It makes me curious: what does "on-line" really offer us? The mundane features seem to be
- screen sharing (with or without keyboard and mouse pointer sharing)
- instant messaging
- conference calling
- videoconferencing
- presentation or application sharing
- session recording
- whiteboarding
Personally, I've never seen a high-tech conferencing option that doesn't suck compared to the elegant simplicity of a low-tech in-person meeting. But that's beside the point: on-line services are not a substitute for human communication. The members who are asking seem to be saying that the costs of attending in-person meetings outweighs the reward... but some of them may be willing to put out some effort to meet on-line instead.
We are a volunteer group, so free or low-cost alternatives are attractive. Members use PCs, Mac, and even Linux systems, so single-platform clients are ugly.
Some of the more obvious options:
- GoToMeeting
- Join.Me
- DimDim
- Yugma
- Mikogo
We are looking for options. What are they? Is there anything better for remote members than screen sharing? What's the latest and greatest in telepresence? What features are bloat and what do people actually use in practice?
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