Chapter 2

The Conference Manager

Overview

Communique! centers around the Conference Manager. The Conference Manager enables users to start and leave conferences, and to access the suite of Communique! Plugins. Using the Conference Manager, you can also create a Personal Business Card, set conference Preferences, and maintain your Personal Notebook and Speed Dial buttons.

This chapter discusses:

The Conference Manager Window

The Conference Manager’s interface is divided into five main sections: the Menu Bar, the Plugin Buttons, the Virtual Conference Room, the Speed Dial Bar, and the Status Bar.

Menu Bar

The Menu Bar is located at the top of the Conference Manager interface and consists of the Conference and Help menus.

There are five options in the Conference menu:

Start—Initiates a new conference

Add Members—Invite new members into an existing conference

Leave—Leave a conference that is already in session

Create Business Card—Create and edit your Business Card

Exit—Quit Communique! by closing the Conference Manager’s window

In the Options menu, there are three entries:

Notebook—Launches the Notebook Editor

Speed Dial—Launches the Speed Dial Editor

Preferences—Opens the Settings Dialog

There are two options in the Help menu:

Contents—Provides access to the Conference Manager’s online help

About—Provides information about your Communique! software including the Conference Manager revision number, the licensed user and the serial number of your Communique! copy

Plugin Buttons

The Plugin buttons are located underneath the Menu Bar. Plugins are tools that you can use during your Communique! conference. In order to launch a Plugin, click on its button on the Conference Manager.

In order to find out the function of a button, position the mouse pointer over it for a few seconds. A Tool Tip will appear describing its function.

Virtual Conference Room

The Virtual Conference Room is the area in which pictures of you and your fellow conference members will appear. Each conference member will be represented in the Virtual Conference Room by their Business Card Photo and conference address. Clicking on any user in the Virtual Conference Room allows you access to two options:

Business Card—Displays the conference member’s Business Card information. See the section entitled "The Communique! Business Card" for details.

Audio/Video Receiver—Allows you to control how (and if) you receive audio and video from that user. See the section entitled "Using the Audio/Video Receiver" for details.

The Speed Dial Bar

The Speed Dial bar provides easy access to users or groups of users that you conference with frequently. To start a conference or add members to an existing conference using the Speed Dial Bar, simply click on the button corresponding to the group that you want to invite.

In order to edit the Speed Dial bar’s contents, click the right mouse button anywhere on the bar to bring up the Speed Dial menu and click on Setup. Right clicking on an empty area on the Speed Dial bar activates the Delete All Buttons option. To delete a specific button, right click on it and select Delete Button.

The Status Bar

The Status Bar provides hints on the usage of menu items and reports the status of Conference events. When you move the mouse pointer over a menu item, a short note appears in the Status Bar to remind you of that item’s function. The Status Bar will also be used to inform you of any changes in the conference, such as a new member joining.

The Communique! Business Card

Every Communique! conference member has a Business Card which contains information about them, including their name, address, and a personal photo. Each person in the conference is represented in the Virtual Conference Room by their Business Card Photo. This photo is usually a self portrait, but can be any image, for example, a company or division logo. Clicking on someone’s photo and selecting the Business Card option from the pop-up menu will display their Business Card information.

Creating a Personal Business Card

You will want to create your own Business Card and photo before you conference with other Communique! users. To create or modify your Business Card:

1. Select the Create Business Card item from the Conference menu.

This will bring up the Business Card Editor window.

The Business Card information displayed is what other people will see if they click on your photo in the Virtual Conference Room and select "Business Card from the pop-up menu.

2. Select your Login name by clicking on the Login panel. If your login name is not listed, type it into the Login field and a new user will be created.

Many Communique! users can share the same computer, but only one person can use it at a time. Each user can be represented by a unique login name. This name may be assigned to you by a system administrator, or may be selected by you. Each login has its own Business Card information and photo.

3. Click on each of the entry fields and enter the appropriate information.

The Tab key can be used to move forward to the next field. There are no mandatory fields in the Business Card; any of them can be left blank.

