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COVID-19 <\/b>and new protocols for safety has resulted in canceled festivals, rituals and workshops leaving many within our community feeling isolated and yearning for interactions with others. Fortunately, we live in a technologically booming age and since creativity is a staple of pagans, these two together can form a winning partnership….. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Choosing Your Virtual Platform<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n When choosing a virtual platform, there are a few questions you may want to ask yourself before jumping right in. The answers will allow you to pinpoint more accurately the platform (s) that may serve you best and be the best financial investment. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n What type of event are you planning?<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n How many people will be joining the event?<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n If you only have 10 people or less participating, a free account generally will suffice. 10+ can get challenging technically depending on the time of day, devices everyone is using, individual internet connections or other things that may slow or freeze screens and distort audio. There are ways to help lessen this, which I\u2019ll discuss in other posts. This is where a subscription-based platform may serve you better. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n How long will the event be?<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Some services only offer Free accounts if they are confirmed to less than an hour. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n How frequently will you be meeting?<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n If you are regularly scheduling events, having a registered acct. such as ZOOM or Google Meets may serve you better. You can set-up recurring meeting links so you don\u2019t have to create new ones for every time for those meetings that have a routine time and schedule. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n What are the Tech capabilities of those participating?<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Choosing a user-friendly platform will go a long way in having to teach your participants the basics and\/or nuances. Plan on there being at least one tech challenged person among your participants and plan out how to talk them through the process. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The platforms listed below offer the best bang for your buck (especially those that are free), are the easiest to set-up and provide a good and as reliable a technical experience as is possible. I upgraded my \u201cfree\u201d subscription to ZOOM because of the length of time and number o<\/span>f<\/span> people attending events. But, for a long while prior to that and for small social gatherings, the free account worked quite well. We often use Facetime for our family chats with those who have iPhones and use Facebook or Skype video for everyone since they all have FB and Skype accounts. Many work places use the Google Meets\/Hangouts and they seem to work quite well. I\u2019m not a fan of Google tools so tend not to use that feature. If you are only looking for an audio conference call FreeConference Call works well and has a clear audio stream. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Not only can businesses hold virtual meetings on this platform, but they can also conduct training seminars, webinars, etc. During\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>Zoom meetings<\/span><\/span><\/a>, users can simultaneously share messages and documents with each other through Zoom\u2019s chat tool. A basic plan with a Zoom meeting is free to use for unlimited time and offers unlimited meetings with a 40-minute time limit for each.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n This well-known platform is not just used for connecting with friends and family but can be used for business purposes as well. Although\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>Facetime<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0is only compatible with Apple devices, features include group chats that can hold up to 32 participants, tools to let you know who is currently speaking, and the ability to choose who you want to see on the screen. This service is free to use.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n An easy to use app that allows you to connect with a single person or a group of people. It is a well-known platform that many meeting participants most likely already have personal accounts for service use.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>Skype<\/span><\/span><\/a> app comes with no long-distance costs but is prone to audio and visual display problems, buffering delays, and calls being dropped.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n A no-cost platform that offers tools to make phone calls, use instant messaging that connects with up to 10 people, and video conferencing. If you use Google, which is practically everyone, this platform is already installed into Google tools like Gmail. Another cool feature of\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>Google Hangouts<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0is that video calls can be streamed in real-time on YouTube.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n This updated and improved version of Google Hangout is streamlined into the G suite office productivity service.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>Google Meet<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0provides the user with an assigned dial number so that virtual meetings can stay private within the team, a clear access line with no dropped calls, and compatibility with both Apple and Android devices. This service offers 3 plans: G suite Basic ($6 per month), G suite business ($12 per month), and G suite enterprise ($25 per month).<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n As stated in its name, this service is completely free. \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>FreeConferenceCall<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0offers tools for collaborating and calls with group members for desktop sharing, drawing, and messages for public and private use. Not only is it free but it is simple to use as well.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The cost of using this virtual meeting platform is $0.00.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>Join.Me<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0has tools that allow users to change URL links to their liking and the ability to choose whatever background they want for the display that is shown during virtual meetings. It also syncs with other work tools like Outlook, Office 365, and Google Calendar.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n <\/a> Next Month<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Setting Up Your Event<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Planning\/Advert and More<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n ***<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n About the Author:<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Robin Fennelly\u00a0<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/span>is an Elder within\u00a0The Assembly of the Sacred Wheel Tradition<\/a>\u00a0and serves as High Priestess of\u00a0C<\/a>oven of the Mystic Path<\/a>, the 12th Coven\u00a0within the Assembly of the Sacred Wheel Tradition. She teaches\u00a0and facilitates\u00a0classes for the Pagan Experience Study Group that\u00a0serves as foundation for membership within\u00a0Coven of the Mystic Path<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n
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Best Virtual Meeting Platforms<\/u><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n
Source: TechFunnel<\/i><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n
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