THE FUZE TEAM BLOG: Join the real-time conversation

Attendee Controls At a Glance

Posted by Fuze Meeting - Kristen

Sometimes, you just need it to be visual. Which, coincidentally is why web conferencing is such a fantastic idea in the first place! So, thank goodness that everyone’s favorite demo master, Larry B. turned out this handy little number on who can do what in a meeting!  Thanks, homie.

We did a more in depth presentation earlier if you’re just starved for more info on attendee controls. I mean, who isn’t…really?

Annotator to Presenter to Host
Icon Explanation and More

Posted by Fuze Meeting - Kristen

Check it out! Per your requests, we’ve decoded all those funny little icons, trying our best to make your meeting experience as easy as possible. Actually, we went one step further and created am entire tour of the Web Attendees Box. Check out our very thorough presentation. You are able to view it in full screen mode by clicking on the menu option in the bottom left.

Anything else you need help understanding? Let us know in the comments! We’d love to make sure we’re helping you as much as we can.

What? You didn’t see us present our social and mobile meeting apps at DEMOfall 09?

Posted by patrick

Are you serious? You missed it? Well, lucky for you, it was caught on video. For those unfamiliar with the DEMO format:  You have 6 minutes to launch your latest product.  We had a lot of fun prepping for this – and yes – that is my son and daughter in the video.  Our premise and internal goal is to TRULY make our web meeting app “so easy a five year old can do it” – whether you are joining from your mobile device or the web.

Can HD Meetings Save the World?

Posted by patrick

Last week President Obama gave a speech in Cairo, Egypt during which he asked the Muslim World for “a new beginning.”  I actually missed the speech when it aired live, but I was able to watch it over the weekend on Youtube.

When I went to pull up the video online, it occurred to me how much the world has changed.  I’ve seen a handful of presidents speak over the years, sometimes over radio, but mostly on TV.  What’s clear to me is that today, it’s all about the web.

I don’t think we’ll ever replace the value of in-person interactions, but I do think that virtual meetings can have a significant impact on the way companies conduct business, governments run countries, and in general, connect people to one another.

We all know that it’s going to take a lot more than a motivating speech to truly resolve the crisis in the Middle East.  Most likely, it will involve a series of follow-up conversations and meetings in order to make some real progress.

Can we expect Obama to board Air Force one every single time he wants to talk to leaders overseas?  The world’s problems would never be resolved that way, at least not any time soon.  It’s for this reason that I think virtual meetings have a real shot at saving the world.

Using today’s technology, we can connect world leaders frequently and efficiently.  We can avoid hours of excessive travel time and get to the root of conflict faster (we’ll also save fuel and do wonders for the environment in the process).  And with Fuze Meeting, conducting meetings in HD has never been easier.  We can’t quite replicate the experience of being in the same room with someone, but an HD meeting does a pretty good job of compensating for that.

It’s an ambitious thought, but I’d like to picture Obama in his slippers, conducting business remotely in the White House and saving the world, one HD meeting at a time.

Life is too short… to NOT live in HD!

Posted by patrick

Everything is being marketed as HD these days – Broadcast TV, HD-Radio, Computers, Ad Displays and even Microsoft’s ZUNE player.

When our eyes resolve HD Resolutions and in a 16:9 aspect ratio, our peripheral vision is invoked; and the scientists tell us that at HD resolution in the 16:9 aspect ratio,  we become converted  from passive spectator to active participant.  This means that we engage with our content.   Interestingly, most HD marketing revolves around entertainment and passive activities, yet most of our day is spent enduring one after another business meeting.

Why then, shouldn’t our meetings be rendered in HD as well?  If life truly is short, and we spend a good part of our existence on this planet in meetings, then  why not live in HD all the time?

The FCC has mandated that the American broadcaster must transmit in HD. This is the law.  So why then, shouldn’t our meetings deliver the same experience?  And we don’t need the FCC to govern our meetings, we can let Fuze Meeting do the work for us.

(Written by our CEO while boarding a plane on his iPhone).  Thanks Jeff, for the post!

Once You Go HD, You Never Go Back!

Posted by patrick

It’s no surprise that the world loves HD, and rightfully so!  Whether you’re watching a Youtube video or your favorite show on a plasma screen TV, HD can make all the difference.  Never noticed it?  If you have a DVR or Tivo, try recording one of your favorite TV shows in standard format.  Simultaneously, record the show in HD if you have premium channels.  When comparing the two, you’re sure to find that HD wins, hands down.

I admittedly tried this the other night during the American Idol finale (yeah yeah, I am a fan of the show).  When I switched from standard to HD, my family and I agreed that there was no going back.

Web-celeb iJustine posted a similar scenario on her blog, tastyblogsnack.com right around the time that Youtube started offering HD uploads.  You’ll see from her results that once again, HD can make all the difference.

Now take the two scenarios of TV viewing and online-video watching and think about the last time you attended a virtual web meeting at work or a webinar.  How was the quality of the presentation or online powerpoint you were watching?  Was it granular? Choppy and jagged? Highly Compressed?  Could you barely recognize who was speaking at the other end because of all the pixels?  Nothing is worse than a bad online meeting, which is why we’re trying to change that here at Fuze Meeting.

With our solution here at Fuze Meeting, you can now present a powerpoint with those hi-res iStock images or a hi definition (HD)  video without compromising the quality.  Say bye-bye to bad online meetings and hello to the world of HD, 24/7.

So much time and effort is spent creating content so why not share it high quality?