18 Dec 2003 John Hart - Videoconferencing in PPD 1

Videoconferencing in PPD

John Hart

18th December 2003

18 Dec 2003 John Hart - Videoconferencing in PPD 3

Introduction

New options for videoconferencing are becoming available.

The aim of this session is:• to summarise current videoconferencing facilities and

the new options,• to provide feedback on PPD needs to the Computing

Group.

18 Dec 2003 John Hart - Videoconferencing in PPD 4

Options

Options for participating in meetings without travelling include:

• Phone conference with plots and diagrams on the web- increasingly popular

• Studio videoconferencing (ISDN or IP)- need to book- useful for many participants- expert help

• Desktop videoconferencing• Access Grid

- primarily for e-science

18 Dec 2003 John Hart - Videoconferencing in PPD 5

Essential jargon

Videoconferencing standards:• H.320 – over ISDN (long-established)• H.323 – over IP (relatively new)

Types of videoconference:• Point to point – two sites • Multipoint – three or more sites

Multipoint Control Unit (MCU) needed(but not for old “Mbone” IP videoconferencing and is hidden from VRVS users)

18 Dec 2003 John Hart - Videoconferencing in PPD 6

Studio videoconferencing

Five rooms at RAL are equipped:- R18 videoconference studio

- Conference room 1

- Atlas Colloquium

- R71 boardroom

- Lecture theatre

Except for the lecture theatre, all can handle H.320 and H.323- H.320 costs £20-£30 per hour to US or Europe for a 128K

ISDN line (reduced rate after first hour)

- H.323 is free but not all sites are equipped

18 Dec 2003 John Hart - Videoconferencing in PPD 7

Desktop videoconferencing

Several groups use VRVS but often have problems.

New possibilities:• Windows XP will make it possible to use a USB plug-in webcam

costing ~£30• The Polycom “ViaVideo” camera (~£400) includes hardware

support for H.323• This could be made available with a laptop system for loan to

members of PPD (as for the conference phone).Need to check that the ViaVideo is accepted by the JANET MCU at Edinburgh for non-VRVS multipoint conferences.

18 Dec 2003 John Hart - Videoconferencing in PPD 8

Points for discussion

• Recent experience - what improvements are needed?

• What type of videoconference is used by your experiment? Can you participate?

• Would you use a PPD laptop VC system if one were available on loan?

• Do you want a webcam to use VRVS on your PC?• Other systems, e.g. NetMeeting.