Web conferences/lectures
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E-Mail: support@th-owl.de
Phone: +49 5261 702 2222
Please note that the Cisco Webex combined with the telephone system may currently have errors in addition to the communication potential. If you come across an error, please let us know: support@th-owl.de
With web conferences and web lectures, you can use IT technologies to get in touch with other people (small groups, project teams, lectures, etc.) via the Internet, regardless of location. The Cisco Webex communication tool is available to staff and students at the university for this scenario. The software products "Cisco Webex Meetings" and "Cisco Webex Training" have already been in use at the university for some time. The new "Cisco Webex" software also includes the option of using web conferences/lectures. Against this background, we compare the differences and perspectives for the three Cisco products provided by S(kim) and also provide an assessment of other video conferencing products used in everyday university life.
- Cisco Webex - Web conferences/lectures, telephony, chat and more
- Cisco Webex Meetings / Training - Web conferences / lectures without further communication options
- Other communication tools - Zoom, MS Teams, GoToMeeting, BigBlueButton
- Further documentation - Information beyond Cisco Webex
Cisco Webex
Cisco Webex, formerly known as Cisco Webex Teams, is the university's leading software for web conferences/lectures. Other collaboration tools that may still be missing (awareness, feedback, audio transcription, etc.) are gradually being developed or transferred from older products. Older, well-known products such as Cisco Webex Meetings and Cisco Webex Training will no longer be developed and will be discontinued by Cisco in the medium term.
- Appeal: From now on, only use Cisco Webex for web conferences/lectures to avoid interactions with other products that are currently still available.
Further communication tools
The university has developed the Cisco Webex software as a central communication software for web conferences/lectures, telephony, short messages (chat) and scheduling (calendar). In addition to the technical provision and further development, this service has documentation, competent contact persons for questions relating to communication with Cisco Webex (technical, didactic, conceptual) and procedures agreed with the university's data protection department that handle personal data in compliance with the GDPR.
Good to know:
- Privacy policy for Cisco Webex (Author: DPO of the TH OWL)
- Data protection declaration for th euse of Cisco Webex for online examinations (Author: DPO of TH OWL)
With this constant build-up of knowledge in the areas of technology, documentation/support, didactics/application, data protection/security, students and staff at the university have a versatile, stable communication tool at their disposal in the form of the compact Cisco Webex software, which is well integrated into the university landscape alongside the websites, the learning/examination platform, campus management systems and the existing telephone system and will also be expanded in the future by the S(kim).
Other communication tools such as Zoom, MS Teams, GoToMeeting and BigBlueButton have not been licensed and procured by the university, meaning that they cannot be used actively in parallel with Cisco Webex. Of course, this does not exclude participation in external events and working groups that are based on these other communication tools. However, in these cases, participation is organized by the external organizers and not by the university. This means that only the client software is required on the university's own device.
- Good to know: The devices administered by S(kim) already contain clients such as Zoom or MS Teams so that they can be used directly for external events. However, the presence of this client software on the systems does not enable their own use as a communication tool.
Cisco Webex is therefore the communication tool provided by the university. There are no university licenses for other similar products, so it is not possible to use them in everyday work for teaching or other forms of collaboration. Nevertheless, participation in conferences or similar is possible by inviting external parties.
Further documentation
The content of the "old" documentation on the subject of web conferences/lectures has been integrated into this new documentation. However, existing bookmarks will also be forwarded to the right place in this new documentation for search engines during the transition phase.
On the eCampus learning platform (ILIAS), you can still find instructions on how to design and implement events digitally with the help of Cisco Webex in the eCampus quick start section under "eCampus for lecturers". All the information there is currently still related to the Cisco Webex Meetings software (including screenshots). However, they can already be implemented with Cisco Webex.
What happens next?
- Home - Navigate back to the home page of this documentation
- Procurement - Procuring and setting up Cisco Webex
- Telephony - Cisco Webex as a mobile business phone
- Conferencing - Cisco Webex for web conferences/lectures
- Chat - Cisco Webex for short messages
- Networking - Cisco Webex for contacts and calendar appointments
- AddOns - Cisco Webex and additional software
- Design - Planning an online event
- Kompact - Cisco Webex Dos & Don'ts