Phone Cards & Calling Cards

Video conferencing is a useful business tool that brings close people located all over the world. The magic of videoconferencing is that it has erased all borders, cut down travel time, as well as costs. Companies as well as research units can choose to conduct important business meetings as well as training modules by using videoconferencing.

The steps to planning a successful video conference are simple. First you need to decide on a day and time taking into consideration time zones and holidays.

1. Send out a notification to all concerned about the videoconference and confirm attendance.

2. Decide on a format for the videoconference and ensure smooth functioning by checking whether all participants have the necessary equipment.

3. When choosing a venue think about audio and video quality. The room should be simple and windows must be ideally behind the videoconferencing system or covered with blinds. Choose the right seating arrangement considering aspects like audio echo. Light furniture and an amply lit room with florescent lights are recommended. If the walls are blue its ideal. Insulate the room from external sounds as far as possible.

4. Check whether you have a suitable network connection. It should be a digital network service such as an IP or ISDN service. Consult your local VSGi representative. You will need a Lan connection, suitable power sockets, and cable runners or conduits.

5. Arrange for equipment such as a second monitor of size 27″ to 60″ plasmas, a VCR or DVD player, document camera, auxiliary camera, lap tops, wired or wireless touch control panels and so on. In case of doubt take professional help.

6. General tips for a videoconference are:

a. Ask participants to be seated at least 10-15 minutes before the conference begins.

b. Send out a short note to all speakers on how to speak/present slides at a video conference.

c. Position the camera such that all participants will be within view.

d. Every one needs to speak normally just as in a face to face meeting. There will be no need to speak louder.

e. Avoid shuffling of feet or papers. Microphones will pick up all sounds even whispers.

f. Use normal meeting etiquettes.

The World Wide Web has changed significantly the way the world functions. Today e-meetings or videoconferences are common place and participants can be in any corner of the world and yet be present in the meeting. Participants can exchange ideas, present slides and data, discuss and debate issues and interact just as they would in face-to-face meetings. Participants will just be seated in their own offices instead of a conference room. Video conferencing has become state of art with excellent sound and picture quality and the process saves business considerable amounts of time as well as money.

When considering a network camera for a business or home based application, several

questions should be entertained before making your purchase. Doing so will ensure a functional solution that will meet your current and future needs.

This article assumes that you already have a PC with a current operating system (Microsoft Windows XP Pro) and a LAN (local area network).

I will use a home based security and nanny cam application for this example.

Application Requirements:

The perimeter of the home requires cameras covering all four sides.

The garage and front entrance door require indoor cameras to monitor who comes and goes.

One camera in the kitchen of the house as this is the center to all rooms in this case.

Possibility of adding additional indoor cameras.

Environmental Requirements: (Northern United states.)

Outdoor cameras will require a weatherproof enclosure with heating and cooling.

Internal cameras need to be inconspicuous.

Lighting Variance:

Outdoor cameras will have little to no lighting source during dusk hours, thus and Infrared Illuminator will be required.

Indoor cameras are normally exposed to home ambient lighting. A low lux rated indoor camera will be considered for the best flexibility.

Electrical Considerations:

Source of Camera power:

Is 120vac power available near the mounting place of the network camera?

If the answer is no, then you might want to consider a camera that is POE (Power over Ethernet) ready.

Network Considerations:

Do you have a network? If the answer is no, then you need to consider installing a network enabling connectivity to the IP cameras.

802.11 g wireless is available for most network cameras. Megapixel network cameras are not currently supported as wireless.

Surveillance monitoring / recording requirements:

Our application requires motion based monitoring for the exterior of the home 24/7. The indoor cameras will only require motion based recording between the hours 7:30am and 6:00PM.

Integration requirements:

Camera Choices.

Be sure that the surveillance recording software is capable of supporting the desired cameras.

Pay attention to the surveillance software cost as some packages charge based on the number of cameras.

Make sure remote connectivity exists as part of the surveillance software package. (Remote viewing of both live and recorded video).

Always consider the surveillance software manufacturers recommended PC requirements for best performance along with the total number of cameras to be used. You can normally find storage calculators at the manufacturer’s web site.

Selecting the Infrared illuminator can be tricky as they normally have a maximum illumination range along with a dispersion pattern.

Finally, select the correct camera with IR imaging capabilities were needed.

If your company isn’t hasn’t caught the web conferencing wave, then it doesn’t know what it’s missing-which just may be everything!

