Universal IP at Last

By Wendy Chretien and Peter Gray

There's no end to what you can do over IP. Prepare your network, take our test, and go!

Heard the one about the New Age appliance repair person who shows up unexpectedly at the door, and tells the housewife, "Your fridge e-mailed me"? Well, now there really are networked, IP-enabled refrigerators.

Your campus may be in the same situation. Traditionally, there have been many devices and systems running independently, and using separate cabling and control systems. You now need to prepare to integrate many of these systems into your data or IP-based networks.

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Web Conferencing 101

By Dale Coyner

Web conferencing is a new communications medium, and it's not quite like any other.

It may share characteristics with other media, such as teleconferencing and live multimedia presentations, but ultimately it requires specific techniques for maximum effectiveness. Here are 13 ideas for creating more successful online events:

1. Keep It Simple
It's easy to become enamored with all the features that today's Web conferencing systems offer. Avoid the temptation to try all the bells and whistles if you're just starting out or if you're trying a new system. Master the basics: slide control, polling and messaging. Once you and your audience are comfortable with these elements, you can gradually introduce more sophisticated features, such as streaming audio, whiteboarding and application sharing.

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Free Sonexis Conferencing Offer

For every 24 audio ports purchased, receive 10 Web conferencing seats ($9500 value) absolutely Free!

For a limited time only, you can purchase an Audio and Web conferencing bridge from Sonexis and take advantage of this very special offer: For every 24 audio ports purchased, receive 10 Web conferencing seats ($9500 value) absolutely FREE!

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Video Conferencing Requires Routers with Built-In QoS

For conferencing users, Internet Protocol (IP) offers a low-cost alternative to to Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN).

But IP doesn't always offer good quality or security, according to speakers at last month's IP World Canada conference. “Corporate IT departments can control their own internal networks, but once they start making video conference calls to people from outside the company over the public Internet, it's more difficult to guarantee quality,” said Rick Perkins, product manager of Sony of Canada Ltd.

He said companies are using virtual private networks for video calls but if you want to provide acceptable service between two points, the routers in the middle must have quality of service (QoS) functionality.

At a seminar titled Enhanced Productivity through Video Communications, Perkins outlined several key questions network managers need to ask before they roll out video conferencing.

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