4. The Business Card can be saved by clicking on the OK button. If you do not wish to save the changes you have made, click on the Cancel button. Clicking on either button closes the Business Card Editor.

There is a small picture in the upper left corner of your Business Card. This is your Business Card Photo. This image is used to represent you in each conference member’s Virtual Conference Room. The Photo Booth allows you to create a picture of yourself for this purpose. If you choose not to create a personalized photo, the "Unknown User" icon will be used to represent you.

A video camera and video capture card are required in order to use the Photo Booth. If you do not have this equipment, or wish to use an image other than a personal photo, you have the option of loading an image from disk. Refer to the section entitled "Loading a Personal Photo from Disk" for details.

Configuring Video Equipment

If you are using your video capture card for the first time, you will need to configure your equipment before using the Photo Booth. Please refer to your manufacturer’s documentation for details on configuring your video capture card’s hardware and software. To create your photo in the Photo Booth, perform the following steps:

1. While in the Business Card Editor, click on the Capture button.

This will bring up the Photo Booth window.

2. Select the Source or Format (depending on your video card) option under the Video menu.

A video configuration window will appear. The type of window that appears and the selections it offers is dependent upon the type of video capture card installed in your PC.

3. If your video capture card has more than one input port, check that the correct port has been selected.

For example, if your camera is connected to port 2 of your video capture card, input 2 should be selected in the Source or Format dialog box. Refer to your video capture card’s documentation for details.

4. If necessary, specify which video input format you are using: NTSC, PAL, or SECAM.

Not all video capture cards support all video input formats. Refer to your video capture card’s documentation for details.

Creating Your Business Card Photo

Once you have your hardware configured correctly, you are ready to create your Business Card Photo.

1. Choose a video mode supported by your video capture card by selecting either the Preview or Overlay option from the Video menu or the tool bar (the ones with the pictures of the film and the video camera respectively).

2. Select Preview from the Video menu to start your video preview.

If your video capture card and camera are connected correctly, video from your camera will appear in the video preview area.

If you do not see an image in the video preview area check that the proper settings have been selected in the Video Format, Source, or Display windows (if they are available with your video capture card).

3. If necessary, fine tune the image using the slider(s) in the Video Format or Video Source window.

Depending on the type of video capture card you have, you will be able to adjust image attributes such as color, contrast, and brightness.

Refer to your video capture card’s user manual for details on adjusting your video image.

4. Select the Freeze option from the Video menu. You can also click on the Preview/Freeze button (the one with the picture of the monitor).

Your video will pause in the video preview area.

5. If you are satisfied with the image you captured, save it by selecting the Prepare Icon and Close option from the Video menu. The photo will be placed on the Business Card.

6. If you are not satisfied with the image and wish to take another picture, repeat steps 2-4.

7. If you wish to leave the Photo Booth without saving the image, select the Close option from the Video menu or click on the Close button (the one with the picture of a door on it).

Loading Your Photo Image From Disk

If you do not have a camera and video capture card you can load the image from disk to represent you on your Business Card.

1. While in the Business Card Editor, enter the file name in the space in the Photo section of the Editor.

2. If you don’t know the name of the file, click on the "..." button to open a standard file browser. Select the image you wish to use as your Business Card Photo.

3. Once you have selected an image, click on the OK button to save your Business Card changes, or Cancel to quit.

Conference Management

To begin a Communique! conference, you will need to select the members whom you wish to invite into the conference. These people (if they are running Communique!) will receive an invitation to join the conference which they may accept or decline. Once a conference is in session, any user can invite additional members into the conference.

Starting a Conference

1. Select the Start option from the Conference menu or click on the New Conference button (the one with the picture of clasped hands).

This will bring up the Start Conference dialog.

The New Conference window is divided into two lists. The list on the left is the Address List. It shows Communique! users that you can invite into a conference. This list is supplied from your Communique! Notebook or by a scan of your network.

