Unified communications (UC) overview

- [Instructor] Humans have been communicating with one another since the time of the cave dweller, in the form of symbols or rock art, etched in the cave, to convey a religious icon or communicate a story. Communication has progressed over the centuries and has evolved from pictures to alphabets, and then more formal ways of sharing information, such as couriers, postal systems and newspapers. In the 1800s, we began to see an expansion of sharing information with the development of the Typewriter and Telegraph. In the 1900s, we saw the telephone, radio and television. And after the 1950s, we saw computers, computer networks and the internet. In today's world, we use any combination of communication methods, including email, phones, instant messaging, and video conferencing. Communication can be real-time or non-real time. During real-time communication, the sender and receiver communicate in both directions at the same time. Non-real time communication is asynchronous and includes blogs, fax, traditional mail and email. It's not time sensitive. It's posted and picked up at another time. Effective communication requires feedback. Unified Communications combines different forms of communications and provides a framework for a consistent user interface across multiple devices and improves business communications. Unified Communications leverages the IP network. We can combine communications across a wide range of platforms, including commercial-off-the-shelf tools such as Outlook and Customer Relations Management tools and mobile apps. Features can include voicemail, fax, chat, email, video conferencing and presence information. Presence information lets you know if someone is available and willing to communicate. At the heart of Unified Communications is IP telephony or VoIP. With Unified Communications, an individual can send a message on one platform, the receiver will get the response on another platform. For example, I receive a voicemail message. Unified Communications will translate it to a text or an email message. I'll then pick up the phone, check the party's presence information, and if available and willing to talk, I can call or message the individual. Unified Communications has many benefits. It improves employee and team-based productivity, provides more efficient communication by providing presence information, reduces travel by enabling video conferencing and online collaboration, and offers toll cost savings. Although there are many benefits, prior to implementation, the business should conduct a careful assessment, design the networked environment, select appropriate components, software and devices, and plan for network management and security needs. Unified Communications combines voice, email and instant messaging into a seamless business application that improves overall efficiency.