Exploring Business Communicator

Business Communicator offers Voice/Video or Collaboration versions. Both versions give you voice and video functions; however, Collaboration also gives you IM/chat, presence (live status of you and your colleagues), and My Room features.

The Collaboration version also has a green banner across the top of the main window with your name. In addition, it will have a house icon, the ability to set your status and location, and a circle with your initials where you can add your profile picture.

From the main Business Communicator window, you can access your contacts, which syncs with your other Hosted VoIP services; start an IM/chat (Collaboration version); call a contact; search directories; and set features.

The green banner shows your presence status: available, away, busy, or offline. You can manually set your presence status, include your picture or an avatar, set your location, and add a personal note to give people more information about your status. You can also access My Room (identified as a house icon), which is a dedicated IM/chat room that lets you IM/chat with contacts who also have the Collaboration version. From My Room, you and your participants can call into a meeting and share your desktop.

Most of the features listed on the menu on the left can also be accessed from the top menu. In the Voice/Video version, you won’t have access to IM/chat history.

As you’re making or receiving a call, the Business Communicator active call window opens next to the main window. Use the active call communication ribbon at the top of the window to end a call, put a caller on hold, mute yourself on a call, and access more features from the dial pad icon to transfer a call, start a conference call, park a call, and set the volume for your headset or speaker.

To the right of the communication ribbon at the top you can also access the following features:

Chat (speech bubble icon)—if you have the Collaboration version you can IM/chat with contacts you’re speaking with if they also have the Collaboration version.

Video call (video icon)—start a video call from Business Communicator.

Screen share (computer with an arrow icon)—start sharing your screen with the caller to show an application or your entire desktop.

Information (an i with a circle icon)—edit the profile of a contact and add a contact.

Incoming calls can be answered from the active call area. When you’re on a call, Business Communicator displays the active call details from the main window and automatically looks-up the caller’s phone number and, if the caller is a personal contact, will show the caller’s name.

From the active call area, you can do any of the following:
 

• To end the call, click the red handset icon.
  
  
• To put a call on hold, click the pause icon.
  
  
• To put yourself on mute, click the microphone icon.
  
  
•  To add a video call, set your audio device to either a headset or speakers, or edit or view the caller’s profile, click the three vertical dots icon.