Web conferencing makes it possible for people from all over the world to meet in cyberspace at the click of a mouse. This is truly incredible technology that is changing the way all types of businesses are doing business. From small businesses to mega corporations, web conferencing ensures that no on need ever miss out on a meeting again.

Which automatically increases productivity among employees! The sales people out in the field are in the know about what’s happening back at the office because they can visit the office from thousands of miles away. And having everyone know what’s going on is vital to communications among employees to ensure business is conducted at its best. When only a few people have much needed information and they’re unavailable, then a whole company suffers as people scramble to find the answers they need.

But that’s just the tip of the proverbial iceberg when it comes to all that web conferencing makes possible. Web conferencing can be used for meetings, yes, but it needn’t be limited to just meetings.

Web conferencing is a great way to train employees in new processes a company is using or for making presentations to them on changes in a company’s protocol. This type of web conferencing is often referred to as webcasts or webcasting. Basically, this means the conferences or presentations can be recorded to play and be available for others to download and view whenever they like or need to do so.

Just think of the possibilities that has for any company! They can train their employees no matter where they are, they can conduct meetings that no one can duck out of because they just happen to be fourteen states away, and they can have a library of needed materials that allows their employees to be taught certain procedures.

But what about outside the company? Does web conferencing make a difference then?

The answer is YES! You better believe it does. A company can have focus groups that will provide them with much needed target audience research on a particular product, as well as on the development of new products. Companies are no longer limited to hiring outside consultants to hold focus groups for them all over the world. They can do it themselves, right from their mortar and brick home office at the corner of First and Main Streets.

The benefits outside the company don’t stop there either. New product launches can be done using web conferencing, as can press briefings and shareholder meetings. And it’s no longer necessary for a company to fly ten of their best people into a city to hold a sales presentation or make a new business pitch.

They can dress up in their finest, spruce up the old conference or boardroom so it’s at its finest, and conduct any kind of presentation for anyone, anywhere in the world! Then when it’s over, everyone can slip into their everyday clothes and head back to their cubicles or offices.

The impact web conferencing can have due to this increased ease and decreased transportation and lost productivity time on a company’s bottom line makes web conferencing equipment well worth the investment. It will pay for itself in no time flat when a group is able to win just one new business pitch without having any transportation and lodging to pay for!

This means that a company can put those resources to good use elsewhere. Maybe to buy more web conferencing equipment and software for all their offices, not just headquarters.

Because one thing is certain, if your company isn’t using web conferencing to do business, it will be soon. Web conferencing is just too good for a company’s bottom line for it to be ignored for long-even by people who don’t much care for the old World Wide Web. Web conferencing, when done well, makes believers out of all involved. Once hooked, people never look back!

Some of the essential elements of preserving our memories are by writing them down, having photographs and catching it all on video. Guess which one of those three offers the most sentiment? Video is what most people are choosing because it records the moment just as it happens. Of course, without professional help, capturing memories in video format may not be all that exciting. This is why many people opt to get the services of a professional video-editing company.

A video editing company can manipulate your video into an entertaining movie. Obviously, the more professional your footage looks, the easier and more professional your final piece will look once it’s been edited. That is why it is also important to look for a professional camera operator or videographer.

Online Video Editing

Some production companies have made themselves more accessible by coming up with online services. This allows you to easily upload video to their website and select the clips to edit. This downloaded footage can then be edited on the site with some advanced but simple software. You can also share with others or view your video right there online. This strategy will cost less compared to having your video edited by a professional company. You can digitize the videos and back them up online as well as receive it with a personalized case. Even Corporate promotional videos are now available via this Internet process to speed up productions, and minimize operation costs for the small business owner.

Corporate Video Market

The Corporate market is looking towards educational videos; sales and marketing aids, product demos and trade show videos. Instructional training footage for offline and online is also a valuable tool. We all know that corporate communication teams are always on the run, meeting people and beating deadlines. To successfully organize the production of Corporate Ads, thorough research and creative planning is needed. Video professionals get this process done properly and on time while the average business struggles to get the project started.

TV productions and organizing corporate events is a tedious and challenging process. That is why Video Services these days have become more accessible to the corporate world at very affordable prices.

Video Editing services have been an essential part of documenting occasions and events such as weddings, baptisms, graduations; and other countless family events. These services have been a vital tool in archiving the priceless videos and photos many have taken throughout our lives.

