A Research on Communication Technologies and Their Applications Essay

A Research on Communication Technologies and Their Applications - Essay Example This usage may include meetings, trainings and other organizational activities. Cliftons (2012) rightly argue that videoconferencing â€Å"overcomes the problems inherent in communications between regional business centres as well as enabling [the management] to keep in touch with key people whilst away from their office.† It is a matter of in-depth research to determine the exact nature of this technology, explaining the principle behind its operation and conferencing process. An excellent resource for videoconferencing as is the case for almost all things, people, places, and so forth is, of course, Wikipedia. This website has detailed information on this technology. However, it is widely recognized that the site is unreliable and is not often recommended by academic institutions as a resource. Nonetheless, the website proved an effective starting ground that informed this researcher’s efforts at investigating videoconferencing technology. The information provided in the website offered insights as to what specific aspects of the technology should be examined and documented. The preliminary research enabled the identification of at least two types of videoconferencing platforms. There is the case of the software designed as standalone application used to communicate with others over the Internet using computers, camera and other tools. For example, there is Windows Live, Yahoo Messenger and Skype. These are popular examples of softwares developed for videoconferencing. Users can download these applications for free or for a fee and they can use it to communicate with others through the web. Using Internet connections, videoconferencing software is installed in the personal computer and it could allow users to make video and/or audio calls with others who have installed the same application in their computers. Skype is capable of accommodating up to ten participants in an audio-video conference. The conference takes place real-time. Some of these tools can accommodate two or more participants, hence, successfully achieving the nature of the conferencing concept. The second type of videoconferencing tool includes those designed to work on Internet browsers. These are systems called web applications and are built by web developers and embedded in web sites. Internet users can login to these browser-based video conferencing platforms. These are also called video chat rooms over the Internet. For example, www.videoconference.com is a straightforward website that lets visitors create video chat rooms easily and immediately. A user can create a video conferencing room and can inform those he or she wants to talk to and directs them to the web address where the video conferencing is to take place. During the 1990s, videoconferencing was an expensive affair and that organizations and individuals were averse to spending huge amount on the technology (Webopedia 2012). Today, however, they are sold cheaply and most of them are offered for free. This fact, in addition to its capabilities outlined above, makes videoconferencing a popular and beneficial tool both for personal and business use. Of course, as with the case of other Internet technological applications, it is dependent on the Internet bandwidth, which may be slow in other countries. This could prove problematic in using the technology to communicate with people from such areas. Geostationary Satellites According to the website, www.reformation.org,