Coin Video Chat

These livestreams on YouTube by Dustin Morgan, Justin Couch, Sylvia J and others has me looking further into technology and how it can impact the hobby.   I'm not talking about technology being developed, but those devices we already have available.

Our daily lives have changed greatly in just the last 10 years.  Phones used to flip open and have buttons.  They were used to call people.  When you hung up, it was folded and stuffed in your pocket.  They're a little more versatile now.  You can make home movies on the things.  When I grew up there was 1 phone in the house.  It was black, weighed about 12 pounds, had about 5 feet of cord, and if you were talking to someone 100 miles away you had to yell.

Texting, back in the day

10 years ago I had a desktop computer.  It was called a desktop because that's the amount of real estate it covered.  Between the monitor, tower, keyboard, mouse, and speakers, there was not much space left on the desktop.  I saw this as great progress because 30 years ago I had a manual typewriter.

These technologies take a few years to move from development to niche market and finally to widespread use.  The past couple of years has seen an explosion in digital camera quality.  Combine these cameras with increased broadband access and you've got video phones.  Phones, laptops, USB cameras...they are affordable, functional, and widespread.

I talk to my family as often as I dare.  I shave first, and put on a clean shirt.

Now take it to the next level, add a few thousand people in a single coin group on facebook.  Now you have an endless number of people to chat with, and a common subject to chat about.  I tried an experiment the other day with 4 other people involved, 5 of us total.  1 fellow did not have the camera activated, but could talk along with the rest of us.  For the most part, it worked pretty well.  Being an experiment, we did not have a selected subject to discuss so there were a few periods of quiet.  Nonetheless, we still found plenty of common ground and ended up talking coins for over an hour.

It's not unlike having 5 interactive livestreams going.  I was quite impressed with the potential this venue offers:  A close gathering of like minded people in a video chat with a common purpose can add another level of communication to the hobby.  I should like to do a Q&A chat.  Perhaps a chat about coin holders one night with some new collectors.  Another day, have a brief talk about selling coins and how to get started.

Being an experiment, the first video chat showed some issues that need to be addressed to make for a smoother chat.  It would help if everyone involved understood that their are protocols that can be followed to improve the experience for all.

Background Noise
When a user's microphone picks up a sound, that sound is broadcast to the group.  It also supercedes whatever else is being broadcast.  Jack is talking, John drops a coin.  The facebook chat software kills Jack's signal in favor of John's coin.  The result is a lot of interruption.  A better chat is found when background noise for each person involved is reduced to s minimum.

Don't Everyone Speak At Once
As with the background noise, if Jack is speaking and John starts to speak, Jack gets shut out.  Then if Alice chimes in, she gets priority.  With several people involved, it may be useful to set up an order, with each person speaking in turn.

How Many People
This would be dependent on the speed of the slowest connection.  Bring in too many people, the machines get overwhelmed.  I've tried this with 2 people, 3 people, and as many as 5 people.  So far so good.

Talking Points
Eliminate dead air time by creating a list of talking points ahead of time.  Keep the chat moving.  Dead air is wasting the time of everyone involved.  In a Q&A session, have your questions at the ready.  A little bit of planning can turn a chat into a productive session.

Test Equipment First
If you want to switch from one camera to another, test it first to see if it works before getting into a chat and finding out then that it won't work.  A 2 minute chat with someone will find this out for you.  Check the background of what your camera will be pointed at.

Ending the Chat
I have found that once a chat is ended, Google Chrome needs to be shut down and restarted before another begins.  Could be the way my computer is configured.  You'll find out eventually what subtle nuances the software requires.

Future Possibilities
Imagine if the software could handle several cameras, and hundreds of people.  Lectures, classes, presentations all become possible, with real time video interaction.  This is already possible with a few people.  I think it would be incredible to do with dozens, scores, or hundreds.
How about a Live Coin Auction every Monday Night at 8PM?  That would be interesting.

All this makes me wonder where we'll be in another 10 years.