Hi all,

We are definitely in interesting times! Many people are self isolating, others very much limiting contact with the outside world.

But we do all need to communicate. Fortunately there are MANY options out there as well as the boring old phone call to talk to friends and family. Calling with video can make for a much better experience. Plus many of them allow for group chats so you can still meet up with friends virtually.

If you have a modern laptop, tablet or just your mobile phone, you are good to go. If you have a desktop computer, you will need to add a webcam and microphone, although some webcams come with a microphone built in.

Much has been said recently of Zoom. This is an enterprise product, but it does have a free option. I may look at this myself to do some online karate classes for my club. Others have used this for choir practice and other club meetings.

But there are many other options.

Facebook messenger can be used to make video calls.

Skype and Google Hangouts are also popular and good for group meetings and can also be used for screen sharing.

And of course there is always Whats App, Face time, and others.

So if you have not tried this before, now is the ideal time to give this a go.