Friday 8 June 2012

Webinar Software - Reviews and Reality

Next week a small group of us will be trying out 4 different webinar software packages. The aim of the test is to experience the software as both presenters and attendees in an attempt to choose one package that we can all use across our different institutions. Regional staff development is the end goal.

A traditional seminar is a small group of students that meet regularly under, the guidance of a tutor, to exchange information, discuss theories, etc. The important word here is 'exchange'. The idea is that ALL of the group contribute so a web based seminar (or webinar) must allow both tutor AND students to communicate freely and to present their own work. The focus then is on software that provides a type of virtual classroom approach rather than on webcasting (squirting video onto the web for a largely anonymous and passive audience) or webchat/conferencing (a discussion using one or more of text, audio and video).

Today I will show the review sites and later I'll update the post with our experiences.

One really useful site provides reviews and comparisons of 35 different software packages. The top 10 (on 8 June 2012) are shown below;

Other packages listed include some names that will be familiar with most teachers; InstantPresenter (15 - 8.6), Skype (18 - 8.2), Blackboard Collaborate (29 - 7.4). The reviews are based on the following evaluation guide:
  1. MEETING TYPES
    1. Web conference
    2. Webinar
    3. Webcast
  2. 2. COLLABORATION TYPES
    1. Desktop sharing 
    2. Virtual room
  3. 3. SUPPORTED COMMUNICATION CONTENT
    1. Web conference
    2. Audio conference
    3. Video conference
  4. 4. IMPLEMENTATION TYPES
    1. Shared hosted service (SaaS)
    2. Local installation
    3. Hybrid installation
  5. 5. MOBILE USE & PLATFORM INDEPENDENCE
  6. 6. SOLUTION TYPES
    1. Specialized solution (focus on web conferencing)
    2. Integrated solution (unified communications)
  7. 7. SPECIAL BUSINESS REQUIREMENTS
    1. Virtual classroom
  8. 8. VENDOR STABILITY, SUPPORT & REFERENCES
Another review site (http://www.voip-sol.com/an-analysis-of-the-best-webinar-services/) lists their top 10 which has some similarities with the above but probably not enough overlap to provide a clear winner.
  1. MegaMeeting
  2. GoToWebinar
  3. Microsoft Office Live Meeting
  4. Fuze Meeting
  5. WebEx
  6. ClickMeeting
  7. Adobe Connect
  8. InstantPresenter
  9. GatherPlace
  10. Dimdim
A really helpful practical guide has been created by Matt Ewens from JISC's RSC South West (http://jisc-rscsw.ning.com/group/informationhighway/forum/topic/show?id=5896405%3ATopic%3A31221&xg_source=msg) which covers 11 applications and for each gives a feature list, screen shot, strengths, challenges and a price comparison chart.


From our reading of these review sites the group decided to try a practical comparison using GoToMeeting, WebEx, Fuze and Adobe Connect.

I'll post soon on the practical reality.

Until then - TGIF




5 comments:

  1. Webinars are designed to assist larger businesses, covering topics of determination what parts are in effect, calculating full time equivalents, determining full-time status and eligibility, requirements of insurance coverage, and much more. I was looking for articles on free webinars services for businesses and I came across yours inspiring read. Thanks!

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  2. In an age when event budgets are being cut and broadband Internet access is rising, webinars are becoming increasingly popular. Webinars are web-based seminars, that usually include over 30 participants and are used to conduct presentations, workshops, lectures and large-scale meetings. Since webinars are held online, they allow companies to save money on travel, catering and venues, all of which are costs commonly associated with face-to-face seminars. However, due to their large attendance, webinars need careful planning in order to be successful. This is why those planning on free web conferencing need to take their time to ensure that they properly go through all the necessary steps which will ensure the webinar’s success.

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  3. Hey thanks a lot for sharing this post. I have been using free webinar software since a long time now and it works great. It is very user friendly and works all the time for me.

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  4. Webinar is very important and beneficial for your business and clients. I use Webinar Ninja to create my own webinar and I'm very pleased with the software that I get, I definitely recommend it to you.

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  5. Another very good webinar software which you may add in the above list is: R-HUB web conferencing servers http://www.rhubcom.com/v5/webinar.html

    ReplyDelete