Hear Me The New Web Meeting By kalar on Sep 27, 2007 - Updated Oct 15, 2011

Thanks to an online course in corporate finance management (ugh), I had the opportunity to use the HearMe web conferencing system. Although most online classes use a chat room or forum discussion format, my current professor prefers a weekly get together, and since the class is online, he facilitates these meetings through the HearMe website. Upon hearing about this format, I was very nervous. I am not a computer techy, and wondered if I would be able to maneuver through the website, and get everything hooked up correctly. The HearMe concept is really just about online meetings. Their website offers several different formats, and prices range from $29 to $449 a month, based on the number of people attending the meetings. Downloading the necessary software to attend meetings is easy, if you don't have Windows Vista. This constitutes my biggest complaint with this web meeting service. I had to jump through several hoops, and finally had to have a Dell representative download the information for me, because the website is not completely compatible with Windows Vista Operating System. Once logged in, however, the class went smoothly, and I definitely felt as connected as I would have in a classroom. The other speakers were easy to hear, not a small feat considering that all of us had to purchase our own headsets of varying prices and qualities, and easy to use buttons labeled for talking, raising your hand, and texting made the format very user-friendly. HearMe believes, as it states on its website, that web meetings are the best choice for small businesses looking for economical ways to hold meetings with out of town clients, and also for schools trying to reach beyond local communities for students. Overall, I would highly recommend this service, for anyone who needs a reliable, easy way to hold web meetings.