The list on the right side of the New conference window is the Members List. It contains the addresses of the people that you have selected to invite into the conference. It will be empty since you are starting a new conference.

The Address List is a hierarchical list that contains a list of users on your network running Communique!, the Corporate Notebook, your Personal Notebook, and your Speed Dial list.

Users are identified by their username and hostname, in the form of user@host, or by an alias in a notebook (either your Personal Notebook or the Corporate Notebook).

Even though the people you are inviting into the conference are referred to as guests, everyone in the conference has equal status. There is no chairperson or other controlling party.

2. If you wish to invite people from your Personal Notebook, open the Personal Notebook listing by double clicking on the Personal Notebook entry in the Address List.

The groups and aliases stored in your Personal Notebook will appear in the Address List. In order to see the contents of a group, double click on its entry in the Address List.

Located inside your Personal Notebook is the Guest Book folder. The Guest Book keeps track of other people’s conference addresses automatically. When you conference with another user, their address will be added to your Guest Book, if it does not appear there already. Later when you wish to add them to a group or alias, or invite them to a conference, you can retrieve their address from your Guest Book.

If this is the first time you are using Communique!, your Guest Book will probably be empty.

3. To see a listing of other users on your local network running Communique!, double click on the Network entry in the Address List.

A list of other users currently running Communique! on your network will appear in the Address List. This list is derived form your local network and may not show Communique! users on remote networks. In order to rescan the network, close and reopen the Network listing.

4. The Corporate Notebook contains a preset list of users and groups from your organization.

The Corporate Notebook is supplied by your system administrator and contains a list of users and groups that you may wish to conference with. To open it, double click on its entry in the Address List. The actual file that contains the Corporate Notebook is located in X.

5. To invite a user, either double click on their name, or highlight their name in the Address List and click on the Add button. To invite a group, highlight its name in the Address List and click on the Add button.

Regardless of whether you are inviting users from a Notebook or from the Network, creating an invitation list is the same. The address of each person you have selected will appear in the Members List. When you add a group to the Members list, all of the members of that group will appear individually in the Members list.

6. Repeat Step 4 until everyone who you want to invite to the conference is listed in the Members list.

7. If you want to invite a user that is neither in your Notebook nor shown in the From Notebook selection, click on the "From Notebook" button and type their conference address (in the user@host format) into the blank line at the top of the Members List.

If you are successful in conferencing with them, their conference address will be added to your Guest Book, eliminating the need to enter their address manually in future conferences.

8. If you want to remove someone from the Members list, click on their address in the Members list and then click on the Remove button.

9. When you are finished building the Members List, click on the Invite button to send conference invitations to your guests.

To leave the Start Conference dialog without inviting anyone to conference, click on the Cancel button.

When you click on the Invite button, your New Conference window will close and invitations will be sent to the people shown in your Members List. An Awaiting Confirmation icon like the one to the left will appear in the Virtual conference Room to indicate that the user has an outstanding invitation to the conference. If the user accepts the invitation, the icon will automatically be replaced by their Business Card Photo. If the invitation is rejected, you will be notified and their icon will disappear entirely.

A user can only participate in one conference at a time. If you invite someone who is already active in another conference, you will be informed that they are not available, and their icon will disappear. However, they will be informed of your attempt and can invite you into their current conference.

If any of the addresses in your Members List are invalid, or if the invited user is not running Communique!, you will be notified appropriately, and their icon will disappear.

Joining a Conference

To join a conference, you must have an invitation from someone who is either initiating a new conference, or is inviting you to join a conference that is already in progress. This invitation will appear in a window on your screen with a list of the other members involved in the conference. You have the option of accepting or rejecting the invitation.

1. If you wish to accept the invitation and join the conference, click on the Join button or press the space bar on your keyboard.

Upon joining the conference, your Business Card Photo will appear in the Virtual Conference Room. As other guests join, their Photos will also appear in the Virtual Conference Room.

