4 ms·

> But the second you allow phone dial-in (virtually always a hard requirement) I'm really curious about this one — I've noticed that indeed in the US people te

by jwr 7y ago

> But the second you allow phone dial-in (virtually always a hard requirement) I'm really curious about this one — I've noticed that indeed in the US people tend to expect to be able to dial-in using the PSTN. Why would people do that? I haven't seen this happening much in Europe, and the Whereby (https://whereby.com/ https://whereby.com/) conferencing tool doesn't even offer dial-in, which isn't a problem. Why is dialing in using the PSTN a thing?

detaro 7y ago
Because everyone has a phone pretty much everywhere, and knows how to use it. So its the ultimate fallback channel for people having computer issues, network issues, being on the move or in remote locations, ...
pwinnski 7y ago
I've participated in Zoom meetings while driving. I've participated in Zoom meetings while sitting in a conference room with a speakerphone of considerably higher quality than any laptop mic. The first case is probably unsafe. The second was very common back when we had offices with high-quality speakerphones.
johannes1234321 7y ago
Dialing in via phone works for everybody, no app needed, no app to use etc. it works with all sorts of conf room setup and even the use case of "assistant sets up the phone call for the CEO and then transfers the call" works.
kevin_thibedeau 7y ago
Not using Zoom but I have one coworker with a new Dell laptop that won't properly detect headphone jack events. He has to dial in. I had the same problem but found a way to fix it. The Waves Maxx Audio tool which is apparently responsible for managing the hardware is useless junk.
crazygringo 7y ago
In my experience at large corporations, it's mainly used when you're participating in the meeting from your cellphone, because you're on your way to the airport, on the train, in a hotel lobby, etc., but it's crucial they don't make a decision without you or that you hear all the details or correct misunderstandings. Obviously this is more common day-to-day for management/sales who are constantly traveling, than engineering. For whatever technological reason, cell phone calls tend to be far more reliable than internet calls. Especially if you're in a taxi or on a train, you may get so many dropped packets it's literally unusable. While an actual phone calls works perfectly fine. Not sure if it's how carriers prioritize traffic, or different technologies, or what. I'd be curious if anyone has the answer. I'm also not sure why this would be any different in Europe. (It's also, of course, the option of last resort when you can't get the damned app/microphone to work for whichever of a million reasons.)
- extrapickles 7y ago
  Also most conference/meeting rooms in companies are setup to only use a specific meeting platform, forcing you to dial in if the meeting is with a client/vendor on a different platform.
- iso1631 7y ago
  I'm in engineering and often traveling, and thus dial in. One thing I do get from others is complaints that the voice quality on a mobile phone is far less than using data. Zoom does seem to be more reliable than skype for business.
- iknowstuff 7y ago
  It's QoS and bufferbloat: https://www.bufferbloat.net/projects/ https://www.bufferbloat.net/projects/
acdha 7y ago
Low latency, more reliable, works on any device without needing to monkey with settings or policies or install a client app.

by jwr 7y ago

detaro 7y ago

Because everyone has a phone pretty much everywhere, and knows how to use it. So its the ultimate fallback channel for people having computer issues, network issues, being on the move or in remote locations, ...

pwinnski 7y ago

I've participated in Zoom meetings while driving. I've participated in Zoom meetings while sitting in a conference room with a speakerphone of considerably higher quality than any laptop mic. The first case is probably unsafe. The second was very common back when we had offices with high-quality speakerphones.

johannes1234321 7y ago

Dialing in via phone works for everybody, no app needed, no app to use etc. it works with all sorts of conf room setup and even the use case of "assistant sets up the phone call for the CEO and then transfers the call" works.

kevin_thibedeau 7y ago

Not using Zoom but I have one coworker with a new Dell laptop that won't properly detect headphone jack events. He has to dial in. I had the same problem but found a way to fix it. The Waves Maxx Audio tool which is apparently responsible for managing the hardware is useless junk.

crazygringo 7y ago

In my experience at large corporations, it's mainly used when you're participating in the meeting from your cellphone, because you're on your way to the airport, on the train, in a hotel lobby, etc., but it's crucial they don't make a decision without you or that you hear all the details or correct misunderstandings. Obviously this is more common day-to-day for management/sales who are constantly traveling, than engineering. For whatever technological reason, cell phone calls tend to be far more reliable than internet calls. Especially if you're in a taxi or on a train, you may get so many dropped packets it's literally unusable. While an actual phone calls works perfectly fine. Not sure if it's how carriers prioritize traffic, or different technologies, or what. I'd be curious if anyone has the answer. I'm also not sure why this would be any different in Europe. (It's also, of course, the option of last resort when you can't get the damned app/microphone to work for whichever of a million reasons.)

extrapickles 7y ago
Also most conference/meeting rooms in companies are setup to only use a specific meeting platform, forcing you to dial in if the meeting is with a client/vendor on a different platform.
iso1631 7y ago
I'm in engineering and often traveling, and thus dial in. One thing I do get from others is complaints that the voice quality on a mobile phone is far less than using data. Zoom does seem to be more reliable than skype for business.
iknowstuff 7y ago
It's QoS and bufferbloat: https://www.bufferbloat.net/projects/ https://www.bufferbloat.net/projects/

acdha 7y ago

Low latency, more reliable, works on any device without needing to monkey with settings or policies or install a client app.