------------------------------------------------------------ README for Microsoft(R) NetMeeting(TM) 2.0 Beta 2 December l996 ------------------------------------------------------------ (c) Copyright Microsoft Corporation, 1996 This document provides complementary or late-breaking information to supplement any existing documentation. ------------------------ HOW TO USE THIS DOCUMENT ------------------------ To view Netmeet.txt on screen in Notepad, maximize the Notepad window. To print Netmeet.txt, open it in Notepad or another word processor, then use the Print command on the File menu. CONTENTS ======== OVERVIEW To Run Microsoft NetMeeting To Uninstall Microsoft NetMeeting USING MICROSOFT NETMEETING PLACING A CALL Using Place Call Calling a Conferencing Service Provider Warnings and Known Bugs RECEIVING A CALL SHARING AN APPLICATION Warnings and Known Bugs WHITEBOARD CHAT FILE TRANSFER Warnings and Known Bugs AUDIO COMMUNICATION Warnings and Known Bugs VIDEO HANGING UP KNOWN ISSUES WINDOWS NT ISSUES OVERVIEW ======== Microsoft NetMeeting is a set of application and network components that enable real-time audio, video and data communication over the Internet. In order to use Microsoft NetMeeting, you must have the following configuration: - Microsoft Windows 95 486/66 with 8MB of RAM (Pentium with 12MB of RAM recommended) --OR-- Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 486/66 with 16MB of RAM NetMeeting does not run on Windows 3.1(R). This version of NetMeeting runs only on English (United States) versions of Microsoft Windows. - Microsoft NetMeeting works best with a fast Internet connection (28.8-baud or faster modem, or local area network) - To use the audio features of NetMeeting, you need a sound card, speakers, and a microphone. - To use the video features of NetMeeting, you need a sound card and a video capture card and camera, or a video camera that connects through your computer's parallel (printer) port. Video does not work on some computers with a processor slower than a Pentium. Computers with a bi-directional (ECP or EPP) parallel port will perform noticeably better with parallel video cameras than computers with a uni-directional parallel port. Cameras that connect to a video capture card will utilize less of your computer's processor than cameras that connect through your computer's parallel port. It is recommended that you not use a color parallel camera if your computer is not a Pentium 133 or better. The application sharing feature may not perform well while you are using audio and video and connected over a slow connection. Additionally, you may experience choppy audio while using video. The default setting for video over a 28,800 modem connection is set to low quality, to change this setting click options in the tools menu, select the video tab, and change the Send Quality option. It is strongly recommended that you uninstall earlier beta versions of Microsoft NetMeeting before installing NetMeeting 2.0 beta 2. NetMeeting Beta 2 audio features will not work with NetMeeting Beta 1 audio features if either computer has a 486 processor. If NetMeeting is installed in a directory with a path name that contains extended characters, application sharing may not work. For more information about NetMeeting, see http://www.microsoft.com/netmeeting/ To Run Microsoft NetMeeting --------------------------- 1. After the installation is finished, if a dialog box appears asking if you want to restart your computer, click Yes. 2. Start Microsoft NetMeeting as follows: - Click the Start button, and then point to Programs. - Click Microsoft NetMeeting. 3. When you open Microsoft NetMeeting for the first time, a wizard appears that helps you get ready to use NetMeeting. If you cancel this wizard, you will not be able to use NetMeeting. To Uninstall Microsoft NetMeeting --------------------------------- 1. In Control Panel, double-click the Add/Remove Programs icon. 2. Click the Install/Uninstall tab. 3. Click Microsoft NetMeeting, and then click Add/Remove. 4. If a dialog box appears asking if you want to restart your computer, click Yes. USING MICROSOFT NETMEETING ========================== - Microsoft NetMeeting now includes support for the H.323 audio conferencing standard. NetMeeting can be used to place calls to and receive calls from products that are H.323 compatible, including the Intel IPhone (TM) - NetMeeting help has not yet been updated for version 2.0. Some topics may be incorrect, and some links may be broken. - When you first run Microsoft NetMeeting, a setup wizard prompts you for the name of the User Location Server (ULS) you want to use. Microsoft maintains the following User Location Servers on the Internet: uls.microsoft.com uls1.microsoft.com uls2.microsoft.com uls3.microsoft.com uls4.microsoft.com uls5.microsoft.com - Whenever you run Microsoft NetMeeting after you have completed the setup wizard, you are automatically logged on to the ULS you specified. This server maintains a list of the people currently running Microsoft NetMeeting and their IP addresses. You can use this service to locate people to meet with by double clicking their name in the main NetMeeting window, or you can click Place Call in the Call menu and type the person's computer name, IP address, e-mail address, or modem phone number in the Address field. You can use a web view of the User Location Service to call people by clicking Call, then Web Directory. In the Web Directory, click the name of the person you wish to call. - To use the User Location Server to find people running Microsoft