2. If you do not wish to join the conference, click on the Reject button.

If you reject an invitation, your Awaiting Response icon will be removed from the Virtual Conference Room and the user who invited you will be informed that you have declined the invitation. They have the option of inviting you again at a later time.

Adding Members to an Existing Conference

Once a conference is in progress, anyone involved in the conference can choose to invite in additional users. Selecting additional conference members is basically the same as starting a new conference.

1. Select the Add Members option from the Conference menu or click on the Add Member button (the one with the handshake picture).

The Add Members window looks and functions exactly like the Start Conference window discussed earlier.

2. Select the user or users whom you wish to invite. You can select conference addresses from your Personal Notebook or the Corporate Notebook, from the Network, or by manually entering their conference addresses.

The methods for building your members list are the same as the ones used in the Start Conference window.

Leaving a Conference

You may leave an active conference at any time. The conference itself will end when there is only one participant remaining in the Virtual Conference Room. To leave the conference:

1. Select the Leave option from the Conference menu.

A Leave Conference window will open and ask you to confirm your decision to leave.

2. Click on the Yes button to leave the conference.

The other conference members will be notified of your departure, and your Business Card Photo will disappear from the Virtual Conference Room.

3. Click on the No button to remain in the conference.

The Notebook Editor

The Communique! Notebook Editor enables you to maintain a personal address book that contains shortcuts to conference with users or groups of users. Using the Notebook Editor, you can create aliases to individual users, or groups that contain several users.

The Notebook Editor’s interface is similar to that of the Start Conference dialog. It contains a list of addresses that can be added to groups on the left, and a listing of the Personal Notebook on the right. The listing on the left includes the Network Scan, Personal Notebook, Corporate Notebook, and Speed Dial Buttons.

Creating and editing groups is similar to inviting users to a conference. Users are moved from the Address list on the left to groups in the Personal Notebook on the right. When you are done editing your Personal Notebook, click on the OK button to apply the changes. If you wish to leave the Notebook Editor and discard any changes you have made, click on the Cancel button.

Creating a New Group

When you open the Notebook Editor, the list on the right side of the dialog will contain the contents of your Personal Notebook. The left side of the dialog includes the Network, Corporate Notebook, Personal Notebook, and Speed Dial folders, just like the Start Conference dialog.

To create the new group you should first enter the name of the group you wish to create in the New Group field. The group’s name will appear in the Personal Notebook listing.

Once the new group has been created, you can add a member or several members to it. Open the group you must created by double clicking on its name in the list. Since the group is new, the only item in the list will be the "one level up" arrow. To add a member, highlight the name of an existing group or user in the Address List and click on Add. If you added a user (for example, someone from the Network list), their name will appear in the group listing. If you added a group (someone from the top level of the Personal or Corporate Notebooks), a shortcut to that group will appear.

You can add additional users and groups to the group you are currently editing, but bear in mind that a conference can include no more than 24 members. When you are done editing the group, click on the "one level up" arrow to return to your Personal Notebook listing.

To save the group you have just created and exit the Notebook Editor, click on the OK button.

Editing an Existing Group

To edit an existing group, you should double click on its name in the Personal Notebook listing. Double click on the name to open the group. When you open the group, a list of other users and groups that are included in the one you are editing appears, along with the "up a level" arrow.

To remove a member of the group, highlight its name and click on the Remove button. To add a member to the group, select the user or group that you wish to add from the address list (they can come from your Personal Notebook, the Network Scan, or from the Corporate Notebook).

To delete an existing group, highlight its name in Personal Notebook and click on the Remove button.

Reordering the Personal Notebook

You can also change the sequence of the groups in your Personal Notebook, moving them up and down the listing to provide for easy access.

In order to change a group’s position in the Personal Notebook, first highlight their name in the list. A repositioning tool will appear next to their name. To move the group up in the listing, click on the up arrow on the tool; to move it down, click on the down arrow.

Renaming a Group

To rename a group, highlight its name in the Personal Notebook and click on the Rename button. The Rename dialog will appear. Type the group’s new name, and click on OK to confirm the change. If you don’t want to change the group’s name, click on Cancel.

