Hosting Virtual Meetings

3. What Do You Need for Software?

Now that you know what hardware and physical requirements you need, let's get into what you need to consider for your conferencing platform.

1. How many simultaneous users does the platform support? You'll need enough to accommodate your club's attendance as well as any potential guests.
2. What bandwidth requirements are there? If your club members don't have quality internet access, this can be an issue.
3. Does the platform support video? If so, how many people can use it at once?
4. For audio support, do you need a system that supports dialing in by phone?
5. What are the supported operating systems? Most should support Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android.
6. What options for controlling the room exist? You may need access to mute the room other than a single speaker (may be labeled "lecture mode"). 
7. How do you arrange or schedule a meeting? Does the system allow you to mail out a calendar invite or will you have to create your own?
8. How do people join the meeting? Do they need special software, or just a web link?
9. Does everyone in the meeting need an account with the service?
10. Is the platform easy to install and use? Any stumbling block here will reduce adoption rates and cause problems and frustration during meetings.