NetMeeting on the Internet, type the name of the server you would like to use in the directory edit box and press return. Microsoft maintains the following User Location Servers: uls.microsoft.com uls1.microsoft.com uls2.microsoft.com uls3.microsoft.com uls4.microsoft.com uls5.microsoft.com NOTE: You will not be able to use these servers to locate people on the Internet if you connect to the Internet through a proxy server. For information about setting up your own User Location Server, see the ULS information on http://www.microsoft.com/intdev/msconf/ - The email address you supply in NetMeeting may only contain characters that are legal in an email address. For example, it may not contain special characters or spaces. - Audio works only over TCP/IP between two people. You can use all other features with more than two people over TCP/IP, modems, and IPX. - Microsoft NetMeeting supports meetings of up to 32 people. In addition, only the first two people connected with audio and video can participate in an audio and video call, and only three people can share applications from their computers at one time. The total number of people that can successfully participate in your meeting will vary based upon available network bandwidth and the speed of the participant's computers. - Some activities might cause large amounts of data to be sent between the computers in your meeting(for example, speaking and sharing several applications while transferring a large file) In extreme cases, this might cause computers in the meeting to become very slow. To remedy this, stop one or more of the meeting activities. - If you try to make a TCP/IP call on your local area network and MSN or Dial-Up Networking displays a connection dialog box, you can disable this by double-clicking the Internet icon in Control Panel and then making sure that Auto-Dial is not selected. - Sharing of DirectX, MS-DOS, and graphic-intensive games and AVIs does not work well and is not supported. - If different computers have different screen resolutions during a meeting, the shared windows can be as large as the highest resolution desktop allows. Users with lower resolution desktops will have to scroll to view windows that don't fit their screens. - When you share an application, others can use the File Open and File Save dialog boxes in your application to access files on your computer or network. You will be able to see everything other users are doing in your shared applications. To stop someone from using your shared program while you do not have control of the cursor, press ESC. To stop someone from using your shared program while you do have control of the cursor, click the Work Alone button. It is not recommended that you leave your computer unattended while sharing an application and collaborating. - Some software installation programs will not function properly while Microsoft NetMeeting is running. - You must have a 32-bit TCP/IP stack and Windows Sockets interface to use Microsoft NetMeeting with TCP/IP. Microsoft NetMeeting has been tested with the 32-bit TCP/IP and Windows sockets built into Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0. - If you want to call someone by using a modem, and you must dial a 9 to get an outside line, make sure you type a "-" in front of the 9 at the beginning of the phone number. For example, you might specify the following number: -9,7034501 - Application Sharing, Whiteboard, and Chat might not work properly between computers with different language settings and keyboard layouts. - Microsoft NetMeeting supports using Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0 system policies to set default configurations in a corporate environment. Microsoft NetMeeting system policies are documented, and a system policy file is included in the NetMeeting Resource Kit. More information about the NetMeeting Resource Kit can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/netmeeting/. - NetMeeting might hang when it starts up if there are damaged fonts in your fonts folder. - NetMeeting does not function properly over SLIRP connections or other simulated SLIP/PPP connections. PLACING A CALL ============== You can place Microsoft NetMeeting calls to multiple users. Any person in a meeting can place Microsoft NetMeeting calls to other people. In addition, other people can join a Microsoft NetMeeting call in progress by calling one of the participants. When you run Microsoft NetMeeting, you are automatically logged on to a User Location Server. This server maintains a list of the people currently running Microsoft NetMeeting and their IP addresses. You can use this service to locate people to meet with by double clicking their names in the main NetMeeting window; or, if the person you want to call is logged on to the same server as you, you can call the person by typing selecting Place Call in the Call menu and typing their e-mail address into the Address field. You can also use the address field to type either the computer name or modem phone number of the person you want to call. In the Directory, the Refresh button refreshes the list of people logged on to the User Location Server. The Stop button stops opening the list of people logged on to the User Location Server. Warnings and Known Bugs ----------------------- - Only calls placed using a modem may be canceled using the Cancel Call Placement menu item. - Audio calls can be made only over TCP/IP and can include only two people. - If you cannot connect to someone by using their computer name, try using their IP address. - IPX meetings can be