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A few days ago I started to think about video conferencing a lot, since when I move out further East, I might not have the chance to come back to Toronto that often to see people. Of course, if I wanted to be ultra pessimistic and have it bleed and ooze everywhere, I’d simply submit to the fact that even if I was in town I wouldn’t see that many people Click on to read more about my findings!

One of the services I found online was TokBox, which actually started up a few years ago, but hasn’t garnered as much attention of other services such as, say…Stickam (which is ultra creepy!).

Registration for TokBox was incredibly easy and after registration, you’ll have a new video mail message from the alluring (giggles) Lauren, who takes you through some of the basics of TokBox. The interface is VERY clean and easy to use. In TokBox, users can add friends (thanks Carl for realizing the potential and being the first!) to chat via IM (if they’re online), 1-on-1 video calling or, if they’re offline, a convenient video mail. Users can also start a conferencing session with up to 6 people (registered or guests), which usually has a very random URL as an attempt for privacy.

I should probably get a new webcam in order to have nice clear images, but my little humble and meek one gets the job done, even though I haven’t done a straight 1-on-1 or conferencing call yet. However, I’m sure that will happen very soon with my brother or friends soon

EDIT: There appears to be a few seconds lag (judging by when my voice is re-transmitted) when doing 1-on-1 video. I think this will only compound to greater levels when there is a conference call. However, perhaps the lag is mainly attributed to the “echo” (re-transmittance of my voice), since my bro didn’t use headphones.