fact has many different products suited to different environments. Their standard product Webex copes with e-learning quite well, and lets you set up training events and show your video. There’s also free-phone audio conference bridging if that’s required – otherwise you can use your webcam and microphone.

Read Overview – Cisco Webex

Read Review -  Cisco Webex

It allows you to meet colleagues, suppliers or clients virtually for one-to-one video chats, or larger webinar situations. Live Meeting can be easily tied into larger scale events, conferences or training events. It’s also ideal as software for e-classrooms, and can be a lifeline for remote teaching and training.

A single license can allow you to conference with up to 1250 people at any one time, so please explore this site and request a free trial when you’re ready.

Two minute overview video:

You can do as little or as much as you like with Live Meeting, from basic tasks such as having a video conferece with someone, to more advanced things like setting up real world conferences or organising an online webinar event. It’s pretty powerful and we believe it’s one of the most comprehensive solutions out there.

• Features:

Q&A

People can ask questions in meetings, and the administrator can control who gets the floor.

Whiteboard

Allow colleagues to brainstorm with each other, illustrate ideas or annotate diagrams.

Handouts

Give participants the chance to download a document/handout so they’ll know the agenda for your meeting

Events

Set up larger scale events and training schedules

Polls / Surveys

Monitor attendance and participation (particularly useful for e-learning situations). Also gain valuable feedback on your meeting or conference.

Video and Audio streaming

Easy to use and works very well with Microsoft

Outlook Integration

Organise meetings straight from outlook – although you can also use the client, or your own email client. Also available – Lotus Notes plugin.

Cross-platform compatibility

Use the web-based version of Live Meeting to allow anyone to access your video conference, regardless of whether they’re running Windows.

But if you’re relying on email and a phone line, communication can very quickly break down. It’s not surprising that home-working has taken longer to take off than anticipated: many colleagues view their home-working colleageus with suspicion, and bosses are often reluctant to free thier employees from office-bound desks.

Live Meeting provides an excellent solution, since it allows people to interact with office-based employees much more easily. Some of the ways Live Meeting can be specifically useful to home-workers include:

• Set up face-to-face meetings with a webcam
  

  Much better than relying on phone contact, Live Meeting provides a more robust means of communication. Use your webcam (supplied) and microphone to see the other person while you explain something, or while you present material.

• Share and collaborate on documents easily
  One of the problems traditionally associated with working in different locations has been the inability to collaborate effectively on documents. Live Meeting lets you share a programme or document easily, and make changes together in real time. At the end of your meeting, the document is saved in a central location, and when you re-open the virtual meeting room, your file is there waiting for you.
  
• Allow home workers to link-in to office meetings Live Meeting also provides the ability to link real-life meetings with off-site colleauges. Using Roundtable, a meeting can be set up which will provide a live video link of all participants. Anyone with a Live Meeting license can then join the meeting and participate. For more about Roundtable, please see this post.
• Outlook calendars integration
  

  Because Live Meeting ties into Microsoft Office so well, you can easily schedule meetings by using Outlook. If you’re using Outlook’s shared calendars features, it’s easy to set up Live Meetings when you know your colleagues will be free. As soon as you request a meeting, the invitation is sent via email and automatically put in the calendar if accepted. See this post for more about the Outlook integration.

Now that bonuses are off the cards, many employers are wondering how to improve staff retention without adding to the payroll burden. One fantastic way to help staff loyalty is to offer the opportunity for staff to work at home.

But if you’re relying on email and a phone line, communication can very quickly break down. It’s not surprising that home-working has taken longer to take off than anticipated: many colleagues view their home-working colleageus with suspicion, and bosses are often reluctant to free thier employees from office-bound desks.

Live Meeting provides an excellent solution, since it allows people to interact with office-based employees much more easily. Some of the ways Live Meeting can be specifically useful to home-workers include:

• Set up face-to-face meetings with a webcam
  

  Much better than relying on phone contact, Live Meeting provides a more robust means of communication. Use your webcam (supplied) and microphone to see the other person while you explain something, or while you present material.

• Share and collaborate on documents easily
  One of the problems traditionally associated with working in different locations has been the inability to collaborate effectively on documents. Live Meeting lets you share a programme or document easily, and make changes together in real time. At the end of your meeting, the document is saved in a central location, and when you re-open the virtual meeting room, your file is there waiting for you.
  
• Allow home workers to link-in to office meetings Live Meeting also provides the ability to link real-life meetings with off-site colleauges. Using Roundtable, a meeting can be set up which will provide a live video link of all participants. Anyone with a Live Meeting license can then join the meeting and participate. For more about Roundtable, please see this post.
• Outlook calendars integration
  

  Because Live Meeting ties into Microsoft Office so well, you can easily schedule meetings by using Outlook. If you’re using Outlook’s shared calendars features, it’s easy to set up Live Meetings when you know your colleagues will be free. As soon as you request a meeting, the invitation is sent via email and automatically put in the calendar if accepted. See this post for more about the Outlook integration.

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