started if both people do the following: - Have Microsoft IPX/SPX-Compatible Protocol installed. - Select Options in the NetMeeting Tools menu, click the Protocols tab and ensure that Network (IPX) protocol is checked. And one person does the following: - Call using the Place Call dialog box, choosing the IPX protocol, and entering into the Address box the full 8:12 net number and Ethernet address of the intended recipient of the call--for example, 00002702:112233445566. - NetMeeting does not work over a direct cable connection between computers. - If you click someone's name in a User Location Service (ULS) directory web page and get an error message saying that the file type is unrecognized, you need to configure your browser to associate the ULS directory files with Microsoft NetMeeting. For instructions on how to do this, refer to your browser's documentation. You will need the following information: MIME file type: "text/iuls" Command line: "rundll32.exe msconf.dll,NewMediaPhone %l" MIME file type: "text/h323" Command line: "rundll32.exe msconf.dll,NewMediaPhone %l" - Some ISDN devices are configured to automatically connect to the network. This might cause the ISDN device to try to connect to the network while NetMeeting is running. To stop this from happening, disable Auto-Dial on the ISDN device. - If the User Location Server is temporarily unavailable, there might be a brief period of time after the server returns when your name is not listed in the directory. - If you do not see your name in the list of names on the User Location Service you might not be logged on, or you might be logged on to a different User Location Service. To change the User Location Service you log into, click the Tools menu, click Options, and then change your User Location Service Name. To log on to the User Location Server, click the Call menu, and then click Log On to User Location Service. - If you want to place a call to a person using PictureTel LiveShare version 3.x or earlier, carry out the following steps: 1. Click the Tools menu, click Options click the Protocols tab. 2. Select the checkbox for the LiveShare protocol you want to use. 3. Select the corresponding NetMeeting protocol if available. For example, to place a modem call to someone using LiveShare, you would need to select both the Modem and Modem for LiveShare Networks check boxes. TIP: To show LiveShare protocols, make sure the following check box is selected: "Use additional protocols for compatibility with PictureTel LiveShare 3.x and earlier." - If you have an active network connection using a network card and a second active connection using a modem or a second network card, you might not be able to connect to the User Location Service. - When you are in a meeting, you cannot connect to people already in another meeting. - You cannot connect with Data and Audio to someone who is already in a meeting. - Some conference bridges are case sensitive, so you may need to enter the conference name with the same capitalization when placing the call as the conference name on the bridge appears. - If your connection to the network drops and is reconnected, you might have to click the refresh directory button to see a list of people logged into the directory. RECEIVING A CALL ================ You are ready to receive an incoming call if you are currently running Microsoft NetMeeting and have not selected Do Not Disturb on the Call menu. Warnings and Known Bugs ----------------------- - If you are using Microsoft NetMeeting on a local area network, you might not be able to receive calls while your Dial-Up Networking logon screen is open. SHARING AN APPLICATION ====================== Any person in a meeting can share an application with the other participants. When you share an application, other people can see the application. When you Collaborate, other people can see and use the application. NOTE: Windows NT users cannot share applications, but can use applications that others have shared. Warnings and Known Bugs ----------------------- - If NetMeeting is installed in a directory with a path name that contains extended characters, application sharing may not work. - Sharing one Windows Explorer window shares all of them. If you run a program while Windows Explorer is shared, the program will also be shared. Examples of Explorer windows include Internet Mail and News, Control Panels, and Briefcase. - When you share an application and collaborate, remote users can use the File Open and File Save dialog boxes in your application to access or delete files on your computer or network. To stop someone from using your shared program while you do not have control of the cursor, press ESC. To stop someone from using your shared program while you do have control of the cursor, click the Work Alone button. It is not recommended that you leave your computer unattended while sharing an application and collaborating. - You cannot drag an object onto a shared application or drag an object from a shared application to the desktop. - When you share control of an application, others will be able to use features in that application to control hardware devices (for example, to print a file) However, this does not automatically share applications that report status for these devices (for example, the Background Print Monitor) - When you share an application with an Input Method Editor (IME), you should show the IME status bar so that other people can use the mouse to activate the IME. If the IME does not support showing the status bar, or if other people are having trouble