Special Edition Using Microsoft Office Outlook 2003

Sometimes you just can't arrange to meet someone in person. You might need to meet with someone in a satellite office or someone from another company entirely. In such a case, you can create and hold an online meeting through Microsoft's NetMeeting software. Available in Windows 2000 and Windows XP, NetMeeting allows video conferencing (with proper equipment), provides a whiteboard environment, chat, file transfer, and remote desktop sharing.

This section provides a brief overview of using Outlook to schedule a NetMeeting. For more detail about NetMeeting, go to Microsoft's NetMeeting Web site at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/netmeeting/default.asp.

Configuring NetMeeting

NetMeeting is installed by default in Windows 2000 and Windows XP. To configure NetMeeting, use the following steps:

1. Select Start, All Programs, Accessories, Communications, NetMeeting.

   TIP

   If you can't find NetMeeting on your Windows XP computer, it's probably just not on your Start menu. You can still run the program by choosing Run from the Start menu, typing conf, and clicking OK.

2. Click Next on the Welcome screen to display the user information screen as shown in Figure 13.15.

   Figure 13.15. Your user information can be displayed during your NetMeeting.

3. Enter any necessary user information and click Next.

4. Select whether to log on to a directory server when NetMeeting starts and choose your directory server. You can choose not to list your name in the server's directory. Click Next to continue.

5. Select your connection speed and click Next.

6. Choose whether to put shortcuts to NetMeeting on your desktop or the Quick Launch bar and click Next.

7. Configure any audio devices you have installed on your computer and click Next through the prompts.

8. Select Finish to launch NetMeeting, Figure 13.16.

   Figure 13.16. You can utilize NetMeeting to share documents or a workspace among several users.

After NetMeeting has been configured, you can schedule a NetMeeting conference directly from Outlook's calendar. To create a new NetMeeting, use the following steps:

1. Create a new meeting request.

2. Invite attendees.

3. Check the box marked This Is an Online Meeting Using: and select Microsoft NetMeeting from the drop-down box.

4. Enter the directory server for this meeting. If you're using Microsoft's directory server, the default directory server is fine.

5. You can associate an Office document with the NetMeeting by clicking the Browse button to select a document from your hard drive or a network share.

6. To launch the NetMeeting client and connect to the meeting automatically, check the box marked Automatically Start NetMeeting with Reminder. If you choose this option, you might want to set your reminder for a short interval.

7. Click Send to send your meeting request.

When the reminder triggers for your meeting, a NetMeeting session automatically launches for the meeting organizer and all attendees who accepted the meeting.

NOTE

For more information about NetMeeting, please see "NetMeeting" in Special Edition Using Windows XP.

TIP

You can use Outlook's online meeting services to launch a Web site at a given time. Simply create a meeting request with only yourself as an attendee. Check the box marked This Is an Online Meeting Using: and choose Windows Media Services from the drop-down box. In the Event Address field, type the Web site address you want to launch. Check the box marked Automatically Start Windows Media with Reminder. When your reminder triggers, your Web site will launch automatically.