timebridge - ReadWriteWeb http://www.readwriteweb.com/feeds/tag/timebridge en Copyright 2009 Richard MacManus readwriteweb@gmail.com Mon, 23 Nov 2009 21:12:49 -0800 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/?v=4.23-en http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Bargain Conference Calling Comes to TimeBridge TimeBridge, the free, innovative meeting scheduling system, is announcing the availability of web meeting and conference call support at a low price. The premium upgrade to the standard free TimeBridge service costs $8.95 a month. If your company spends a bunch on conference call costs, this may end up being a key decision-maker between this service and one of its competitors. We first reported on TimeBridge in December.

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]]> The integration of conference calling into the TimeBridge system is pretty seamless. When creating a new meeting or appointment time, and you wish to add a conference call or web meeting, it's just a click away. Once added, a phone number with a local prefix is connected to your meeting time. After that, it's mostly a matter of completing the meeting details, sending the proposed times out, and waiting for go time.

Using TimeBridge for the first time, we found it fast and easy to use. After creating a test meeting with conference call and web meeting support, we had a little fun chatting for a few minutes on the phone. Overall, we found the service to be quick, easy and on par with other conference services like GoToMeeting and WebEx. Of course, this becomes a lot less surprising when you realize that TimeBridge does not offer an 800 number - it is a long-distance call for (almost) everyone who wants to dial.

The Web Conference module impressed us quite a bit. It supports whiteboard, desktop, document and web page sharing, as well as automatic detection of a webcam. There is a chat pane as well as an attendee management page for the presenter. Transferring control to a different presenter is supported, and if necessary taking control back. New attendees can be added without their having to have a TimeBridge login. Overall we thought the web conference experience was great.

Unfortunately, the options for the phone conference were somewhat limited. People are announced as they join a call - which is fine - but anyone is allowed to speak during the call, and there doesn't seem to be a way to 'end' the call once it is done. This may be OK for an impromptu business meeting or for involving remote employees, but it would be inadequate if you wanted to hold a shareholders meeting or other larger event that requires selective muting of callers.

Overall, we think that for $8.95 a month, you could do worse than what TimeBridge is offering. If you are already hooked on their multiple-suggested-times approach to meeting scheduling, you may find this addition very worthwhile.

]]>Discuss]]> http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/bargain_conference_call_support_comes_to_timebridg.php http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/bargain_conference_call_support_comes_to_timebridg.php News Mon, 09 Mar 2009 13:45:00 -0800 Phil Glockner TimeBridge Thrives on Scheduling Your Time TimeBridge is a San Francisco-based startup focused on making it easy to schedule meetings and appointments. In a relatively crowded market, the product has managed to show impressive growth over recent months, this week surpassing the 200,000 user mark, with over 12,000 businesses using the service.

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]]> TimeBridge recently announced its product's ability to sync with Apple iCal as well as with established calendar apps such as Google and Outlook. There has been speculation about the possibility that such rapid growth has been partly achieved through questionable means, specifically by one's contacts being mass emailed when Google Calendar is synced with TimeBridge's calendar. We tried to replicate this scenario, getting to the point at which TimeBridge supposedly sends out these invitations; although it is possible, you are given absolutely every opportunity to ensure that invitations are not sent out.

TimeBridge's stand-out feature is the simplicity with which it gives recipients alternative times and dates for each appointment. The appointment organizer sends out invitations with five optional times, and attendees are requested to select "Yes," "No," or "Best." If a particular time appears to be the "Best" for all attendees, TimeBridge will automatically set it as the time of the appointment. Otherwise, TimeBridge notifies the organizer of the alternatives and awaits confirmation.

We'll go into TimeBridge and other scheduling applications, such as Doodle and Tungle, in more detail in an upcoming post.

]]>Discuss]]> http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/timebridge_thrives_on_scheduling_your_time.php http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/timebridge_thrives_on_scheduling_your_time.php Enterprise Fri, 19 Dec 2008 06:00:00 -0800 Zee