activating the IME, you should activate and deactivate the IME for them. - If the IME window fails to repaint during a meeting, you can cause it to repaint by clicking anywhere on the desktop. - Ecco Pro cannot be shared. - It is recommended that you wait at least 20 seconds after initiating or joining a new conference before sharing an application. - It is recommended that you not change the mouse from right handed to left handed or vice versa while sharing an application. WHITEBOARD ========== The Whiteboard enables you to draw simultaneously with other users. Everyone in the meeting can see what is drawn on the Whiteboard. When one person in a meeting runs Whiteboard, it appears on everyone's screen. Warnings and Known Bugs ----------------------- - On Windows NT, if the directory NetMeeting is installed in contains spaces in its name, you will not be able to run whiteboard or chat. - The Whiteboard does not maximize to the full size of a 1024x768 or larger display. - If you make several changes without pausing in the whiteboard, other users might be prevented from making changes. - On Windows NT, some text in the Whiteboard may not print. - Cutting or copying something on one computer and pasting it into the whiteboard on Windows NT might not work. CHAT ==== Chat enables you to type messages for other users to see. When one person in a meeting runs Chat, it appears on everyone's screen. Chat files are stored with the .txt file extension. If Microsoft Notepad, or another program that can read files in .txt format is installed on your computer, it can be used to open chat files. To open a Chat file with Chat, run Chat, click the File menu, click Open, and select the file to be opened. Warnings and Known Bugs ----------------------- - In Chat, if you click Options and then check Clear Screen, this feature will not clear chat on other people's computers if they are using versions of NetMeeting older than NetMeeting 2.0 Beta 2. - On Windows NT, if the directory NetMeeting is installed in contains spaces in its name, you will not be able to run whiteboard or chat. FILE TRANSFER ============= Files dragged onto the listing of people in the meeting are sent to all the people in the meeting. To send a file to a specific person, right click that person's icon in the list of people in the meeting, and then click Send File. To send a file to everyone in the meeting, click the Tools menu, and then click Send File. To cancel sending a file, click the Tools menu, and then click Cancel Send. Warnings and Known Bugs ----------------------- - If you try to send a shortcut to a file, the actual file will be sent instead. - Exchanging files with Intel ProShare 2.0 does not always work properly. AUDIO COMMUNICATION =================== By default, audio communication is enabled for TCP/IP calls. Audio is supported only over TCP/IP and between no more than two people. Sound quality can vary significantly depending on your sound card and microphone. To automatically adjust your settings, use the Audio Tuning Wizard. Full-duplex audio enables you to speak at the same time as the person you are speaking to. If your sound card supports only half-duplex audio, or if you have not enabled full-duplex audio in NetMeeting, you and the other person in your call will have to take turns speaking. Using full-duplex audio can require both more bandwidth and more CPU than using half-duplex audio and as a result may result in poor sound quality. If you are using a WinNov video capture card and have selected it as your wave device for recording audio, you must use a camera that conects to the Multimedia Extension Connector and includes a microphone. Alternately, you may select your computer's sound card as the wave device in the audio tuning wizard and plug a microphone into your sound card. Warnings and Known Bugs ----------------------- - Users of Microsoft NetMeeting and Intel IPhone can only talk to each other if both users have a computer with a Pentium processor. - Users of Microsoft NetMeeting Beta1 and Microsoft NetMeeting Beta 2 will only be able to talk to each other if both users have a computer with a Pentium processor. - Pressing CTRL+ALT+DELETE might disconnect the audio connection. - If you join a meeting, or call a person who has selected Conference Host in the Call menu, you will not be able to use the audio features in your meeting. - The Audio Tuning Wizard works only when you are not in a call with audio. - Some users will receive a message in the Audio Tuning Wizard that explains that their sound card is unsupported. This occurs when the sound card does not support some of the features required for it to be supported by NetMeeting. NetMeeting's audio features may work even if you get this message, but you may experience poor audio quality. If your sound card is unsupported, you might want to contact the manufacturer to find out if newer sound card drivers are available. - If you are experiencing choppy full-duplex sound quality, try switching Microsoft NetMeeting to half-duplex sound quality. To do this, carry out the following steps: 1. Make sure that you are not on a NetMeeting call. 2. Click the Tools menu, and then click Options. 