ESPA Video Conferencing Cisco s Movi Desktop System

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1 ESPA Video Conferencing Cisco s Movi Desktop System Introduction The ESPA Directorate is providing a distributed video conferencing service to its projects and partners around the world. This service will help to bring our research community together to work more efficiently, reducing costs and the travel-related environmental footprint of the programme. The ESPA service uses technology provided by Cisco ( using their Movi Desktop Client which is part of their wider set of video presence technologies. Cisco s generous support of the ESPA programme in providing technology and user licences for partners in developing countries means that ESPA can provide state of the art technology to all researchers on the programme. Technical support for the use of the Movi Clients service used by ESPA is provided by ESPA s Data, Evidence and Partnership Coordinator who can be contacted on evidence@espa.ac.uk. All users of the ESPA service can make point-to-point calls from their own Movi client (i.e. between two endpoints). If you d like to have more participants in a video conference it is necessary to make calls through the UK s academic Janet Video Conferencing Service (JVCS, UK academics can register directly with JVCS and book their own calls. Any other ESPA researcher can request assistance from the ESPA Directorate through the Data, Evidence and Partnership Coordinator: evidence@espa.ac.uk. This combination of Movi Clients and JVCS provides higher quality connections than standard peer-to-peer services (e.g. Skype) as well as giving the option to link with other networks of standard video conferencing (e.g. UK Government) and the ability to web-stream and podcast virtual events. Changing your password It is not currently possible to change the password you have been given for your Movi account. If you think your account has been compromised please contact evidence@espa.ac.uk for a new password. Version 0.0 dd-mmm-yyyy

2 Hardware requirements Windows / PC Processor: Memory: A processor supporting SSE3 (such as Pentium 4 Prescott) or better. 512MB RAM or more. Operating system: Windows XP SP2 or later, Windows Vista, or Windows 7. Connection: Graphics card: Sound card: Microphones: Camera: Mac Processor: Operating system: Connection: Microphones: Camera: IP network connection (broadband, LAN, wireless). At least 24 kbps is required for an audio connection. For a video connection, the recommended minimum is 128 kbps. OpenGL version 1.2 or higher. Hardware support for DirectX 8 or higher. Any standard sound card (full-duplex, 16-bit or better) should work with Movi. Whilst all microphones work well with Movi it is best to use a dedicated headset to avoid echo and interference. If this is not possible the next best option is to use headphones in conjunction with your computer s built in microphone. Note that some cameras have built-in microphones. Movi works with most common web cameras. All Intel processors Mac OS X 10.6 or later is recommended. Make sure to have the latest security updates installed. IP network connection (broadband, LAN, wireless). At least 24 kbps is required for an audio connection. For a video connection, the recommended minimum is 128 kbps. Whilst all microphones work well with Movi it is best to use a dedicated headset to avoid echo and interference. If this is not possible the next best option is to use headphones in conjunction with your computer s built in microphone. Note that some cameras have built-in microphones. Movi works with most common web cameras. Page 2

3 Downloading and installing Movi. 1. The links to download the software are provided at: 2. Follow this link to the Movi desktop download and save the zip file to your computer. 3. Open the file with a program such as WinZip. 4. To install in Windows, open the.exe file. For Mac, use the.dmg file. 5. Follow the instructions given. Page 3

4 Connecting for the first time Once you have installed the software you will need to connect to ESPA s Video Communication Server (VCS). When you run Movi for the first time you will be presented with the login screen. Before you login you will need to provide the detail of the ESPA VCS. You need to click on advanced (bottom left of the box). You will then be asked for the addresses of the ESPA server which should be entered exactly as: External VCS: vcs.espa.ac.uk SIP Domain: espa.ac.uk Please note that the Internal VCS box should be left blank. You can then type in the username and password you have been provided and click on Sign in. Once you have logged in you should see a small window used to control your calls. The green dot next to your name means that you are logged on. If you don t see this, it means you may have problems with your firewall. Please evidence@espa.ac.uk for further information. Page 4