Finally many companies in the small to medium markets can now add professional videos to their marketing campaigns online and offline.

If your business has been struggling to keep up the constantly changing needs of working life, perhaps it is time to start using technology to assist you in conducting routine business matters. You may want to consider eliminating some unnecessary elements of your business by attempting to better the productivity of your organization. One way in which this could be made possible would be by utilizing audio conferencing or conference calls.

Conference calling today has greatly transformed the ways whereby organizations conduct business all over the world. It has effectively eliminated face-to-face interaction from personal meetings and large group conferences, with the telephone being the all-in-all. If you have three or more people that need to meet, review sales, order products, or submit departmental reports, you can now do so without having to venture outside to meet with them. And they can too! Conference calls allow you to conduct your business on a private and secured line through what is known as a conference bridge that cannot be accessed by non-users.

You will no longer have to pray that the roads will not be bad, nor will you have to fly in your clients or prospects to make timely decisions. Conference calling and audio conferencing is an extremely effective way to join forces with your global marketplace without even leaving your work station, or using the expense account. Conference calling has become very appealing today for businesses that are attempting to save money, and yet maintain the necessary and critical links with their business partners and clients.

There are many ways in which you can use conference calling to your advantage. You can use operator assisted programs if there are quite a few participants for the meeting. This allows you to conduct your meeting hands free by using a moderator. Another good choice is to have your callers dial in and listen to a pre-recorded seminar or meeting. This could be an intelligent way of promoting your business to a large group of listeners. You can also have your participants dial in at a specified meeting time, and conduct a comprehensive telephonic discussion or meeting in a manner very similar to that you would have in a conference room.

The pros of making use of conference calling systems in your business are primarily the convenience you have to conduct business while eliminating the costs of travel and commuting. This will ultimately ensure that your business saves both time and money, and as a result, experiences increased productivity. With less time being wasted everyday, you gain more productivity time for your business.

If your organization is yet to start using the conference call to communicate, it may be missing out on quite an inexpensive mode of communicating with your business partners. Conference calling today has become such an affordable means of communication that it is replacing existing methods of business communication. Utilizing conference calls can most certainly assist you in reducing the need to conduct one-on-one business meetings with your colleagues and business partners. This method will help you save a lot with respect to energy and money in both the short and long-term aspects of your business.

The primary benefit of conference calling is that it aids a business organization is retaining links with your partners and workforce at the global level. You can use conference calling to communicate with both your workforce and your business associates no matter where they are located. Arrange and conduct meetings with department or regional heads through a telephone land line for maximum efficiency and affordability. Major decisions do not have to wait with multi-level users to ensure that no important business aspect goes unnoticed. You or your secretary will no longer have the bother of hunting people to give authorizations, signatures, or approval on critical documentation if you make sure to use the conference call for your business meetings.

Transportation costs between meetings, or expenses to set up in-person conferences could soon become extinct when you begin to use conference calling in your business. You will no longer have to use the members of your workforce to see to it that the conference room is prepared, or incur expenses on refreshments for your business meetings. Arrange your conferences and your meetings yourself and conduct them without having to go out.

By setting up an account with a conference call service provider, you are taking the first step towards saving a lot of money for your organization. Many providers are ready to provide deals for your business that are both customized and affordable. If you know in advance what the requirements of your business are, your conference call provider will have a great bargain to suit you perfectly.

Using conference calling services ultimately means increased productivity and saved costs for you and your business. When more work must be accomplished within a few hours, you have more time available to you to conduct the business that is your responsibility. With more time, money making will come easy. After all, increased productivity and enhanced profit margins are your ultimate goal. Reaching that goal becomes easier with conferencing.

This is the age of information. With it have arrived the technological advances that are in the process of metamorphosing our way of working. All one needs to do is click on a mouse or hit “send” on a mobile device to send information to the farthest tip of the earth. The world of business has changed and technology and computers are bringing the world face to face with technology such as web and audio conferencing, all through nothing more than one’s laptop or desktop computer screen.

Technology does not only cater to our entertainment. Today, the Internet is not there just for our entertainment or fun, but it can no longer be bypassed in the development of every business model. The larger the business or corporation, the more necessary is this tool. However, even small businesses can and should make use of all the tools the Internet offers towards business expansion.

