Video Chat

There are many tools for online, synchronous communication. The simplest choice would be traditional text based Chat tools. But you may want to use audio and video for a better experience - tone of voice and facial expression are very important in communicating. There are many free or inexpensive tools available to do this over the internet today.

Face to Face Video

The most common tool for this is Skype. If using Skype, I would suggest creating a second account just for this purpose, so you don’t have to give out your main Skype account to students.  With a Mac of course, you can also use iChat to do this.

Your Own TV Channel

Another common tool is Ustream.tv, which is an online streaming tool with “channels” that can be subscribed to.  You can create your own channel and then users can watch you live. The sessions can be automatically recorded for later use. It has text chat for viewers to interact.

One issue with Ustream.tv is that the video only goes one way, while the text chat goes both ways. I’m not so sure that would work for office hours type  situations. It works well for streaming video of talks, lectures and presentations, which is its main use.

Example: We use Ustream to present the iTech Infosessions on campus on our channel UPSiTechTtraining.

Other Online Video Chat and Group Conference Tools

There are some other alternatives you might experiment with:

If you try any of these, or others, please give us some feedback on how they worked for you.

Webcam Equipment

Most of these tools use video. You will need a webcam to do this. For Macs, webcams are built in with the iSight system, though you can also buy an external one, too.

For Windows PCs, you will need to purchase a webcam. The Media check out desk has one webcam for temporary loan. You can check it out and give it a try, but it is not for long term use, but for you to find out whether one will work for you. There is software that comes with it you have to install on your PC as well.