Overview
Demonstration What is videoconferencing? Uses for videoconferencing Videoconferencing protocols Hardware and software Hands-On Play Time
What is Videoconferencing?
Real time interaction (seeing and hearing) with other people located with one or more remote sites
Components:– Viewing equipment (computer or TV)– Camera(s)– Microphone(s)– Network or phone line
Uses for Videoconferencing
Collaboration with colleagues Education
– Distance learning– Collaborative learning with 2 groups of
students at different schools
Telehealth– Patient care– Family support
Videoconferencing Protocols
H.320– Broadband over a dedicated line (T1, ISDN)– Very fast– Very expensive
H.323– Uses the regular Internet (IP)– Cheaper– Slower, and runs into Internet congestion
Videoconferencing Protocols
H.324– Plain Old Telephone System (POTS)– 56K analog– For family support situations
H.323– De facto Internet standard– “Good enough” for many applications
Videoconferencing Protocols
SIP– Session Initiation Protocol– Used by new video chat programs
• Windows Messenger• Apple iChat
– May eventually replace H.323 as protocol of choice
Hardware
High-end = > $1000 per site Medium-range = $500 - $1000 per
site Low-end = under $500 per site
Hardware – High-End
Videoconferencing “bridge” systems maintained by a telecommunications department
Allows multi-point access Polycom “ViewStation” for multi-
point conferences using the bridge– $4000 - $6000 per site
Hardware – High End
Advantages– Excellent quality– Good enough for telehealth and meetings
with colleagues
Disadvantages– Requires scheduling “bridge”– Computer application sharing (i.e.,
PowerPoint or Web) not good quality
ViewStation – Our Experience
Used for monthly conference calls for distributed HEAL team at 3 institutions– Utah – ViewStation – UCLA – ViaVideo camera (lower end)– Oklahoma -- ViewStation
Like being in the same room with Okla. Video occasionally freezes with participant
using a cheaper ViaVideo camera Excellent for meetings where participants
“talk” but don’t try to look at a computer together
Access Grid
Internet II:– Consortium led by 206 universities working in
partnership with industry and government to develop and deploy advanced network applications and technologies,
– Internet2 is recreating the partnership among academia, industry and government that fostered today’s Internet in its infancy.
The primary goals of Internet2 are to: – Create a leading edge network capability for the
national research community – Enable revolutionary Internet applications – Ensure the rapid transfer of new network services
and applications to the broader Internet community.
Access Grid
An ensemble of resources to support group communication– Large format multimedia– Visualization environments (virtual reality)
Over 150 institutions participate Requires investment in hardware
and personnel to set up
Access Grid – Our Experience
Required many more months than expected to install
Campus networking issues Once working, we conducted a
collaborative meeting with 5 institutions
Access Grid – Innovative Uses
University of New Mexico – Project TOUCH, Dale Alverson, M.D.– Collaborative distance learning in a virtual
reality environment– Video clip: 38:26 – 48:30– Slides– Set-up page
Hardware – Medium-Range
Personal desktop system: Polycom ViaVideo II
Camera and built-in microphone
Proprietary software $500 For point-to-point only Can sit on your desk
for spontaneous calls Excellent data and
application sharing software
No Macintosh version!
ViaVideo – Our Experience
Works very well for point-to-point meetings IF your Internet connection is fast
Would not work for a distance ed Utah – Germany due to poor connections
Hardware – Low End
Consumer level cameras– iSight (Macintosh)
($149)– Logitech Quickcam
($50-$100)
Headset with microphone
WebCams – Our Experience
Works well to see the other person using low-end software (NetMeeting or VRVS)
Quality headset is important
Choosing a System
Purpose– Communicate one on one with colleagues?– Distance learning with multiple sites?– Telehealth?
Budget Institutional support
Software
Free– NetMeeting– Virtual Room Videoconferencing System
(VRVS)
Proprietary– Polycom ViaVideo software
Access Grid– Uses a version of VRVS
Software
NetMeeting– Comes with every PC– On Windows XP, find it by running the
program “conf”– Use with any camera and microphone
headset– Includes data sharing application– Does not seem to have many firewall issues
NetMeeting – Our Experience
Conducted distance education class between Utah and California using NetMeeting
Utah instructor had Polycom ViaVideo California students saw video with
NetMeeting and had microphone to communicate with Utah
Worked well except for a few minutes of “Internet congestion”
Example of using low-end software
Software
Virtual Room Videoconferencing System (VRVS)– www.vrvs.org– Multi-point “meeting room”– Uses servers (reflectors) across the country– Free– Use with any camera and microphone headset– Has data sharing application– Works on PCs or Macintosh– Can have set-up issues
VRVS – Our Experience
Mixed experience Wanted to use it for collaboration
with 8 libraries Only 6 could get it to work
completely due to firewall issues Sound quality sometimes poor But it shows promise for free multi-
point conferences
“Mixing and Matching” Technologies
Many different configurations, to name just a few:
ViaVideo Camera with VRVS software
WebCam with VRVS Software connected to Access Grid
ViewStation with participants using ViaVideo cameras, other ViewStations, or Access Grid
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