If your company has affiliates, partners, employees, or clients who are not living nearby, you should make use of web and audio conferencing to carry out your communications. Eliminate the need to fly in bigwigs from the overseas branch, or waste time in traffic moving from one meeting to the next. By using audio and web conferencing, you can have conferences with whoever you want, when you want to meet them, all without leaving your office or setting up the room where the meeting will be held.

Web conferencing takes very seriously the old phrase: “time is money”. You could quickly get done with the discussions in half the time that it would take for you or your clients to commute to them. You can process documents faster, and make decisions in real time on a face-to-face basis with your communication partners. You not only save valuable costs by decreasing transportation expenses, but you also save on a great deal of time as you perform several actions in a single conference call. Even though your meetings are virtual, they still take place immediately and you can also meet the people face to face.

Besides the advantages at the administrative level of saving time and money for your business, web and audio conferencing will also certainly aid you in your business’ growth by tapping into markets that may have been unattainable in the past. The global market is literally at your fingertips when you incorporate web and audio conferencing into the way in which your office functions. Advertising web events on your business web site is an intelligent way of swelling your client list but also your profit margin. If you have not yet included audio or web conferencing in your business’ regular agenda, don’t waste any more time.

The purpose of web or video conferences is to save time, money and effort, which are usually expended in flying across continents to discuss issues. Such everyday issues and information sharing which is necessary for the smooth running of businesses can easily be taken care of through conference calls. However, keeping this information secure and out of the hands of mischief-makers is very important. That is why precautions for the safekeeping of this information are necessary.

As the IT administrator of a company, the duty to keep such video conferences free from external interferences falls in your lap. So the first step should be securing the web conference internally. For each particular conference, the participants involved should be given user ID’s and passwords to enter the meeting. To register their names, they must have a secret code provided to them. The power of changing passwords should rest with only a few top- notch IT people.

Secondly, firewalls should be established to stop hackers from joining the party. Use servers hosted in the DMZ zone, if the concerned web- meeting falls in the important category. Tell participants not to give out meeting details to others through their yahoo, hotmail or g-mail accounts etc. These are easily hacked. All the firewalls you establish for your own IT network will be of no avail if participants are tossing around the details of the web-conference meeting on the internet.

Even while transmission of information during a meeting; hackers can use parallel equipment to peek on the messages passing to and fro. To avoid this, the least you must do is use SSL with your computer. Other than that, many other sophisticated devices are available to monitor the traffic. If a third party is involved in providing the conference call services, you must double check on their security measures.

Best would be to employ hosted web-conferencing models like WebEx or Microsoft’s LiveMeeting. The plus point of using hosted models is that these help in keeping information inside the company’s IT network. The drawback is that they are an expensive option for smaller companies. So if you are an upcoming business you might think of using Lotus notes.

Remember that no matter how effective you think your firewalls are, they can still be broken through by smarter minds. So it should be made a cardinal rule that no classified information will ever be shared or transferred in a web conference meeting. It’s better to use the company’s money in this instance to fly and meet others rather than risk exposing the information on the web. Remember that information security during web conferencing depends on how further you can think than a potential hacker

The site is opening more windows for water sports enthusiasts, yachtsmen, recreational boaters and fishermen than ever before. You will find professionals from the cruise ship industry, commercial shipping, oil & gas exploration and research organizations. If none of this floats your boat then who wants to plan a tropical vacation to the south pacific or the Greek isles. Avid travelers are also coming to splashvision and the travel industry is answering with promotional videos of hotels, resorts and spas. SplashVision.com has it all!

A splashing venture backed by Chief Executive, real estate investor and acclaimed mega yacht captain, Todd Weider, SplashVision.com features thousands of eye pleasing and unique videos and photos.

“You may have dabbled in YouTube,” Weider explains, “but if you really want to connect with your market and those in your field; you want to be around like minds with common interests, part of a community which shares common ground. Splash Vision is that community. SplashVision does not vie for the same users as other social media sites seek; our users are sharing a common bond and a unique lifestyle.

“I live in Florida now, but prior to being captain of large mega-yachts and several around the world tours accumulating countless miles at sea; I was an avid water sports junkie and into fishing, diving, water skiing and offshore racing. I am very familiar with companies who target and individuals who seek and maintain ocean and maritime lifestyles. Splasvision is prepared to provide users what they want and tools they can utilize.

