Synchronous versus Asynchronous

Synchronous is direct real time communication. All people are present at the same time.

· Instant messaging

· Voice chat

· Video conferencing

The benefits of Synchronous communication is that it is in real time, with instant response and feedback.

The disadvantages of this type of communication within the web environment is that all parties may not have the band width needed for quality of communication

Asynchronous

Asynchronous is communication not in real time. All people are not present at the same time.

· Email

· Blogs

· Pod casts

The benefit of this type of communication is that you can take part in the commucation when it suits you, when you have time. Also band width would not normally be a problem.

The disadvantage is that it can take time to get simple things done.