Glossary
- Audio conference
- Sometimes called a "teleconference", this is a communication between multiple sites that are linked by an audio-only communications medium. (Usually involves use of telecommunications...)
- Computer conference
- (see "Web Conference"...)
- Data conference
- (see "Web Conference"...)
- E-conference
- A broad, general term meant to encompass the various types and combinations of electronic conferencing techniques and mediums. Often, a combination of two or more technologies to provide a useful collaboration between multiple parties at different locations/over long distance.
- Gatekeeper
- from Wikipedia: 'a virtual network switch that manages a H.323 zone, providing address information/translation and other services to the terminals within the zone, and for Gatekeepers managing other zones.' For more information, please see Wikipedia's H.323 Gatekeeper page...
- Global Dialing Scheme (GDS)
- The GDS is a numbering plan for H.323 networks, that employs a hierarchy of gatekeepers to route call set-up information nationally and internationally. For more information, please see Wikipedia's page on the Global Dialing Scheme...
- H.323
- The ITU-T standard that defines a set of protocols to provide audio-visual communication sessions over an IP network such as the Internet. For more information, please see Wikipedia's H.323 page...
- Multipoint Control Unit (MCU)
- A special type of video endpoint that provides the capability for 3 or more terminals (and gateways) to participate in a multipoint conference.
- Teleconference
- (see "Audio Conference"...)
- Video conference
- Video conferencing is the transmission of synchronized imagery (video) and speech (audio) between multiple locations. For more information, please see Wikipedia's video conferencing page...
- Video endpoint
- A general term to describe a device that participates in a video conference as an originator and/or consumer of the transmitted audio-video stream(s).
- Video terminal
- A video conferencing device that serves as the user's interface to a video conference. Typically, a video terminal will originate a video and an audio stream from a camera and a microphone, and direct those streams to another endpoint participant. The video terminal will also be responsible for presenting the video and audio streams that are sent to it from another participant endpoint(s). (Can be a dedicated hardware device, or software run on a personal computer.)
- Web conference
- A system or set of tools that allows multiple users to interact, meet, and collaborate in real time over the Internet. For more information, please see Wikipedia's web conferencing page...