3. Click the Audio tab. 4. Clear the Enable Full Duplex Audio check box. - If you are having problems with your audio quality or sound card when using NetMeeting, it might be related to your hardware configuration or driver installation. Please open the NetMeeting support page at Microsoft to get the latest support information. To open the NetMeeting support page, click the Help menu, and then click Online Support. - If your computer has more than one audio device, you should ensure that the audio devices selected in the Audio Tuning Wizard match the selections in the Multimedia properties in Control Panel. - If the Audio Tuning Wizard indicates that your sound card is not supported, you might still be able to use the audio features of NetMeeting, but might experience poor audio quality. - It is recommended that you not switch between full-duplex and half-duplex audio while in a meeting with audio. - Full-duplex audio might not work with Media Vision Pro Audio Spectrum 16 sound cards. - Computers with a 486 processor will not be able to use audio with other software based upon the H.323 audio conferencing standard over a dial up networking (modem) connection. They will be able to use audio with other NetMeeting users over a dial up networking connection, or with other H.323 based audio conferencing products over a LAN. HANGING UP ========== When you hang up, you disconnect anyone you have called or anyone who called you. If the disconnected users have invited or accepted other users into the meeting, they are also disconnected. VIDEO ===== - To use the video features of NetMeeting, you need a sound card and a video capture card and camera, or a video camera that connects through your computer's parallel (printer) port. Video does not work on some computers with a processor slower than a Pentium. - Video is supported only over TCP/IP and between no more than two people. - If you do not have a sound card installed, you will not be able to use NetMeeting's video capabilities. - If you are unable to use NetMeeting's audio features in a call, you will also be unable to use NetMeeting's video features. - If you have more than one video device installed, or have not properly uninstalled a video device that was previously installed, you might not be able to use video. - If your video device is not properly uninstalled and you have enabled video in NetMeeting, the remaining camera software may warn you repeatedly that it cannot find the camera. - If your computer does not have a Pentium processor, you will not be able to send video. - Computers with a bi-directional (ECP or EPP) parallel port will perform noticeably better with parallel video cameras than computers with a uni-directional parallel port. - Cameras which connect to a video capture card will utilize less of your computer's processor than cameras that connect through your computer's parallel port. It is recommended that you not use a color parallel camera if your computer is not a Pentium 133 or better. - If you disconnect your camera while using NetMeeting's video features, your camera's software may display messages telling you that the camera is not responding. To disable these messages, click Options in the Tools menu, click Video and un-check Send video with NetMeeting. - It is recommended that you not run another program that uses video while running NetMeeting. - If some areas of your video window contain the wrong colors, your camera be aimed at an area with insufficient light. Some video drivers may provide a low light filter option. - If you are using the video features in a dark area, some cameras will cause your computer to become extremely slow and unresponsive. KNOWN ISSUES ============ - You cannot run ReachOut 5.0 on computers where Microsoft NetMeeting is installed. - To find the name that NetMeeting uses as your NetBIOS name, carry out the following steps: 1. In Control Panel, double-click the Network icon. 2. Click the Identification tab. The Computer Name is displayed. - If you use User Profiles to maintain your Windows preferences on all the computers on a network, you might have to rerun the Audio Tuning Wizard when you switch computers. - If you have NetMeeting running on more than one computer and have specified the same e-mail address on each computer, you will have trouble connecting to the User Location Service - If you change your name while in a call, it is not completely updated until you exit and re-start NetMeeting. - Both Microsoft FrontPage and Microsoft NetMeeting currently use the same file type (.cnf). - When you are in a meeting, your clipboard is shared with everyone else in the meeting. This enables you to paste objects other people cut or copy into the clipboard into your local programs. There is a system policy that disables clipboard sharing. - Changing the name of your User Location Service will not log you in to the new User Location Service, you must log in manually. - If you are using Windows 95 Version 4.00.950 B, canceling the Dial-Up Networking dialog that appears when you start NetMeeting will appear to cause NetMeeting to hang, however NetMeeting will work fine after about two minutes. You will not be logged onto the User Location Service until you manually connect to your Internet Service Provider and Log on to the User Location Server. - If you Create a SpeedDial, clicking Send to mail recipient will only work if your e-mail program is MAPI aware (for example Microsoft Exchange). - You can only return calls using the incoming call log if the person who called you was using NetMeeting 2.0 Beta 2 or later. WINDOWS NT ISSUES ================= - Windows NT users cannot share applications, but can use applications that others have shared. - If the directory NetMeeting is installed in contains spaces in its name, you will not be able to run whiteboard or chat. - If you are using NetMeeting on Windows NT and you are unable to receive a call, reboot your computer and try again.