While video conferencing and web conferencing are
sometimes confused, the reality is that web conferencing is a
completely different animal, with far more options available and a
much greater range of functionality than video conferencing. Web
conferencing offers not just the opportunity to chat and communicate
via webcam so that you can see each person in your conferencing
link, but to exchange documents, share applications, access shared
desktops, use PowerPoint, whiteboards and other presentation
features and even poll participants.
It all started with PLATO…
Web conferencing is “the total package.”
Interestingly, the conceptual design of web conferencing began long
before there was a World Wide Web or Internet structure in place. In
the 1960’s, the University of Illinois developed a system known as
PLATO for their Computer-based Education Research Laboratory (CERL).
It was a small, self-contained system supporting a single classroom
of terminals connected to one mainframe computer. In 1972, PLATO was
moved to a new system of mainframes that eventually supported over
one thousand users at a time.
In 1973, Talkomatic was developed by Doug Brown.
This was essentially the first “instant messaging” program ever
designed, with multiple windows displaying typed notes in real time
for several users simultaneously. In 1974, Kim Mast developed
Personal Notes, a new feature for PLATO that enabled private mail
for users.
In 1975, Control Data Corporation set up its own
PLATO system in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the first commercial use of
multi-function conferencing system. Within ten years, PLATO was
being used in over one hundred sites around the world, some with
dedicated lines for full-time use.
In the late 1980’s, however, microcomputers were
becoming more reasonably priced and the heyday of mainframe-based
systems was over. Eventually the original Control Data systems were
shut down because PLATO was no longer cost-effective. Control Data
now has a few systems operating under the name CYBIS.
PLATO’s descendants
In the late 1970’s, Ray Ozzie and Tim Halvorsen
worked at CERL. Years later they took some of the features of PLATO
and greatly expanded on their capabilities when designing one of
today’s most powerful web conferencing tools -- Lotus Notes,
released in 1989.
Lotus Notes was the first commercially released
product that really took off to offer user-created data-bases,
document sharing, and remote location communication under one
umbrella. It created a “relationship based” environment that took
the corporation world by storm.
Other descendants of PLATO included DEC Notes,
originally known as VAX, written by Len Kawell. It is still used
today on DEC’s EASYnet and on Starlink, a universal web conferencing
community. NetNotes is a client-server system designed to improve on
the original DEC Notes, with WebNotes as an add-on for World Wide
Web access.
True WEB conferencing
The distinction between true web conferencing and
systems conferencing is difficult, however, to define. When the Web
first became a contender as a valid means of collaborative
conferencing with document sharing, etc, many companies took
conferencing packages originally designed for intranet systems and
redesigned them. The results weren’t always seamless. It wasn’t
until the mid-1990’s that true Web Conferencing software that was
reliable was available.
PLATO and other main-frame based conferencing
systems were based on a centralized structure, with all elements
feeding into a central computer. This structure saw the development
of several types of conferencing software that included Backtalk,
Caucus, COW, Motet, Web Crossing, Podium, TALKaway and YAPP.
PlaceWare, arguably one of the most influential Web
conferencing systems developed, had interesting origins in the
1990’s at the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center, where it began as a
multi-user game called LambdaMOO. PlaceWare was one of the first
companies to provide complete Web conferencing after the initial
release of PlaceWare Auditorium in 1997. In April of 2003, Microsoft
purchased PlaceWare, adding it to its newly formed Real-Time
Collaborative Business Unit.
P2P shifts the focus of web conferencing
Another popular form of software was Groupware,
essentially defined by Lotus Notes. The difference between the
centralized structure of PLATO-based systems and Lotus is in the
additional functions -- Lotus provided a host of other options like
scheduling and document sharing. Groupware software is more complex
than Centralized software and focus on work flow; that is, making
sure documents, graphics and templates are where they need to be.
Popular Groupware products developed in the 1990’s included
InTandem, Livelink, Lotus Domino, Oracle InterOffice, TEAMate and
WebShare.
