I spent 2 weeks testing Placeware first since they have a better and more competitive pricing than Webex. At first, I thought they were pretty small but looking at their customer base and events, they were much larger than I thought.

I liked the toolbox interface and the layout when in-conferencing. It is very useful especially the polling screen when you can just add an instant poll. Also, the application sharing is quite good and useful. You can also in a glance see the attendees and presenters in a console and you can select questions or move attendees. You can also allow them to print.

There are a couple of things that really disappointed me. First - they have this java console "special" code that supposedly allows you have quicker download. But that application has problem with Win2k with JVM 1.2 and JVM 1.3. They said it only supports JVM1.4 but they did not mention that before installation. Once you installed it, the conference console will not load. And the worst part is that you cannot "remove" it without unistalling IE (that's what they said.) Or the workaround is to disable JVM and use Window VM. But I need JVM 1.3 for another app that is not proven with JVM1.4 yet !

The second problem lies with Powerpoint 2002. The slides are dotted. They wanted me to downgrade to PPT 2000 to fix the problem. Or wait for a fix from Microsoft. I had to send them the file to fix it and send back to me.

Their technical support is not very responsive and asking customers to downgrade is no-no solution.

I ended up with Webex at the end, yes, pricier but less headache and better support.

Recommended: No