MMCX (MultiMedia Communications eXchange) enables team members in a local or widearea
network to collaborate on a project as if they were in the same room. Also, MMCX lets team
members join or exit conferences with ease since the product brings call control to the
desktop. For users with linked workstations, MMCX supports real-time voice, video, and
data capabilities. Users who don’t have linked workstations, or who are away from
their desks, can be bridged into a multimedia conference call as voice-only participants
(no data/video/application sharing). To accomplish application sharing, whiteboarding, and
other capabilities, MMCX uses NetMeeting APIs.
NetMeeting or any other H.323-compliant client software will work with the MMCX server.
Incidentally, Lucent claims the MMCX server is the first server on the market that not
only supports H.323 IP-based voice and data collaboration but also integrates with any PBX
voice network.
Compatibility problems are minimized thanks to MMCX’s support for the latest
industry standards, including T.120, SNMP for management, 10MB and 100MB Ethernet, and
ATM. Also, MMCX interoperates with the H.320 videoconferencing standard, and it will work
on circuit-switched or packetbased wide-area networks. Thus, conferees need not use the
same mixed media; they can use the media that are best suited to their environments.
PROS ANS CONS
Pros
- Integrates multiple media types — video, voice, and data.
- Supports collaboration among users (up to six conferees).
- Delivers excellent sound quality.
- Presents a user-friendly interface.
- Uses open standards, such as H.323, H.320, and T.120.
- Depends on NetMeeting APIs for whiteboarding and application sharing.
Cons
- Startup for the program was a bit slow (two minutes). We should mention, however, that
our test machines ran beta code, which could account for the slow startup.
- It took a few seconds (3–5) to connect to the PBX before it could initiate a call,
whether the call was directed to an internal extension or an outside line. (You may not
notice such a delay unless you were to dial a phone so near to you that you would actually
hear its ringing.)
INSTALLATION/DOCUMENTATION
The client software arrived preinstalled on two Pentium computers. These computers were
hooked up to a network hub in our lab by a Lucent technician who visited our offices. The
technician also took care of integrating to a Lucent Definity switch over an ISDN BRI
link. For the server, we set up a third machine, an industrialgrade Texas Micro computer,
which contained several telephony boards. This machine ran the server software and LynxOS,
a real-time operating system from Lynx.
The only configuration we had to do on the clients was to set up some speed dials, find
the IP address of each client, and add the IP address of the MMCX server to the H.323
gateway field within NetMeeting. This allowed us to use Microsoft NetMeeting as the GUI
call control application rather than the MMCX client software, and demonstrated
MMCX’s H.323 compatibility. (More on this in Operational Testing.) Since MMCX is a
fairly new product, we didn’t have access to any printed documentation. We did,
however, read the CD-ROM version of the documentation, which was very good, even
unexceptionable.
FEATURES
- Interface: The MMCX GUI provides a visual representation of call participants
in a virtual meeting room. (Up to six conferees may participate in a conference.) The
display also indicates what type of media the conferees are using. During a conference,
MMCX-enabled participants can add and drop services, participants, collaborative tools,
media, or software applications.
- Call Handling: The MMCX extends PBX features (conferencing, call transfer, call
redirection, dial plan) to an MMCX endpoint or any stan-dardscompliant endpoint.
- Definity Integration: The MMCX has some neat integration to Lucent’s
Definity switch. With the optional MultiMedia Application Server Interface, the MMCX will
support Definity features like selective call blocking, automatic call route selection,
and hunt groups.
- Other: Built-in audio coding and echo cancellation; dynamic bandwidth
allocation; efficient video transmission (a single video stream, sent across the WAN, is
received by the remote MMCX, which “multicasts” it to the remote endpoints);
remote maintenance capabilities; log-in password protection for administration and
maintenance.
OPERATIONAL TESTING
A Slow Start
It took quite a while from the time we double-clicked on the MMCX icon to the
time the logon screen popped up — almost two minutes. We supposed the problem was
that we were using the beta version of the client software. Of course, by now, Lucent may
have optimized the MMCX code and performance. Another possibility is that MMCX had to open
a connection to the Definity PBX, plus initiate a connection to NetMeeting to provide
whiteboard and application-sharing capabilities. If the two-minute time to load the
program is due to these factors, then the delay isn’t all that bad. Generally
speaking, you will log on once to the MMCX application and leave it running at all times.
You would shut down the application if you needed to reboot your machine.
Functionality: Client To Client
We called from one MMCXenabled PC to another MMCX-enabled PC using the MMCX
client software. When we dialed from user1 (PC client #1) to user2 (PC client #2), user2
responded to the ringing and clicked on the Answer button. Once the call commenced, the
Answer button became a “grayed-out” Drop button, and the Dial button became a
Conf (Conference) button.
