You will be given the option of downloading NetMeeting or the NetMeeting Resource Kit. Do not bother with the Resource Kit (which is for business users managing multiple NetMeeting users within an organization); please just download NetMeeting 3.01. This is a multi-megabyte file, so use the fastest connection you can to download.

The installation is easy and involves numerous default choices; just say "yes" to all the defaults. However, once the installation is done, there is a very important step you must do to configure NetMeeting. On the Tools pulldown menu in NetMeeting 3.01, go to Options. Under General, use the pulldown menu to change the Directory to Microsoft Internet Directory. This makes it easy for you to find whoever you are calling without worrying about on which Microsoft server they are logged in.

A big change in NetMeeting 3.01 is that you no longer see the list of who else is logged in (as we saw in class). Instead, under the Call pulldown menu, you must specify the exact login name and email of the person you are trying to reach. (Microsoft probably made this shift to cut down on the "let me find a stranger for adult recreation" usage of NetMeeting.) This means that each small group member needs to communicate to the others exactly how they have entered their name in NetMeeting, the email address they are entering, and their phone number (so you can talk offline to clear up any problems). It will be important for small group members to exchange this information.

Another way to connect person to person is to call their IP address directly. For example, if my IP address is 169.9.29.130 and you could call it directly by typing that number in place of the login name. The disadvantage of this method is that most ISP's give you dynamically allocated IP addresses so that each time you log in it is different. The way around this is to log in, run a program called Winipcfg.exe from within the Windows directory which gives you your current IP address. You can then e-mail or use AOL Instant Messenger or equivelant to communicate your IP address which then can be called by another party directly as long as you have remained logged in.

It is also best if one person hosts the meeting and others all try to reach that person (who should sign onto NetMeeting somewhat in advance of the scheduled time, so that they are available). Otherwise, you may have a situation in which subgroups of the team are each connected to each other, but not all connected together. Selecting that person to host is another important thing that should happen in Tapped In. That person can use the Host Meeting feature on the Call Menu to configure the meeting.

Remember that the Microsoft servers are busy and that you may need to try multiple times over a significant time period to get connected (use the Log On to Microsoft Internet Directory command on the Call Menu). Do this before you try anything else, as you have to be connected before you can place or receive calls. NetMeeting is not good at letting you know you have successfully connected, but you can find out by noticing whether "Log On to Microsoft Internet Directory" on the Call pulldown menu changes to "Log Off Microsoft Internet Directory." This change indicates that you have successfully connected to a server and can now do other things. Just remember to allow lots of time and to be patient. Choosing a small group meeting time in the morning (if possible) will reduce the number of other people competing to log onto the Microsoft servers. Selecting the time is another important thing to do in Tapped In tonight.

NetMeeting is not well documented (typical of free software). Some information is available at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/netmeeting Look under "Features," under "System requirements," and under "Calling from home" (the last is on the right side of the webpage). There are links on the right hand side of the "Calling from home" page (e.g., chat online) that discuss how to accomplish different things. The best approach, though, is to arrange with one other person in your small group to log in to NetMeeting and practice together before the full team meets. This is very useful in debugging problems and feeling confident for the regular meeting.