Can you hear me/see me now? Appalachian Ohio gets connected.
The Appalachian Ohio region
spans 29 counties in a rural economically depressed region covering
nearly 300 miles. The sparse population and distances present major
challenges to bringing the region together in coordinated efforts.
WIRED is breaking this distance down through the creation of a regional
online collaboration space where leaders investigate, model and
implement cutting edge collaboration tools.
As a result, the region is introducing the Macro Media/Adobe
Breeze webinar software allowing regional leaders to share their
computer screens thereby enabling all participants to instantly see
documents and changes that are made throughout the course of a meeting.
The meetings will also be recorded for those that can not attend in
real time.
Through the use of this software the region
projects $1,000 in savings in travel costs along with a 16 hours time
savings at the first meeting of its Executive Committee. More savings
are expected as time goes on. Better yet, webinars are not dependent on
weather or road conditions.
These products are web based SAAS,
Software offered as a Service and little IT support is required beyond
an internet connection. Online training is straight forward and for the
most part, only the moderator or an assistant needs advanced knowledge
of the system. For more information on connecting your region, visit
the Appalachian region at
http://www.itaao.net/ .
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