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Information You Can Use |
Sandy Berger, CompuKISS www.compukiss.com sandy (at) compukiss.com |
Would you like to talk on the telephone where you could see the other party? Even better, would you like to talk to 3 or 4 people at once and see them all? Want to do videoconferencing for business? How about setting up a camera to monitor your home?
All these things are possible with a simple little inexpensive device called a webcam. A webcam is simply a camera attached to your computer to transmit video over the Internet. Many of the current crop of laptop computers have webcams built right into the computer. All you see is a small "eye" above the screen. The software comes pre-installed on the computer so you can start using it immediately.
If you don't have a laptop with a built-in webcam, don't dismay. You can easily add a webcam to your current computer. You can purchase a webcam fairly inexpensively. Logitech, one of the major webcam manufacturers, has webcams that retail from $30 to $130. Of course, you get what you pay for. The cheaper cams have basic capabilities and minimal picture quality. Logitech's top-of the-line model has motorized tracking, autofocus, and Carl Zeiss optics. That said, I will tell you that even the cheapest webcam can open a whole new world and can really be fun.
Once you purchase the webcam, you simply install the software and plug the webcam into your computer. Most webcams use the USB port on your computer and come with the necessary cable. Almost all webcams have a built-in microphone, so they handle the audio as well as the video.
Once installed, you can start to use the webcam immediately. If you are already chatting with friends on Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, or AOL Instant Messenger, you can immediately use your webcam to show your friends live video of yourself while you chat.
You can also use your computer with its webcam for calling other friends and relatives through their computers. The most popular software for doing this is a free program called Skype. You simply download their free program. Have your friends and/or relatives do the same. Each party gets a Skype user name when they install the program. Then you get simply use the Skype software to call your friend's computer, using their Skype user name. The whole process is pretty simple. I use Skype to call my daughter and her family in Sweden. Not only do I get to see the grandkids, but since we are using the Internet, there are no long distance telephone charges.