Blackboard Collaborate is an online, collaborative learning platform well-suited for the education industry and corporate learning needs. It includes features such as screen and application sharing, web conferencing, and integration with Blackboard Learn.
$300
per year
Webex Webinars
Score 8.8 out of 10
N/A
Webex Webinars is a scalable webinar platform that helps users to create engaging and impactful experiences for everyone, from small sessions to massive global audiences.
I would say it is very useful for group collaborations online, as well as virtual classrooms where you wish your students/guests to collaborate in an adaptable environment; however I would advise against using the shared screen to display audio or video, nor would I encourage the use of the shared board with a group of people with disciplinary issues (as there is no accountability for who wrote/drew what).
I'd say mainly well suited for larger audiences. I think there's probably some products that are a little more economical for smaller audiences, but if you need a solid, reliable platform for larger audiences, say more than a hundred people. So this is the best product for that or at least top two.
The Whiteboard feature is perfect for tutoring. We use it to write out formulas, draw diagrams, etc while in video chat to enhance explanations.
The file attachment feature is also very handy. This means we don't have to do a follow-up with a student using their email to send files of handouts, etc.
It's great that we only have to share a classroom access link for a student to enter a session. With other products, they had to set up a username and log-in with an account. Link access means 1 less hassle.
We are currently beginning to use the "record session" feature video sessions to use as training for new employees.
Cisco Webex Events is very straightforward and easy to use. Setting up an event within the platform is quite simple - anyone can do it.
Webex Events is a great add-on feature to the Webex conferencing platform to allow a one-way broadcast of information, rather than worrying about attendees being able to interrupt the presentation.
Recording a session is fairly simple and accessing the recordings post-event is quite reliable. I believe you can also upload .mp4 files into the Webex Events platform to serve as a host.
Some of the newest computer high resolution screens are not as compatible with the interface. The font and windows are much smaller and the user is not able to increase the size of the windows to make it easier to read/navigate.
The audio can sometimes be inconsistent and tune in and out when someone is speaking. This is not every time though and many times the audio is clear.
The login process takes a bit longer to get into the program. You have to go through a few step process and loading time to get into the application.
It is a tool that faculty likes to use. It has so much flexibility to allow students to see a class even if they happen to not be available in the classroom.
Webex Webinars continues to provide exceptional value as a community engagement and professional education platform. As long as there are a multitude of event offerings and the product continues to be supported with periodic software and security updates, I can anticipate using Webex Webinars for the foreseeable future. Overall a great product!
Blackboard Collaborate is reliable and feature-rich. It's a great web conferencing tool for teaching & learning, offering polls, chat, video and audio, whiteboard, content sharing, and breakout rooms. Blackboard Collaborate can be used for virtual office hours, lectures, guest speakers, training, professional development, conferences, technical support, academic advising, and so much more. Blackboard Collaborate can be used separately from the learning management system or it can be integrated for a single sign-on experience. It supports recordings, playbacks, private sharing, and MP4 downloads. Overall, it's a solid tool and very reliable.
My experience with this software is fantastic; it's so satisfying that it only took me a week to go through an internal training program to use this software, actually, I don't think this training program was necessary. Usability is one of the most fantastic features to guarantee the increase of members in remote events.
The availability of the software is quite impressive. You can access it at any time that you want and from anywhere that you want, but that depends on how the software is set up by the University. There might be sudden outages due to not having enough space on your database, which we had that very issue happen recently here at our University. During that time, you could not access their blackboard at all until it was brought up online again.
Webex Webinars are available 24/7 and is based on your license purchase and usage. Webex Webinars needs maximum bandwidth consumption for sending and receiving videos and listed below are some examples. High-Definition Video: 2.5 Mbps (Receive) and 3.0 Mbps (Send)· High Quality Video: 1.0 Mbps (Receive) and 1.5 Mbps (Send)· Standard Quality Video: 0.5 Mbps (Receive) and 0.5 Mbps (Send) Webex Webinars makes it easy to analyze attendance statistics, send participants to a post-webinar landing page, and integrate data into CRMs and marketing automation.
The performance of the software is remarkable. The loading speed of the pages is more than satisfying, it all depends on the users internet package. So far, there wasn't any issue of Blackboard slowing down other software or systems when integrated with them
You can turn around WebEx Attendance reports within 24 hours. Sign in to Webex Site Administration and go to Reports - Access Anywhere. Select the beginning and ending dates for the report. Report data is available only for sessions conducted up to three months before the current date depending on your administration set-up. From the Sort results by drop-down list, select the sort order criteria for the report. After hosting a WebEx Webinar, you have the ability to create a report of all of the participants and the times that they entered and left the meeting. Reports cannot track emoji's or reactions. Best practice for Q&A and tracking you can integrate SLIDO. You cannot save individual polling results. Also the polling report does not include who asked and answered the questions. This limitation does not apply to SLIDO. Closed captions and transcriptions are only saved if the Webinar is recorded. If you face problems during a webinar, you can hit then button which creates and send a report to Cisco who will then look into the problems to avoid future occurrences
Sometimes they do planned maintenance. Depending on the time zone you’re in, this may be in the middle of the night. That’s great. Sometimes this maintenance isn’t completed overnight however, and you need to use the platform and it is down. I’ve never been able to successfully contact them to report an outage or get assistance when it is down. I just have to wait until it comes back up to go to class, review sessions, etc.
I love the control that this product gives to those running the meetings. It allows you to assign presenter roles to people and everyone else that is an attendee can be totally controlled, like whether they can unmute, use video or just sit there and watch. It really gives control of the meeting to those who are running it. And we love that ability for those meetings that we are trying to make sure people are listening in on instead of trying to participate.
Nearpod does not allow for the same type of synchronous environment that Blackboard collaborate does. Further, Nearpod, as the name suggests is best suited for a face-to-face classroom that is, preferably, one-to-one. While it has some of the same functions as Nearpod, Blackboard collaborate is best suited for remote transmission rather than face-to-face
ON24 has a lot more bells and whistles, which is great when you need them but when you're looking for a straight up platform to host a stand alone webinar, Webex Webinars is a good alternative. We've selected Webex Webinars when we don't need such a customized webinar console.
The reason for this rating is that the software is a pretty good tool that can be utilized for use in all of the Universities around the world. It has the capability to fulfill the needs of various different education systems. Although, there are slight improvements that are needed, therefore the rating is at 8.
Webex Webinars is a scalable platform designed for interactive experiences. It can accommodate attendees from 100 up to 100,000 attendees depending on the purchase of your license. The scalability is based on each company's requirements and usage. Webex Webinars can offer key features like real-time translations, moderated Q&A, live polling, and chat, making it suitable for both small and large audiences and can be deployed across multiple departments and sites as needed.
Because faculty can schedule sessions on-the-fly without IT involvement, they are able to accomplish goals that they plan for weeks in advance as well as impromptu goals that come up at a moments notice.
Integration with the campus Learning Management Systems provides quick and easy scheduling of sessions that can be joined easily by students in those courses.
Scheduling of meetings can also be done through the web interface directly which enables administrative departments not associated with courses in the learning management system to also schedule meetings not affiliated with courses.
On-campus users can schedule meetings without outside participants by sending an open "guest link" URL that allows users to participate despite not having an account within the system iteself.
