Many web based conferencing solutions are rich in applications that can make your meeting a dynamic, interactive experience. Here is an overview of commonly available features of web based conferencing:

For the presenter:
Application sharing - Share any applications you have on your computer desktop directly with your participants. You can pass the controls over to a conference attendee to run a part of the meeting, make changes, and even group edit documents. As the moderator, you can take back the controls from a participant at any time with the click of a button. While application sharing is a powerful feature, you need to be very careful with it, as it gives the person full access to your computer and your company's network, bypassing your company's firewalls, which can put your infrastructure at risk.

Slide presentations - Upload a PowerPoint presentation and share slides at your pace. This feature guarantees that no participant can skip through the presentation ahead of you.

White boarding - Draw diagrams and write notes live on screen to support brainstorming sessions.

Screen sharing - Show anything that appears on your computer desktop such as a single chart or diagram. You can even isolate part of your screen with a cropping tool so that your audience can only view what you want them to see.

Web touring - Display Web pages as you click your way through them. This can be significantly easier than verbal instructions such as "click on the third link from the top in the left hand side" to guide a person through a site.

File transfer - Send files to everyone at the conference at one time.

For the audience:
Live chat - Attendees talk amongst themselves and with the moderator through live person-to-person chat or group discussion.

Q&A - Moderator takes questions from attendees throughout broadcast but particularly at the end of the meeting. Presenters have the option to reply solely to the person asking the question or to everyone in attendance. This interactive tool allows participants to play a more integral part in the conference.

Polling - Moderator gets instant feedback on presentations by providing a set of questions with multiple-choice answers. You can view the results during the meeting and discuss the results, or analyze the data afterwards.

Help request - Attendees can quietly alert you that they don't understand something or need help with an application without disrupting the flow of your meeting.

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