I would like to know the hardware and software requirements in order to begin an effective video conferencing system.

 

The other thing I want to know is the difference between video chatting (with friends etc) and video conferencing on a corporate level.

 

Thanks for the help

You can do two way conferencing on Skype with any reasonably powerful computer

Could you explain what skype is (sorry but im still learning the basics) and how much it would cost. I also wanna know what a "reflector" is.

Skype is a closed commertial VOIP (voice over ip) phone system, it allows you to use your computer (or another device pluged into your internet connection/network) to act as a phone.

 

I would recommend against using it and suggest something like SIP, which is far nicer and services generally carry no subscription, personally I use sipgate.co.uk

Is it your intention to have people in the conference displayed on everyone's screens? If there isn't an overriding reason why that needs to happen you might want to consider something like WebEx or GoToMeeting. The presenter can show his screen for presentations or to view relevant files (I use it for CAD and PowerPoint presentations) or the presenter can turn control over to anyone else in the meeting. And the presenter can turn the pointer over to anyone else so they can point to something on the presenter's screen. Simple teleconference bridges provide the audio.

 

Again, if it's not really necessary to see any people, this may be a more efficient and cheaper way to go.

I heard that the new windows vista has some inbuilt programs that can facilitate video conferencing, leaving the user only to but a webcam. Could you confirm whether this true.

 

Say that the user is disabled, are there any voice recognition programs that would work in accord with the above mentioned software to achieve an effective solution?

 

Thanks

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