I just read a post on Moodle where the debate is about the "best" Web-conferencing software for Moodle. This post was actually intended for the same forum, but before posting, I read in the "Post Length" section that it is not a good idea to write a long post in Moodle forums. So I decided to put this on our blog with just a small entry on the forum and a link to this post. Here is what I have learned with my short experience of Web-conferencing systems.
Is there a "best" Web-conferencing software?
Every software has it's own unique features and nuances, and every individual has personal tastes and preferences; so we cannot really pinpoint which one is "the best". Another thing specific to Web-conferencing software is that everyone will not have the same experience using the same software owing to variables like:
- Internet speed; slow speed leads to problems like audio lag, video problems, whiteboard lag and synchronization problems
- The learning curve because everyone has their own pace.
- Microphone, headphone and audio settings because it is very hard to configure sound on some PCs or some users find it hard to tweak - now that is the PC audio panel, headset etc, and not the Web-conferencing software that I am pointing to.
- Attendees using speakers instead of a headset. This causes the presenter's sound to reverberate down to all attendees. Technically it is quite simple to comprehend why that happens. Simply put, the presenter's sound gets fed back through the attendee's microphone and it bounces back again through the same attendee's speakers and in through the mic again, out to all attendees, and back through the speakers again and goes into an indefinite loop. So a classroom protocol needs to be followed to get the best experience.
- Attendees talking at the same time in full duplex audio systems. Now that is an invitation to a bad experience again and I would again like to point to classroom protocol. After all, a brick and mortar classroom can sound quite chaotic too without protocol.
These are just some quick points that come to my mind. There are numerous subtleties that are hard to list in a post like this, which some users might attribute to Web-conferencing software behavior and hand down a quick verdict.
So how do I choose what works best for me?
Most of the currently available software more or less satisfy what users would want from Web-conferencing systems but what really separates one from the other, which help users choose what they want are factors like:
- Interface: Everyone has individual preferences.
- Feature set: minimal, useful and usable OR multiple, redundant and hard-to-use. Marketing guys like me will always go around shrieking ourselves hoarse promoting our stuff, but users know best what works for them.
- Orientation: Specific to e-teaching, commercial training or generic meetings? Again the user knows what s/he wants to use it for.
- Installation: Desktop or web based? (individual preferences based on experience)
- Associated features and benefits: For example, WiZiQ's virtual classroom users have extra options for blended e-learning like the content library, which offers users the ability to upload, share and access presentations and PDF documents; networking options to meet up with other users having similar interests; and a public sessions archive to access recordings delivered by experts etc.
- Costs: Not everyone wants a free facility, and similarly, everyone cannot pay.
- Irritants: roadblocks to usability.
Again the above is not a comprehensive list and is the result of a quick recollection. The list can go on and on because every online session brings along scenarios for attendees, which they might not have encountered before, with so many variables at play. So I believe that it is very difficult to tag any Web-conferencing system "the best". Every user has to determine what works best for her/him.
Our Live Class plugins for Moodle
We are trying hard, and we believe we have gained ground to overcome roadblocks and provide Moodle users a free and most user friendly virtual classroom. Your comments and feedback are most welcome as always, as this is what has helped us evolve in education technology to reach where we are today.
And yes, the Live Class modules for virtual classroom integration in Moodle are now available! See this blog post form more information.
On WiZiQ
Modules and video tutorials: http://www.wiziq.com/downloads/moodle/
On Moodle
Activity: http://moodle.org/mod/data/view.php?d=13&rid=1113
Block: http://moodle.org/mod/data/view.php?d=13&rid=1114
The Moodle LMS can be downloaded here: http://download.moodle.org/
Jagdeep Singh Pannu
