Other ways that I have used Skype is to communicate with peers on group projects and to share files. This came in handy during one particular occasion when a file I wanted to send was large and couldn't be sent via email due to file size. I was able to use Skype to send the file and a crisis was easily averted.
While Skype is my go to web tool when it comes to video conferencing there are a number of other tools on the market these days. Here is a breakdown of a few of these products and the features of each.
Skype:
What it has to offer:
- Free to use
- Video calls
- Voice calls
- Group calls
- File sharing
- Caller id
- Video messaging to be played later
- Instant messenger
- Text messages
- Voice messages
- Screen sharing
- Send contacts
- Has a payable account options but free meets most needs
Adobe Connect Now:
What it has to offer:
- Free trial
- Paid accounts available in monthly subscriptions, or pay by the minute
- File Sharing
- Screen sharing for up to 25 people
- Take shared notes
- Take polls
- User friendly
- Rich media quality
- Video calls/conferencing
- Private chat options/text messaging
- Instead of calling others, you can send a URL that requires just a click to gain access to your meeting
- Create multiple rooms to help further narrow down discussions
- Record meetings for future viewing
- Measure class attentiveness to lessons in real time
- Individual learner tracking and progress reports
- Access from most mobile devices
Tiny Chat:
What it has to offer:
- Free
- Video chat
- Private messaging
- Group chat rooms
- Group video chat
- 12 video feeds per room
- Not a business or family oriented site, geared more towards social connectivity and does have some more adult content
Meeting Burner:
What it has to offer:
- Both free and paid options
- Free option allows for 10 people to attend
- Screen sharing
- Audio conferencing
- Video streaming
- Group chat
- Free option allows up to 3 people for video conference or screen sharing
- Subscriptions for a price but free trial offered
- Screen sharing
- Shared mouse control
- Recordable
- Drawing tools
- Audio conferencing
- Video conferencing
- 25-100 attendees
- Attend from PC or mobile device
GoToMeeting:
What it has to offer:
Yugma:
What it has to offer:
- Subscriptions available for a cost
- Screen sharing
- Application sharing
- Integrates with Skype to allow screen sharing
- Drawing and presentation tools
- Multiple monitor support (allows users who use multiple computer monitors to choose which they would like shared)
- Web storage for files to be shared
- Record and playback meetings
Webex:
What it has to offer:
- Free account allows sharing with up to 3 people
- Paid subscriptions are available
- Video chat
- Screen sharing
- Feature allowing the meeting to call and invite you instead of using a password or URL
- Record and playback meetings
- Audio chat
- Desktop or mobile device compatable
- Drawing tools