Once connected, we initiated a videoconference, by clicking on the Send button. Then,
the person at the receiving end saw an icon appear above one of the five chairs in the
virtual meeting room. (This icon represented us, of course, since we initiated the
videoconference.)
Although MMCX supports a conference of up to six participants, the GUI only shows five
chairs. You might find this odd if you didn’t stop to think threedimensionally. Once
you do, however, you realize the sixth chair is yours, and the reason you don’t see
it is that you are peering at the other participants around you. (In Figure 1, you can see
three of the five chairs. The remaining two are obscured by the inset).
During our conference, we used MMCX’s built-in whiteboard (which is based on
NetMeeting APIs) to perform some collaboration duties. We saw firsthand how MMCX enables
advanced collaboration techniques such as application sharing. We shared another
user’s Windows Explorer application, which we could then control, or just view,
depending on what the other user permitted, through settings that user selected within the
application.
Functionality: Client To Regular Extension
We made a call from an MMCXenabled PC to a regular phone extension, which had
only voice capability and no collaborative computing functionality. This extension was an
internal extension on the Definity switch, which performed flawlessly.
We found that the MMCX is great for quickly dialing your co-workers, since you
don’t need to look up or scan a printed directory to find the extension of the person
you wish to reach. Instead, just access the Directory, where you can quickly find your
coworker’s extension, as well as dial, through a simple mouse-click. (We didn’t
test outside lines, since the functionality would be almost the same as dialing an
extension.)
NetMeeting As The Client
MMCX server into NetMeeting in the H.323 gateway field. Then, we were able to
dial from user1 to user2 by entering the IP address of the other user.
Using The Computer’s Internal Speaker
We liked using our computer’s internal speaker for generating the ring to
announce an incoming call, especially since the sound card in our setup had headset
plugged into it. We knew that if we were away from our desk and didn’t have our
headset on, we would be unable to hear the headset speakers ringing on an incoming call
from the network.
Our regular phone would still ring for ordinary calls, but we were worried about calls
that came over the network via the MMCX client software. With MMCX, the voice traffic,
dialtone, and phone ringing is all done over the network and through the multimedia
connection, not the regular phone.
ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT
Pre-Click/Post-Click: When transferring or conferencing, you have to enter the phone
number first. Some products have you click on Transfer, then type the number; other
products, such as MMCX, have you enter the number first, then click on the appropriate
button. Typing the number “pre-click” as opposed to “post-click” took
some getting used to, since most of the products we review require that we pre-click a
button then enter a number. Both procedures deliver the same functionality, however.
We entered the IP address of the Whether you use a product that supports pre-click or
post-click, you’re bound to get used to it after a while. We did notice, however,
that our Lucent representative made the same mistake we did; that is, he clicked the
transfer button first before entering the phone number. Why not have the best of both
worlds? Here’s how you can do it. Our suggestion is that if the Dial Number field is
blank and the user clicks on transfer or conference, that MMCX should detect the blank
field. If the field is blank, MMCX should pop up a dialog box asking the user to enter the
phone number or extension.
Video On Top: We would like to be able to make the video window stay on top,
so that it would float over other windows. This way, we could switch to other windows
without the video display getting lost behind another application. We would always be able
to see the other person, even if we were to switch to another application that was
maximized or in front of the video window.
Of course, this feature should be user-definable. That is, the user should be able to
turn it off “on the fly,” especially if the video window were to obscure any
menu options, icons, etc. Ideally, the user would right-click on the video window, bring
up a context window, and then check or uncheck the “stay on top” feature.
Making such a feature available would probably have more to do with the functionality
of the video capture card and the video software than with Lucent’s MMCX. Still, if
Lucent had the opportunity to implement this feature, we’d like to see it in a future
release. Faster Connection: Making a phone call would be easier if the MMCX would speed up
the connection between the client machine and the PBX.
Redialing: We’d like to see a Redial button on the GUI for dialing the last
number. Also, we’d like a dropdown box in the Call field that would bring up, say,
the last 10 numbers dialed. A 10-number history callback would be a very nice addition to
the feature set.
CONCLUSION
Lucent’s MMCX is an excellent call control CTI application. With its inviting and
easy-to-use interface, and its powerful features, the MMCX should suit techies and
technophobes alike. In addition, the MMCX supports open standards, which makes the product
a good investment. We would highly recommend this CTI product to anyone looking for a call
control application with audio and video conferencing capabilities, as well as excellent
collaboration features.
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