Abstract: Method and apparatus for video conferencing provides for automatically managing user views to provide ready, video only, full screen video, video with document not shared, and video with shared document views. Several different automatically managed user-interfaces for a dual monitor system provide, among other things, that the second monitor can be used for local video image only, used for all functions except shared applications, or to display shared applications.

Abstract: A video subsystem resides partially on a host processor and partially on a video board. Audio and communications subsystems reside partially on the host processor and partially on a audio/communications board. The video subsystem generates and passes local compressed video signals corresponding to local analog video signals to the communications subsystem. The audio subsystem receives and generates local compressed audio signals corresponding to local analog audio signals to the communications subsystem. The communications subsystem transmits the local compressed video and audio signals over a communications link to a remote computer system. The communications subsystem also receives remote compressed video and audio signals over the communications link from the remote computer system, and passes the remote compressed video and audio signals to the video and audio subsystems, respectively.