Using Sametime Connect
Sametime Connect allows you to find your coworkers online and send them instant messages. You can also start instant meetings that include audio and video, screen sharing, a whiteboard, and other collaborative tools.
The following terms will help you get started with Sametime Connect:
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Alert: A visual cue or sound that Sametime Connect uses to inform you of events such as incoming instant messages. See "Using Alerts" for more information. Sametime Connect uses two kinds of alerts:
- General alerts: Notify you when new instant meeting invitations, chat messages, or announcements arrive, and give you feedback when you add new names to your contact list. See "Setting General Alerts" for more information.
- Specific alerts: Allow you to play a sound or display a message whenever specific people in your contact list become Active. See "Setting Specific Alerts" for more information.
- Announcement: A brief, informational instant message that does not require a response. For example, you might send everyone in your department an announcement to remind them that an important meeting will start in five minutes. See "Sending Announcements" for more information.
- Chat: A real-time text conversation. You can chat with any of your online colleagues. Once a chat starts, anyone can invite other online people to join the chat. See "Chatting with People in Your Contact List" for more information.
- Chat transcript: A text log of a chat conversation. With Sametime Connect for the desktop, chat participants can save chat transcripts to their computers. Sametime Connect for browsers cannot save transcripts. See "Saving Meeting Information" for more information.
- Connectivity: The way that your computer connects to a server. See "Using Sametime Connectivity Preferences" for more information.
- Contact list: A list of your colleagues. You create your contact list. You can maintain multiple contact lists, transfer contact lists to other computers, and share your contact lists with other people. See "Creating and Maintaining the Contact List" for more information.
- Directory: A master list of all people associated with your company. Your system administrator maintains your company's Directory. You access the Directory when you add names to your contact list or invite people to instant meetings. See "Searching for Names in the Directory" for more information.
- Full names: Names that include server addresses (for example, Gina Brown/NYC/Acme). External users do not have full names. Only people in your company's Directory can have full names. Your system administrator creates the full names in your company's Directory. See "Displaying Full Names or Short Names" for more information.
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Groups: People in your contact list are organized in groups. See "Adding a Group to the Contact List" for more information. The two types of groups are:
- Personal groups: Groups that you define. You can add people from the company's Directory or external users to your personal groups.
- Public groups: Groups from your company's Directory. Your system administrator defines the contents of public groups. External users do not appear in public groups.
- Instant chat meeting: A private chat session that includes three or more people.
- Instant meeting: An unscheduled meeting that includes two or more people. You can start instant meetings from anyplace that you see green names: Sametime Connect, the Participant List of a meeting. Instant meetings can include any combination of chat, audio, video, screen sharing, the whiteboard, and other collaborative tools. See "Working with Instant Meetings" for more information.
- Nicknames: Unique names that you give to people in your contact list. For example, if your contact list contains two people named John Smith, you can assign a different nickname to each person. Nicknames appear only in your contact list; other people cannot see the nicknames. See "Using Nicknames" for more information.
- Online status: Your online status tells other people if you are available for online chats and instant meetings. See "Managing your Online Status" for more information.
- Online status message: The text that appears when people point to your name in the contact list. You can use the default online status messages or create customized ones. See "Customizing Your Online Status Messages" for more information.
- Short names: Names that do not include server addresses (for example, Gina Brown). Your system administrator creates short names in your company's Directory. See "Displaying Full Names or Short Names" for more information.
- Who Can See If I Am Online list: A privacy feature that allows you to determine which people can see your name when you are online. See "Determining Who Sees You Online" for more information.