Weider distinguishes SplashVision from other look-alike websites saying,

It’s a site where one can find the latest in Mega Ship Construction, a clip of Freedom of the Seas; the largest cruise ship in the world, Paul Allen’s new $200,000 million Yacht ‘Octopus,’ or the latest gadget for your company and or boat to be seen in action; it’s all here! The sun, fun party spots like Nikki Beach Club in Miami or St Tropez, and Ocean Creatures in their natural habitat. Just a click will instantly transport you to amazing, totally refreshing, useful and fun filled information.”

For Advertisers, SplashVision offers a community of users who are high end consumers. Demographics show the SplashVision community is planning to make or has made big ticket purchases and will continue to do so. Advertisers now have the opportunity to address a community where the majority of users have significant disposable income.

Splashvision offers sound businesses with an alternative distribution channel which compliments their existing marketing strategies. Weider adds,

You supply the content and we supply the consumers. When was the last time you were not required to pay for your product or service to be promoted and consumers came running to see it? It’s a whole new world and we want to help our users capitalize on the experience. We want it to be a win / win situation for all.”

Among the ‘opportunities’ SplashVision offers a service to all users with accounts wanting to offer video on their own personal sites. Splashvison offers a backend hosting service which allows webmasters to embed media from splashvison on their own corporate and personal sites. The backend even provides a media player so no storage of large files or complex programming is required. Again; SplashVision offers value added services in multiple ways.

SpalshVision.com calls all ye affluent boat owners, travelers, ship builders, research centers, fishermen, water sports persons, beach goers, who are entering Web2.0 daily to take a look and dive in to an exciting new cyber-water world!

About SplashVision.com

SplashVision.com is the only Social Network in the world targeted at Water Enthusiasts, Mariners, Travelers, Beach Lovers, Water Sports Fanatics, Scientists and Hobbyists. Parties interested in bodies of water; including; Oceans, Lakes, Ponds, Canals, Fjords, and the like are invited to join this exciting website for knowledge, information and excitement. Also included are Beaches and Vacation destinations along their shores and the People, Organisms and Creatures who survive, navigate, search and scour them.

A Virtual Classrooms orVCR is a learning environment that exists exclusively in the form of digital content that is stored, and accessed through network of computers and information systems like PDAs, notebooks, mobiles etc.

Virtual Classrooms ?

The main difference between the physical classroom and the Virtual Classrooms is those of location,time and spaces required by students and teachers to access and partake in classroom activities. In the physical classroom a physical location must be visited at a fixed time in order to participate, while a virtual classroom is not physically accessed and has no real fixed time or location which is a great boon.

The manner in which a teacher delivers educational material remains an important factor in the success of both classrooms. Though both the classrooms employ similar learning theory, curriculum design and

pedagogy, live face-to-face interaction is missing in the VCR method, which may have a negative influence.

May be the solution is the blended method where physical classroom training is combined with the virtual classroom training, thus accommodating a wider range of student needs.As teaching in both the physical and virtual classroom is learner-centered, students learn by engaging in group work, projects, discussions, and other content relating to real-world contexts. The VCR is used to provide additional communication and material, along with the learning that occurs in the physical classroom.

VCR Tools

The important communication/participation VCR tools are

• E-mail
• Discussion boards
• Chat rooms
• Whiteboards
• Video/audio conferencing
  
• Instant messaging
• Podcasting/vodcasting
• Teleconferencing
  
• Weblogs
• Wikis

These tools can be further divided into two methods of learning Synchronous and Asynchronous learning.

Synchronous VCR Learning

Synchronous learning is communication or exchange of information at the same time between two or more people i.e. in real time. In virtual classrooms, synchronous communication is used by students to communicate with fellow class members and their teachers. This provides real time interaction and encourages group discussions. Chats, Video/audio conferencing, Podcasting/vodcasting, Teleconferencing are all Synchronous learning tools.

Asynchronous learning or communication does not occur in real-time, students or teachers are not present in the same space and time as each other. The instructions are delivered at one time and the work is done at a

different time. Asynchronous learning allows the student to study at their own space and in their own time, plus both the teacher and the student benefit from because the entire discussion is recorded and can be repeated

continuously. E-mail, discussion groups, whiteboards, wikis, weblogs, and forums are all Asynchronous learning tools.

Conclusion

The virtual classroom transcends the boundaries of location, time and space providing a flexible learning environment for all. Schools, universities and corporate organizations benefit form VCR Learning because it provides an excellent way for experts to teach a geographically dispersed group of students without hassle.