Hi, asking a question for my wife, she needs to organize an AGM for a charity, however, one of the trustees has nothing but a landline and a desktop PC with no mic, camera, etc.

What we’re looking for is a meeting app like Zoom, Teams, etc that will allow everyone to meet online but also allow one person to dial into the meeting from a landline.

I’ve looked online and it looks like the phone-in option is often part of the paid package and it’s difficult fo a charity to justify paying for a meeting app so one person can join, UK call costs are not an issue though.

Any ideas?

Cheapest option might be to get a web cam. Not expensive. Other option, do they have a relative that could pop round with a smart phone or a tablet ?

The other option is that said person phones another member and they have their call on loudspeaker – fingers crossed they can hear other members via the PC’s speaker.

Zoom will give you a dial in number for audio, just make sure you select the U.K. as it defaults to US.

Teams is really annoying to use.

If I read the question right the luddite has a landline an no broadband? Post/courier/hand them a phone or tablet with a SIM that has adequate data and has the app front and centre on the home screen with the meeting link preloaded.

Zoom will give you a dial in number for audio, just make sure you select the U.K. as it defaults to US.

Teams is really annoying to use.

This.

Zoom dial in. Can be used with the free account but 40 min limit for any meeting. It might be worth them taking out a 1-month membership so they can have a longer meeting. I would have thought £14 for an AGM cost was reasonable, given I’m guessing they would normally be hiring a room or similar?

Thanks guys, I hadn’t found a dial in option for zoom, I guess it’s only in the paid for version. I’ll suggest they cough up for a month of zoom.

You probably don’t care but Zoom is banned in my company by our information security colleagues. The looked at it and have mandated it is not installed on any company computer, tablet or phone.

We use MS teams which for us has a dial in option.

Thanks guys, I hadn’t found a dial in option for zoom, I guess it’s only in the paid for version.

I’m running an international conference with it at the moment (we have no budget) and some delegates are using the free option and for their meetings (logistics of this particular thing are complex), and when you schedule a meeting and copy the meeting invite you get the phone dial in codes.

@db yep many companies take that perspective. And yes Zoom is not fantastically secure but is secure enough. You’re IT sec guys will probably also acknowledge that a) teams is only marginally more secure than zoom and b) functionally a pain in the arse thereby pushing many into the arms of uhm zoom.