The Speed Dial Editor

The Speed Dial Editor is used to edit the contents of the Speed Dial Bar, which enables you to invite users and groups directly from the Conference Manager’s interface.

The Speed Dial Editor is virtually identical to the Notebook Editor except that instead of editing the Personal Notebook, you will be working with the Speed Dial folder. Like the Notebook Editor, the Address list on the left contains the Network Scan, Corporate Notebook, Personal Notebook, and Speed Dial folder. Once again, you will be moving items from the Address List to the right hand list, in this case the Speed Dial folder.

Creating a New Group

To create the new group you should first enter the name of the group you wish to create in the New Group field. The group’s name will appear in the speed Dial Buttons listing. When you create a new group from within the Speed Dial Editor, the group will also automatically be added to your Personal Notebook.

Once the new group has been created, you can add a member or several members to it. Open the group you just created by double clicking on its name in the list. Since the group is new, the only item in the list will be the "one level up" arrow. To add a member, highlight the name of an existing group or user in the Address List and click on Add. If you added a user (for example, someone from the network list), their name will appear in the group listing. If you added a group (someone from the top level of the Personal or Corporate Notebooks), a shortcut to that group will appear. As you add members to the Speed Dial button, those members will also be added to the corresponding group in your Personal Notebook.

You can add additional users and groups to the group you are currently editing, but bear in mind that a conference can include no more than 24 members. When you are done editing the group, click on the "one level up" arrow to return to the Speed Dial listing.

To save the group you have just created and exit the Speed Dial, click on the OK button.

Editing an Existing Button

To edit an existing button, you should double click on the name in the Speed Dial listing. Double click on the name to open the button. When you open the button, a list of other users and groups that are included in the one you are editing appears, along with the "up a level" arrow.

To remove a member of the group, highlight its name and click on the Remove button. To add a member to the group, select the user or group that you wish to add from the address list (they can come from your Personal Notebook, the Network Scan, or from the Corporate Notebook).

When you add members to an existing button, the corresponding group in your Personal Notebook will be updated to contain the changes.

To delete an existing button, highlight its name in Speed Dial and click on the Remove button.

Reordering the Speed Dial Bar

You can also change the sequence of the buttons on the Speed Dial bar, moving them up and down the listing to provide for easy access.

In order to change a group’s position in the Speed Dial bar, first highlight their name in the list. A repositioning tool will appear next to their name. To move the group up in the listing, click on the up arrow on the tool; to move it down, click on the down arrow.

Renaming a Button

To rename a button, highlight its name in the Speed Dial list and click on the Rename button. The Rename dialog will appear. Type the group’s new name, and click on OK to confirm the change. If you don’t want to change the button’s name, click on Cancel.

Preferences

Answer Mode

Communique! has three Answer Modes that affect how you respond to conference invitations: Do Not Disturb, Prompt, and Auto Answer. This option is controlled using the radio buttons on the Settings dialog.

Do Not Disturb means that all conference invitations will be automatically refused by the software. When you are invited to conference, a window will appear listing the members of the conference, and that the invitation was refused.

When Prompt is selected and you are invited to a conference, a dialog will appear with the members of the conference, and you will be given the option of Joining or Refusing the invitation.

When Auto Answer is selected, you will automatically accept any invitation you are sent.

Use Multicast

When this box is selected, the TV Tool and Audio Tool will use multicast routing to send data to other conference members.

Multicast routing is a network technology that reduces duplication of network data in multipoint conferences. If you are using Unicast routing, a separate stream of video and audio data is sent to each user. This means that in a 4-way conference in which everyone is sending audio and video, there are 12 audio and video streams being sent, 3 per user. Multicast enables Communique! to send only one stream of audio data and one stream of video data, regardless of the number of users in the conference. If the same group of users described earlier were using multicast routing, there would only be 4 streams of audio and video data total, greatly reducing network and CPU usage on the member machines.

Communique! automatically compensates for conference members who are not multicast-capable and sends them separate unicast audio and video streams.

