Acrobat Connect Pro To Spruce Up Web Conferencing

The new version of Adobe Acrobat Connect Pro launched by Adobe Systems Incorporated will take web conferencing and eLearning to a new level by giving users more control of their web meetings and enriching communication. This will enable organisations and schools to offer more engaging rapid training, interactive virtual classes and dynamic online meetings.

Acrobat Connect Pro includes many new features for web conferencing such as options for archiving and editing recorded online meetings; new presence capabilities that can allow federation with popular instant messaging (IM) clients; and powerful compliance and usage reporting tools. eLearning enhancements include break-out rooms to let students in virtual classes initiate separate conversations online; rapid authoring of video-based content; integration with Learning Management Systems (LMS) from Blackboard and SumTotal; and tools that track and organise online classes. Users can also easily tailor training sessions or meetings that help capture participants’ attention and increase knowledge retention, resulting in an online learning experience remarkably similar to an in-person class.

Toshiba America Business Solutions (TABS) has been using Acrobat Connect Pro to provide its dealers and employees with training and presentations ranging from compliance issues to new product introductions. “With Acrobat Connect Pro, we have been able to reach more people and maintain greater control over the content, which has given us a much higher degree of training consistency”, says Steve Bamberger, national training manager, eLearning, TABS. “Integrating Acrobat Connect Pro into our online training initiatives has been enormously instrumental in helping us enhance communications and grow business lines, and we’ve been able to extend this enrichment to other teams for use in product launches and customer meetings.”

Combined with the new version of Adobe Presenter, also introduced today, Acrobat Connect Pro can enable users to hold engaging online meetings. “Organisations and educational institutions alike are challenged with reaching highly distributed workforces or student populations, as well as communicating, collaborating, and transferring knowledge at the accelerated pace of today’s demands,” says Rob Tarkoff, senior vice president of Adobe’s business productivity unit. “Whether it’s meeting with co-workers across departments, or conducting virtual classes across continents, Acrobat Connect Pro can help break through technology barriers by letting virtually anyone participate in effective online communication and knowledge transfer.”