I have tested quite a few web conferencing products in the past year, so I like to think that I can find my way around most of them without too many problems, but that was not the case with the hosted version of the web conferencing solution, aveComm.

aveComm, from Atinav, is a new Java-based web conferencing and live presentation tool. It lists a number of features including application sharing, whiteboard, text chat, and VoIP with a bridge to the standard telephone system. However, there is a feature that is conspicuous by its absence; namely, a dedicated PowerPoint presentation facility.

The system takes several seconds to start up, and seems slow in comparison to other Java-based systems that I have tested.
When you first login, a screen is displayed that has a number of large icons on it with some text to announce functions within the application. A user's natural reaction is to try to click on these icons, but they are not links and clicking on them has no effect.

I tried the VoIP facility on two occasions, the first time I dialled a landline in the U.S. and the call quality was some way below that provided by Skype for example. On the second occasion, I tried a pure VoIP conversation with a colleague and we could not hear each other at all.

It was at that point that we decided to look at the help file and to our dismay, were confronted by a "page not found" error. When the help option does not work in a tool, things are not good.

In the absence of a dedicated PowerPoint facility, the component that becomes critical is application sharing. aveComm has an application sharing facility that allows you to share your entire desktop or a particular application. You can also give control to participants and use annotation tools to mark-up the screen.

The major drawback that I found with this feature was that it was unclear to me what the participants were seeing. If I had PowerPoint running in the foreground, I could not see the aveComm screen to interact with my audience, and if I moved or changed the size of the PowerPoint screen, I couldn't tell what effect that had for the audience.

There were some success stories; the text chat and whiteboard facilities worked well, and the file transfer worked after one failed attempt due to a timeout (though the file being transferred was a very small text file).

aveComm claims to run on Microsoft Windows and Linux PCs with the leading Internet browsers such as Microsoft Internet Explorer, Netscape, and Mozilla. However, tests with the Mozilla Firefox version 1.0 browser suggest that it is not compatible, with the instant invitation menu option not working at all.

It will come as no surprise for you to hear me say that I was not impressed with aveComm. The VoIP bridge is a good idea, but the call quality has to be better in order to be usable.

The biggest disappointments have to be the lack of PowerPoint presentation facility and the poor application sharing feature. These features are crucial to any capable web conferencing tool, and aveComm just does not deliver the goods.

Major improvements are required if aveComm is to make headway in this software sector. I hope that Atinav can learn some lessons from the current crop of market-leading products; because at present, aveComm is not at the races.

For now: Not recommended

More info: http://www.avecomm.com/

System requirements: http://demo.avecomm.com/help/

Pricing:

Server-based solution - USD 180/user (one-time fee + 20% optional recurring annual maintenance and updates fee).

Hosted solution - USD 40/user/month for a 5-seat minimum.

Free trial: http://demo.avecomm.com/aveComm-Signup.asp