About EduPlex Connect

EduPlex Connect is based on the video conferencing system (VCS) developed as part of the EduPlex online education system.  Our VCS allows students and teachers, facilitators, and mentors to discuss and interact around the content presented in courses available on the system.  It also allows students to do social networking with other students, allows professors and teachers to have online office hours, and much more.  EduPlex believes that the power of education is dramatically enhanced within the context of personal social relationships.

EduPlex Connect was created to provide access to this ground-breaking technology for online events, presentations, discussions, and meetings by making this technology widely available as a ministry, management, and administration tool for many small to medium size organizations.

Features and Benefits

The design of our VCS was driven both by our experience with online education to a wide range of students, from technical to non-technical, as well as by bad experiences we have had with the multitude of video conferencing systems available on the market today.  They are mostly based on the assumption of a free-for-all discussion, where you can see a limited number of participants, and everyone can talk at the same time.  Or, they use a combination of toll-based teleconferencing plus limited number of delayed videos.

Free-for-all conversations work reasonably well when people are physically in the same room, but it fails to work well for a number of reasons with internet-based video conferencing.  And, it does not create a quiet, controlled environment for a meeting.  And teleconferences with some side video are not really video conferencing.

EduPlex Connect is a radical new and unique approach to human interaction over the internet.  It was created to address the many problems we have expreienced when using other systems.  Here are some of the benefits of our unique solution:

1. Feature:  No Background Sound Buildup from Multiple Open Mics:  Only one mic is open at a time - the mic for the person who also appears in the video, lip-sync.  This dramatically reduces confusion and difficulty in hearing what someone is saying.
   
   Benefit:  Fewer distractions, allows you to focus on the subject at hand.  Each person gets to present their point without interruption from other attendees, giving a professional feel to the meeting.
    
   
2. Feature:  No Feedback or echo:  Another benefit from a single open mic is that there is no echo or feedback problem. Your mic is never open when sound is playing from your speakers:  you are either talking or listening.  The problem with multiple open mics (besides background noise buildup) is that unless each person is wearing earphones, you often hear an echo - actually multiple echos - whenever anyone is speaking.  This is a major problem with other video conferencing systems, and very distracting.
   
   Benefit:  You have complete, professional control over the flow of the meeting.  This leads to effective meetings that stay calm and focused, without distractions.
   
   
3. Feature:  No Computer and Internet Connection Overload:  We require only ONE video stream for each participant - either outgoing when speaking, or incoming when listening.  The result is a larger video and a faster frame rate, for more natural interactions.  Other systems that use multiple videos put a large demand on your computer and on your internet connection.  For example, if you are talking with 4 people, each has 4 video streams incoming and 1 outgoing.  Many computers are strained with doing a good job with one video stream, and the result is that you end up with tiny video images, and/or you get a few frames per second on each video.  Under this processing load, computers are prone to crash and disconnect, or lose audio and/or video streams from one or more participants.
    
   Benefit:  Meetings are much less likely to be interrupted due to computer crashes.  Video images are large, so you can see the facial expressions in real time.  This leads to better communication and fewer interruptions.
   
   
4. Feature:  Easy support for Many Participants:  EduPlex Connect easily supports larger groups for full, interactive video conferencing, all under the control of one or more facilitators.  While not designed to be a broadcast system, we can support hundreds of participants, all with full interactivity.  The processing load and internet bandwidth for each participant is exactly the same as for a 2-person conference!  Other systems limit you to 4 or 6 or even 8 video participants at a time, and as you add more conference attendees, the problems of overload, background noise, and echos get worse and worse.  This is a really big problem for international conferences, with even larger delays!  We eliminate these problems completely.
   
   Benefit:  Setting up a meeting is easy no matter how many attendees you anticipate.  No need to decide who gets to be seen, and no distraction trying to manage a larger meeting with fewer videos.
   
   
5. Feature:  No Talk-Over and Start-Stop Conversations:  Our simple conferencing approach of one person speaking at a time completely eliminates talk-over, battles for dominance and start-stop conversations.  The biggest problem facing video conference programmers for internet-based video conferencing is the inherent delay.  The 1 to 2 second delay between when you speak and when the other attendees hear you is the result of the processing of the video stream at the point of origination, internet transmission delays, streaming server processing delays, and processing delays at the receiver.  This results in a problem where multiple people start talking at the same time, but don't realize it until several seconds later.  At that point, they all typically stop talking, and listen.  After the delay, they all hear no one talking, and do it all over again.  This makes conversations bog down and creates substantial frustration.  We call this "start-stop" conversations.  The other problem is multiple people trying to talk at the same time.  These problems do not exist with our new approach to video conferencing!
   
   Benefit:  Yet another source of distraction and unprofessional chaos eliminated!  Allows everyone to focus for more efficient decision-making or presentation.
    