As the price of home computers dropped, peer to peer
(P2P) file sharing became more and more commonplace over the World
Wide Web, although primarily on a user to user basis. That changed
when members of Napster, then an illegal, informally organized group
of college youth and other music-lovers, began sharing millions of
music files among themselves. It began a revolution in the use of
the Internet that changes the way Web conferencing was eventually
perceived. P2P began to be seen as the way to host Web conferencing,
rather than through a single server. .
Groove took this peer to peer concept and applied it
to Web conferencing. The Groove technology, originally released in
2000, was upgraded to real performance power with Groove 2.1 in 2002
and was impressive. The advantages of peer to peer were immediately
obvious -- once you loaded the software and were set up, you never
had to pay a subscription or user fee for an offsite server to store
any files, you will never lose all files in one central location,
and you are set up and good to go for life (or until the next
upgrade, at least).
Another company that recognized the need for quality
Web conferencing software during these years was WiredRed Software,
founded in 1998. In 2003, they released e/pop, a real-time Web
Conferencing suite with comprehensive features for all aspects of
industry -- it was the first installable web conferencing software
with no significant install time.
NextPage also offers P2P web conferencing and
document sharing capabilities developed out of the Napster movement.
In fact, they use the example of Napster file sharing and downloads
to illustrate to companies the advantages of using a peer to peer
network over a centralized server.
What about UseNet?
In the 1980’s, Usenet software was developed with
specific protocols to format and transmit messages. It also allowed
messages to be passed from one news server to another, replicating
around the world rather than being stored in any one location. It
has become the standard for news readers on the Internet, with
Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer both having built-in news
readers for UseNet. .
For some, web conferencing can be achieved simply by
taking advantage of UseNet. Download free software to set up a news
server, create a few local newsgroups on it, and have your users
access your server with their Web browsers to create your
conferencing site.
Most companies, of course, prefer to have a more
professional package than that, and ease of use and security are
concerns that are addressed better by companies who have
specifically developed company or enterprise Web Conferencing
solutions. A good web conferencing package today contains voice over
IP (VoIP), co-browsing and application sharing at the minimum, with
add-ons and other features if needed, including polling, event
management, PowerPoint presentation, playback, recording and live
annotation and markup.
Easynet, founded in 1994, is a broadband networking
company based in Europe providing primarily European businesses with
Web conferencing capabilities. This infrastructure based provider
provides unbundled loop access to companies in some countries as a
part of a “leased line” program for conferencing.
VoIP is making noise
The latest frontier in Web conferencing is the
practicality of using IP based voice communications on a regular
basis with Web conferencing. While Web conferencing is considered
desirable for document exchange, text messaging and whiteboards and
many other functions, many people still think VoIP technology has
poor quality overall, especially with so many people still using
dial-up connections. .
Actually, there are several contenders in the
marketplace who have produced excellent quality VoIP offerings in
their Web conferencing packages, including Voxwire, Orbitalk,
RoomTalk, and VoiceCafe.
The future of web conferencing
One of the last stumbling blocks for web
conferencing has been the incompatibility between Macs and PC’s.
With the heavy preference for Macs by those in graphics heavy
industries such as architecture, advertising and publishing, it has
always been difficult to share documents and set up effective Web
conferencing if the clients are PC-based. .
Session from WaveThree was released in 2003 to
address this problem and seems to have actually overcome this
seemingly insurmountable problem -- one of the first really
effective systems for Mac/PC collaboration over the Internet. Using
a bandwidth of 128 KBPS or above, Session provides
videoconferencing, desktop sharing, document sharing, whiteboards
and live annotations on photos and/or documents. More Web
conferencing platforms of this type will no doubt be on the horizon.
As Web conferencing becomes more and more common,
new developments will inevitably arise, including, perhaps,
dedicated lines that are constantly open, improved, secure
peer-to-peer access and more Mac/PC web conferencing options. With
so many players on the field, it is likely that there will be a
variety of divergent developments over the next few years.
About the Author
Lucy P. Roberts is a successful freelance writer providing practical
information and advice for businesses about everything related to
web
conferencing software and web based meetings. Her numerous
articles include tips for saving both time and money; product
reviews and reports; and other valuable insights for persons
searching the Internet for information about
how web conferencing works and related topics.
