The purpose of this assignment was to evaluate options the options available to consumers for teleconferencing using several different freely available options. The software we evaluated was Skype, Google Talk, and Yahoo Messenger. All three of these are freely available to consumers and two of them can be used in conjunction with other freely available online services. All three of these services can make and receive calls to land lines or normal phone numbers. In addition to this all three of the services have the abilities to engage in file sharing between the two user clients. While we were unable to work with the video teleconferencing, we worked together to evaluate the voice call capabilities.
Google Talk
Google Talk is an extension of Google Chat. The service works between only two users with Google accounts. After logging into the account on the client software it is possible to engage in voice calls. The quality of the calls is very good but there is no way to do conferencing calling. This is a drawback to this software.
Yahoo Messenger
Yahoo Messenger works on the same principles of Google Talk. Using a Yahoo account anyone can log into the client software and begin chatting or talking with any of their contacts. This is in fact one of Yahoo Messengers strengths. Yahoo can also make calls to normal telephones and receive calls from normal telephones. However the audio quality is not the best. This could be seen in particular during the conference call evaluation.
Skype
After already evaluating a few of the features of Skype in the previous lab we were already familiar with the software. The functions available on the desktop client are in fact much more robust. Conference calling is easy to set up and use. Calls can be made to normal telephones just like Yahoo Messenger. However the audio quality of Skype is unparalleled. The sound was crystal clear compared to the other services. The addition of file sharing and instant messaging makes Skype the overall best choice for a communications client.
Final Thoughts
After evaluating the various uses and function of the different types of software, I have come to the conclusion that Skype is the overall best piece of software and is the best choice for the consumer and the business user. The client is the cleanest and most efficient while the services are also the best. The separate nature from Yahoo and Google, combined with the ease of use and expanded functionality make Skype the clear industry leader and winner in any competition.
The competition between the three services will in fact support continual development and improvement. This in turn will ultimately leave the consumer as the winner since at this point the software and services are free, as far as VoIP is concerned.
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