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The educational potential of computer conferencing

Computer conferencing is a mode of communication in which participants send text messages between each others' computers which are all linked to a host computer via telephone lines. It is different from email in that it uses software that allows genuine group interaction. It is used for administrative purposes, for information exchange, for informal group interaction, and for distance education in which it can be combined with other media, e.g. face-to-face, satellite broadcasting, videoconferencing, ordinary correspondence, telephone contact, etc. The great benefit of computer conferencing for distance education is that it can be accessed at any time that is convenient to participants, since it need not be used for synchronous conferencing and the relevant files remain open to users for 24 hours of every day. It thus brings learners into frequent contact with each other as well as with their tutors and obviates, to a large extent, the need for cumbersome distance materials.