Mebeam Most Frequently Asked Questions:

Q: Is Mebeam free to use?
A: Yes, the current Mebeam is free and there will always be a free Mebeam version. However, there are plans for a commercial / business version with specific (extra) options.

Q: Which roomnames are free for private use?
A: All roomnames are free, except the public ones like room-** (where ** is a number). Just use an unique roomname like: Kate_Smile_23659 .

Q: For which Operating Systems is Mebeam available ?
A: Mebeam uses an Internet browser and a Flash plug-in. Any O.S. which has the ability to use Flash, can be used for Mebeam.

Q: Are there other ways to invite people into Mebeam?
A: Yes, there are 'plug-ins' available for a lot of Instant Messengers already! Like e.g. for Skype, Coccinella, AIM, Pidgin, Miranda, Windows Live Messenger (MSN), Google Talk, MeeBo, Adium, MSG and Jabber Instant Messengers.

Q: Why does Mebeam not work (not showing mine, nor others video) ?
A: When having problems with Mebeam not showing any, check your firewall settings. You have to allow Mebeam and Flash TCP port 1935 to communicate with your PC. It can also be that the servers are temporary down due to maintenance, upgrade or not foreseen reason: Try again later.

Q: Why is the video in Mebeam so slow for me? (The next item is also related)
A: First, you need a quite modern system to be able to do videocommunication without problems. A bottom rule is to have a cpu which is able to run at 1 GHz or better. Be sure you have enough environmental light for your webcam. Some CMOS webcams are tending to have a high(er) processor load. You also need to have sufficient free memory in your system and enough available internet bandwidth. See also the next item.

Q: Why does my video and audio seems to have often stops ? (See also previous item)
A: To get the best performance, you need a good and consistent quality of your internet connection. Especially the upload, it should have an available minimum of 256kbps. Check first your connection and speed and check if your ISP is manipulating your data.

Q: Why I can not I hear the sound from others ?
A: Initially people have to click twice (2 times) the mute button to hear sound.

Q: Why does Mebeam not show my own video?
A: Check the following things: (Compatible) Flash plugin for your browser installed, (Recent) drivers for your webcam installed and selection of the correct video device: Right mouse click in the multichat window. Select Flash Settings. Select the camera icon at the bottom row and select the correct video capturing device. If there are still problems and Flash Player v10 is used, than try also the latest Flash Player v9 (Note: The Netscape plug-in is also for Opera and Firefox browsers)

Q: Why does Mebeam close the room after some (predetermined) time?
A: After 90 seconds, the rooms will auto close when they are NOT in use by others. It saves lots of datatraffic and valuable server use. Rooms which are in use, will auto refresh each 20 minutes to minimize roomdelays and to clear users which are not active anymore, to give others a chance to enter that room when they were full.

Q: Why am I banned from Mebeam and how to solve it?
A: Abusive and/or insulting language, but also porno in any form are not allowed. When you got banned, you should know that there is a build-in freeing mechanism within Mebeam. Banned people have to try to login into a Mebeam room as many times as it takes to be freed from banning. If this does not help you, clear the browsers cache and try the unban procedure again. As for a reason other than mentioned before, that people got banned: If a lot of people come and go in/out a room and a person is set to be banned by a Mod, it could be due to timing that another gets banned too. Do NOT send an email and do NOT post a topic on the Mebeam forum about being banned: The freeing mechanism should work!

Q: I am a Mac user and why does my USB webcam not work in Mebeam?
A: If using an USB webcam, click the Settings control at the top right corner and click the small webcam tab, and make sure that the 'usb-class' webcam is selected.

Q: I want to have Mebeam on my website, but it seems not to work the way I want to?
A: The current Mebeam is not yet suitable to embed onto a personal webpage.

Q: Can Mebeam work on my local LAN?
A: Yes, but Mebeam needs access to the WAN for connection to the Mebeam servers. The up-/download requirement is a minimum of 256kbps per user, better much more. Note that Mebeam is not developed for local LAN use, due to that it will be slow and delayed. Take a look at the MeServe application development to create your own Flash server.

Q: Where should I ask for help when I have a problem with Mebeam?
A: If your problem is not mentioned here in the FAQ, you can post a message on the MeBeam forum in section 'Problems using Mebeam and Wigiwigi', but read first this here and you need to upload your picture as avatar to get any support for Mebeam. Last but not least: The used language on the forum is English only.

Mebeam is © Ashod Apakian.