Save Guests

When Save Guests is selected, any people you conference with will automatically be saved to the Guest Book in your Personal Notebook so that you can easily conference with them later. To stop this behavior, deselect this button.

Corporate Notebook

If your organization utilizes the Corporate Notebook feature to keep track of all Communique! users, you should enter the path of the file in the blank provided. The Corporate Notebook gives your organization the ability to organize large groups of users and make their conference addresses available to every user by distributing a single file.

The Communique! Corporate Notebook is also compatible across the Windows and UNIX platforms, so that a single Corporate Notebook file can be used by every user in your organization.

Audio/Video Receiver

Once a conference is in progress, you have the ability to control the audio and video (if available) that is being sent to you through the Audio/Video Receiver window. This window opens automatically when video is being sent to you, but it can be opened at any time by doing the following:

1. Click on any conference member’s icon (Business Card Photo if they have one) to bring up a pop-up menu.

2. Click on Audio/Video Receiver option to open the Audio/Video Receiver window.

The Audio/Video Receiver is used to configure the incoming Audio and Video being sent to you. The following controls are available:

Pause/Resume—Stops and starts video reception. You can toggle this selection by choosing Pause/Resume form the Video menu or by clicking the Pause/Resume button from the tool bar.

Speaker Control—Selects which speakers (if any) should be used to playback audio from the user. Select the appropriate speakers from the Audio menu or click on the left or right speaker buttons in the tool bar to toggle the state of the speaker between active and inactive.

Abbreviated Window—Removes the Audio/Video Receiver window border and toolbar, leaving only the video image. To toggle this setting select the Abbreviate option from the View menu or double click on the video image. The border, menus, and buttons can be restored by again double-clicking on the video image.

Always on Top—Keeps the Audio/Video Receiver window on top of all other window. Select the Always on Top option from the View menu to toggle this behavior.

Video Zoom—Changes the size and magnification of incoming video images. Select a magnification level from the Zoom option of the Video menu to choose the desired setting, actual size video (1:1), double size video (2:1), or fit to window which will resize the video to fit your Audio/Video Receiver’s size.

Monitor Statistics—Select which statistics to monitor. You can select the Monitor to display either Data Flow, which will display the amount of video data (in kb/s) being received, or the Frame rate (in frames per second) of the incoming video. Double-clicking on the display in the lower right corner will toggle the display between displaying data flow and frame rate.

Video on Icon—Displays incoming video in an icon if the Audio/Video Receiver window is minimized. Toggle this option by selecting the Video on Icon option from the Video menu.

Try Hardware Support—Use hardware decompression if possible. Toggle this option by selecting the Try Hardware Support option from the Video menu.

Receive Only When Active—Receives video only if the Audio/Video Receiver window is selected as active. If this option is enabled you will not be able to receive video while using other Communique! tools. This option can be enabled by selecting the Receive Only When Active option from the Video menu.

Getting Help

Online Help is available from many of the Communique! Plugins. Any time you see a Help button you can click on it for instant help about the tool or feature that you are currently using. Many of the Plugins, including the Conference Manager, have a Help menu that provides access to further information.

Accessing the Help Index

Detailed Help is available from the Help menu of the Conference Manager and other tools.

1. Select the Contents option under the Help menu.

This will bring up the Help Viewer window.

2. Double-click any of the topics listed under Help Topics in the top section of the Help Viewer.

The Help text for the selected topic will appear in the Help text area in the lower half of the Help Viewer window.

3. Repeat Step 2 for each topic on which you need help.

4. Close the Help Viewer by selecting Close from the File menu.

The About Window

The Conference Manager and most other Plugins feature an about box.

The About window provides you with revision information about that Plugin. The Conference Manager’s About window also provides licensing information and has a System Information button that when clicked displays information about the configuration of your PC including:

To close the System window, click on the OK button.

The System window will automatically close after 15 seconds.

To close the About window, click on the OK button.

Return to MDL Home Page