DESK-TOP MULTIMEDIA

In the last few years the technology to deliver conversational multimedia services to the desktop has begun to mature. At the same time, the international standards required to ensure seamless interoperability have been ratified lending to the ready availability of systems to convert a mid-range PC into a desktop multimedia system. As the marker begins to settle, a wide range of products and services will become available allowing businesses and individuals to live and work in was they had never believed possible. Physical distance will no longer be a barrier to business relationships. This paper looks at some of the technology and standards that are delivering this vision. It starts with a look at the anatomy of a desktop system, progresses to looking at the standards on which it is based, and finishes with a discussion of groupworking in a real-world environment.