Reviewed FreeConference.com, a free online conference tool!
January 9, 2009
So I had another online meeting with some clients this past week and decided to test out the beta test program of SharePlus desktop sharing application from FreeConference.com. I’m sure the owner of the software hopes that I would use the phone # they provided for the meeting since this is how they make their money. But, being the cheapskate I am, I opted to use Skype for my phone connection. inot feel like paying 10 cents a minute per caller to use their online 800 phone # for the conference. They did have the option for a long distance dial in # but I wasn’t sure if they meant long distance to Canada or in the US so I avoided it.
The conference setup interface was relatively painless and my clients had no problems setting up from their end. The one thing my clients noticed is that they couldn’t see my mouse pointer while sharing my desktop and the screen seemed to lag behind about 4 seconds, more than WebEx had in the past. One cool feature with this tool is that they can send you a SMS texct message to remind you before your conference starts. It costs .45 cents but that’s pocket change for must of us to be reminded through our cellphone.
I really had nothing to lose when I tested this free online meeting program since these clients have been with me for years and know I like to test new things. Here were a few of the features the vendor mentioned on their website about this beta program. It’s only free for a limited time so you should give it a trial run while you can.
Features of SharePlus from FreeConference:
- Easy to setup and use
- Real time presentation and collaboration
- Simple connection from invitations or web page
- Any-browser compatibility
- Very low cost (Free during the Beta period!)
Add Web Conferencing to your next call
- Review PowerPoint presentations
- Discuss Word documents
- Navigate to web pages
- Discuss spreadsheets
- Share photos
Here’s a quick look at the interface once you sign up, as you can see it’s pretty simple:
FreeConference.com Schedule interface
FreeConference.com Login interface
I am the developer of a software called ScreenCamera that allows users to stream the desktop inside video chatting programs and websites such as Skype, Live Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, AOL Messenger, blogTV, Justin.tv, Mogulus, and so on.
ScreenCamera has a free version that streams the desktop without any cost or any limitation. The paid version supports webcams allowing to users to stream desktop and webcam together and also use the webcam on multiple programs at the same time.
It is a free desktop sharing program that has the only downside of having to shrink the desktop to 320×240 pixels that is the resolution most video chatting programs and websites use. It makes up for it allowing the user to follow the cursor or select regions of the desktop and by not interfering with the live video chatting.
You can download the free version here:
http://www.pcwinsoft.com/screencamera/free.asp
Or the paid version here:
http://www.pcwinsoft.com/screencamera/
Regards,
Alex Ferri
PCWinSoft Systems Ltd
http://www.pcwinsoft.com/
Alex,
Shrinking the desktop size to 320 x 240 doesn’t sound like anyone I know could actually use it. I would at least double the screen sharing test size before I would even spend time to review it.
I was dissapointed by the freeconference programs. Instead I’m using the online conferencing program provided by http://www.webcastrooms.com
Why were you disappointed by freeconference? At least let me know what you didn’t like.
You are right. We are on the process of increasing resolution for the screen sharing functionality.
Regards,
Alex
I am very excited to announce that ScreenCamera has doubled its video resolution from 320×240 to 640×480.
Another good news is that if you connect your webcam through ScreenCamera and your webcam supports 640×480 video resolution then you can have live video conversations at 640×480 even if your video conferencing software does not recognize the 640×480 resolution of your camera because ScreenCamera does and you will then use ScreenCamera on your video conferencing software and it will do the bridging for you.
So, check it out. I am sure you will like it:
website – pcwinsoft.com/screencamera/
website – pcwinsoft.com/screencamera/download.asp
Best Regards,
Alex Ferri
PCWinSoft Sstems Ltd
I have been using Freeconference.com for teleconferences and then using LiveMeeting for the desktop sharing.
Freeconference.com has been great for the teleconferencing. It’s very easy to setup and use. Most people have cell phones with long distance included these days, so I just use the free option which allows for up to 150 people on the bridge, but no 800 number.
My only frustration has been managing essentially two conferences at a time, 1 for the voice and another for the video. Just today I was on a teleconference talking about moving to GoToMeeting just because I wanted to combine the two conferences and GoToMeeting provides both in one package. At $100 a month, it wasn’t a huge decision, but I prefer to use services that I can easily recommend to my more budget minded clients and customers.
As I was talking about it, a partner mentioned that the SharePlus service was available. For under $10 a month, I don’t see what I have to lose. I figure I’ll pay for a month, test it with a couple of friends and decide if it is up to snuff or not.