Participants can send questions to the presenter using text chat. Netopia Inc. Rather than sending a continuous stream, Conference's screen broadcasting tool refreshes a participant's screen at a user-selectable interval. On the other hand, the Symposium client adds flexibility to Centra's already strong framework for live training. Symposium combines embedded PowerPoint presentations, integrated audio, electronic whiteboards, application sharing and collaborative Web surfing, all controlled by instructors who determine which students can present to the rest of the class. Content for Symposium or Conference can be built ahead using Centra's Agenda Builder, which supports multimedia files.
Instructors also can add material, such as a quick survey, on the fly.
Classes can be recorded and replayed, but Centra doesn't provide the extensive preclass reading, testing or discussion forums available in competitors' applications such as Lotus Development Corp.'s LearningSpace. Centra has replaced the discussion forums included in its last release with an API for linking to applications such as Microsoft Exchange. The Centra server now supports clustering to load balance an instructional network, sending users to a Centra server near them for improved performance. Improvements in scalability and capability make it a worthwhile upgrade. Inc. All rights reserved.