6. Feature:  Simple One Button User Interface:  That's right!  A single, large button allows you to take the floor, release the floor, raise your hand, and lower your hand!  A text area allows you to send text comments or questions, and see comments from other participants.  You can also directly transfer the floor to another participant by clicking on their name in the attendee list.  Yes, other conference systems have lots and lots of features, but can you use them?  The frustration level we have experienced with the complex user interfaces popular on most conferencing systems interfere with the primary purpose of the conference - to talk with, and focus on people while at the same time seeing their faces.  Our interface does not get in your way, and allows users to be comfortable within a few minutes of use.
    
   Benefit:  Your participants will quickly learn how to use the system, with full participation.  The lack of complexity invites even the most computer-wary person to participate.
   
   
7. Feature:  Very Low Cost:  EduPlex Connections handles conferences from 2 to hundreds with the same, simple interface.  The cost per participant is lower than long-distance telephone rates.  Sure, you can get free video conferencing (with some of the problems above) from various suppliers, but, you get what you pay for.  Our system is extremely low cost, and provides exceptional professional service both nationally and internationally.  Click here to view our rate plans.
    
   Benefit:  Freedom to use the system for more business and personal interactions.
   
   
8. Security Made Easy:  If you require security, simply use a check box to specify encryption for your video stream!  It's as simple as that!  This does put a slight additional load on your computer, and eliminates the possibility of someone snooping on your conversation!
   
   Benefit:  No worries about being overheard!  Eliminate concerns about snooping from competitors or less-than-friendly governments.
    
   
9. Feature:  Actually Useful Conference Recording:  Recording conferences is a common feature, but how do you record a conference that uses teleconference plus one or more videos?  The result is not what you want:  a complete video and audio record of the entire conference experience, as if you were there.  We deliver on this promise.  Conference recordings can be offered to conference invitees that missed the conference, or even as presentations.  Why repeat yourself over and over?  Do it once, and offer the recording free or at a price you set.  Download it to edit it for use on a DVD or other delivery system.  The recording is stored free for 30 days.  Long term storage on our servers requires a small, annual fee.
   
   Benefit:  Gives you a perfect record of the meeting for use in multiple ways.
    
   
10. Feature:  Simple Access to Multiple Types of Content:  All you need to invite someone to a conference is a simple, unique code.  This plus our url is all they need to attend a conference, view a previous conference recording, download files before or after a conference, or take a short course before or after the conference.  This is a complete, integrated solution!  Save the talking for the interesting stuff:  answering questions!  Leave the content presentation to a recorded conference or short interactive course, developed on our easy to use authoring system!  All these additional features are free!
    
    Benefit:  Adds depth and content to your conferences.  Allows you to focus on questions and discussion rather than "information transfer."
     
    
11. Feature:  Includes Your E-Commerce Solution:  You can offer conferences, downloads, and courses for free, or you can charge each attendee whatever price you choose.  Set up your own online conferences!  Create content, documents, and video discussions around your area of expertise!  We take a small precentage of your sales price if it exceeds our low fees.  Our conferencing system is your key to turning your expertise into an income stream!
    
    Benefit:  Create an income stream from your experties.
     
12. Feature:  Support for Attendees w/o Webcams:  EduPlex Connect supports mic-only attendees as well as text-only attendees.  Mic-only means you can talk and text.  Text-only means you can make comments and ask questions, but you can't take the floor.
    
    Benefit:  Anyone can attend your conference - no extra hardware is required.
    
    
13. Partner, Affiliate, and License Opportunities:  By partnering with us, you receive Partner Rewards that reduce or eliminate your conferencing costs, or even bring in some extra cash!
    
    Benefit:  Freedom from cost concern while conferencing.
    
14. Polling and Voting:  If you want your attendees to vote on an issue, or take a poll, EduPlex Connect makes it easy!  We show both the number of attendees as well as how many hands are raised.  To make it even easier, we indicate by color if the measure has passed!  Plus, the facilitator can put all hands down with a single click!
    
    Benefit:  Easy voting and polling
    
15. Bandwidth Control:  The facilitator can select from three bandwidths, with varying video and audio quality.  This allows attendees with marginal connections to participate in the conference.  Combined with the use of microphone only mode, a conference attendee with limited internet connection speed can attend your conferences.
    
    Benefit:  Support a wider range of attendee internet connections
    
16. Conference Time Extension:  You set your meeting for a specific length, but just as you are getting to the end of the alloted time, a very important discussion begins.  What to do?  The facilitator has the ability to extend a conference in 15-minutes blocks, as needed!
    
    Benefit:  No longer do you have to stop a meeting because you didn't allocate enought time!
    

If you are interested in experiencing an EduPlex Connect event for evaluation purposes, please contact us .