Communicating face to face without being in the same location has
become easy with the arrival of video conferencing technology and its
related software. For business, it is the best way to interact with
colleagues worldwide for meetings and conferences. For medical
professionals, it provides an invaluable service in that patients can
be treated long distance in real time by specialists without the time
and hassle of travel. And now for the everyday person, video
conferencing software has given opportunities for education and
communication like never before.
A video conference is achieved with a set of interactive
telecommunications tools that give 2 or more parties in different
locations the opportunity to work together using 2-way video and audio
at the same time. The history of video conferencing can be traced back
to the beginning of television. Video conferencing pretty much began
with the advent of the television, by using closed circuit televisions
that were connected by means of cable. This tended to be expensive to
carry out, and was not the most efficient over long distances for such
functions as business meetings or distance learning.
In the 1980's, digital telephony technology opened the doors to more
efficient and effective transmission of audio and video over longer
distances, with a guaranteed minimum bandwidth (approximately 128
Kbps). The technology remained expensive and therefore not highly
sought after, especially for smaller businesses, until the 1990's. The
fast progress of the technology and its capabilities along with the
burgeoning prevalence of the Internet helped to make video conferencing
software and hardware more reasonably priced. In addition, these
factors contributed to making the technology a more appealing and
convenient way to communicate long distance.
For a basic video conferencing setup, there are certain pieces of
hardware and software that are required. These include a video input
for recording video, such as a webcam. There also needs to be a video
output for displaying video images, such as a monitor or television
set. An audio output device, such as a microphone, is required for
recording sound. Audio output devices such as speakers are needed to
playing the audio. And finally, there needs to be a method of data
transmission from one location to the other. This can be accomplished
via the Internet, or even a LAN (Local Area Network). The more
bandwidth, the better.
For the general population, there are ways to take advantage of video
conferencing. There are lower quality services available in the form of
downloadable programs like Googletalk, Yahoo Messenger, MSN Messenger,
among others. The downloadable software is usually free of charge, and
if you have a webcam, a microphone, and broadband Internet access, you
can be connected with friends and family sans the long distance phone
bills. It is an ideal way for grandparents to witness the development
of far away grandchildren, and for long distance friends to keep in
touch.
Another use to video conferencing software is for educational purposes.
Students can use the technology to participate in distance learning
programs worldwide, without having to leave home to do it. This
technology offers no limits to the possibilities of expanding your
educational and cultural horizons, no matter where you are in the
world. And yet another positive use for video conferencing software is
in the field of medicine. The technology allows doctors and nurses to
consult with patients and colleagues in real time and send and receive
x-rays and other pertinent images quickly. In addition, health problems
can be diagnosed by specialists from anywhere in the world, without the
need to travel to do it.
Video conferencing software is not only for business meetings anymore.
The Internet has provided a means of allowing the average citizen a way
of taking advantage of this technology. In addition, the uses for video
conferencing continue to develop all the time. In business, medicine,
education, and personal computing, video conferencing software is a
highly convenient and easy means of face-to-face communication.
