Running Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional

To receive a call, you must be running NetMeeting. Unless you're communicating over your own local area network, you must also be connected to the Internet. If the party calling you is planning to find you on a directory server, you must be logged on to that server. When the call comes in, you'll hear a sound like a ringing telephone—assuming you have a sound card and speakers. A message window will appear, regardless of which program you're currently working in, informing you of the caller's identity and asking whether you want to accept the call. The ringing will continue until you click Accept or Ignore, or until the caller clicks Cancel.

Accepting Calls Automatically

You can have NetMeeting accept all incoming calls automatically. To do this, choose Automatically Accept Calls from the Call menu (when the command is selected a check mark appears next to it). If you choose this option, NetMeeting notifies you when a call arrives. It doesn't ask whether you want to accept.

Running NetMeeting Automatically at Startup

NetMeeting also includes an option that causes the program to run automatically when you start Windows. If you exercise this option, the program watches for incoming calls and notifies you if one arrives, but it remains out of sight until then. If you want to interact with NetMeeting after starting it in this way, you can double-click the NetMeeting icon that appears in the taskbar's status area.

Note, however, that if you expect to receive calls over the Internet, your Internet connection must also be established automatically at startup for this background mode to work. Otherwise, NetMeeting reports an error when it tries to log on to your directory server.

To have NetMeeting run automatically at startup, choose Options from the Tools menu. On the General tab, select the Run NetMeeting In The Background When Windows Starts check box.

Hanging the Do Not Disturb Sign

To have NetMeeting automatically reject all incoming calls, choose Do Not Disturb from the Call menu. After you choose this option—and until you choose it a second time—anyone trying to call you receives a message saying "The other party did not accept your call."

Note that NetMeeting always starts with Do Not Disturb turned off, even if the feature is turned on when you close NetMeeting.