5 Before you make your first call, you should check your video and audio settings. Click on the toolbox icon to bring up your settings. It is recommended that you reduce the default video resolution to medium when you first start to use the system. (You can increase it later if you wish.) It is recommended that you reduce the bandwidth to 384 kbps for incoming and outgoing bandwidth. (You can increase it later, if you wish and your system permits.) You should check which devices are being used for audio input and output as well as video input. You made need to change these if you find you can t hear other callers or they can t hear you. Whenever possible you should try to use a headset with its own microphone, to avoid audio feedback. Once you have finished checking these settings, click on OK. You are now ready to make your first call. You can use Cisco s traffic camera in Oslo to test the system. Enter the address emea.trafficcam.tsec@cisco.com and click on the green Start button. Page 5

6 You should see the typical Oslo rush hour moving on your screen (no sound). If you move your mouse cursor and hover at the bottom of the video screen, you will be presented with a control panel for the call To end the call click on the end button Page 6

7 Making Calls To make a call to another ESPA Movi user, just start typing their name in the search box and their full name should be presented to you. If they are online, there will be a green dot next to their name. You can just click start (or add them to your favourites first). The system will try to call the other user and if they accept your call you will be connected. When you are finished, hover at the bottom of the video screen to bring up the conference controls and then click the red End button. Page 7

8 Controlling your call When you are in a call you have a number of options to control your actions. In all cases, start by hovering your mouse at the bottom of the video screen to bring up the conference controls. Picture in Picture Use this icon to display a small window that shows the image from your own camera. This will display what the other participant(s) see from your end. Mute Video Use this icon to turn off your video. NOTE: The system will continue to transmit a still image of what was visible at the time you clicked on the icon. An icon at the right of your screen will remind you that you have muted your video. Mute Audio Use this icon to mute your audio. (Often a good idea in multi-party video conferences if you are not speaking.) Remember to unmute your microphone when you want to speak again. An icon at the right of your screen will remind you that you have muted your audio. Volume The volume control for Movi. Note that you may also need to adjust volume on your computer system. Full Screen Maximise the video window to take up the full screen. This is particularly effective if your computer has dual screens as the video will take up all of one of the screens. Share Screen / Presentation When you click on this icon you will be given a choice of windows to share with other participants, or to share the entire screen from your computer. When you want to stop sharing your screen (or presentation) you should click on the icon again and click on the icon marked in red to Stop sharing presentation. End Videoconference Page 8

9 Calling Other Systems. The ESPA test system has been set up to allow users to call into other systems: IP Based Video endpoints You can call any IP-based (H.323) system by simply entering the system s IP address as a Movi call in the search box (e.g ). Some systems may require you to enter a conference code once you ve called the IP address, using dial tones. You can bring up the keypad for Movi by hovering your mouse at the top of the video window to bring up a partly transparent banner. Please note that the banner won t appear unless you re already connected to a call. You need to click on the the other system. Icon to bring up the keypad and then type in the codes as required by E164 numbers (currently only within the JVCS system) You can call any endpoint which has been assigned its own E164 number on the JVCS system using the format: 0044nnnnnnnn. For calls to E164 numbers on other systems (e.g. UK Government Departments) please contact the ESPA Directorate who may be able to assist you in establishing the call ISDN calls It is possible to make ISDN calls if you can connect through the JVCS system. You need to register with JVCS and provide invoicing details for the real cost for ISDN calls. Multi-party video conferencing The standard Movi system being used by ESPA can make calls with only two participants. This can be increased to include large numbers of participants using the JVCS system. UK researchers from academic institutions should register with JVCS and should book their own calls using JVCS. Other ESPA researchers should contact the ESPA Directorate at evidence@espa.ac.uk for assistant in booking multi-party video conferences. Further Information If you need more information about the Movi system, please consult the relevant user guide which is available for download at Page 9

10 This document has been produced by the Directorate of the Ecosystem Services for Poverty Alleviation (ESPA) Programme. ESPA is a programme funded by the Department for International Development (DFID), Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), as part of the UK s Living with Environmental Change programme (LWEC). The ESPA Directorate is a partnership between the University of Edinburgh, Imperial College London, The University of Oxford and the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED). The ESPA Directorate is hosted by Research into Results, a wholly-owned subsidiary company of the University of Edinburgh, responsible for the delivery of research and project management services in the area of international development. The views expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the ESPA programme, Research into Results, The University of Edinburgh, other partners in the ESPA Directorate, LWEC, NERC, ESRC or DFID.