____/ Attila on Friday 09 November 2007 08:30 : \____
> Roy Schestowitz wrote:
>
>> ____/ Attila on Thursday 08 November 2007 16:23 : \____
>>
>>> Roy Schestowitz wrote:
>>>
>>>> Skype for Linux 2.0 - with Video support
>>> <snip>
>>> Hi Roy,
>>> Being extremely sceptical about any claim regarding skype (or shite as
>>> the scousers say) I duely downloaded and tried out its "video
>>> support"[sic]. 1. It did recognise my camera as a sn9c1xx camera (a Trust
>>> 120 Spacecam v4l2 usb cam) on /dev/video. Hmmm so far so good.
>>> 2. I click the "test" button and one of two things happens:
>>> A. A get some sort of image that is basically green with red patterns
>>> flashing intermittently (roughly at 1 second intervals) or
>>> B. Clicking the button crashes Skype with the "aborting..." message.
>>>
>>> Both Ekiga and AMSN work fine with this webcam.
>>> So well done Skype.
>>> Attila
>>
>> It is a beta though. It's an early release.
>>
> This is true Roy but beta versions of most other applications of this type
> work or are quickly fixed. Bet you a fiver that it is not fixed in the
> official release (if there ever is an official linux release).
Yes, I agree. Do they accept bug reports? (it's proprietary software, so no
chance for patches)
> On another point, have you followed what Skype is doing regarding North
> American 0-800 numbers?
> Cheers,
> Attila
I've done several Web searched (new and old), but could not find anything.
Never seen anything in the news, either.
In any event, it's important to ensure that Skype has competition it its game.
They seem to have capitalised in their area, so they can get away with quite a
lot (including their NSA flirts and neglect of GNU/Linux users). Some links
appended, in case you're interested (at risk of making Skype argue that Free
software users are grumpy and opinionated).
Why proprietary code is bad for security
,----[ Quote ]
| Tho Skype is using an encrypted protocol, it’s still their own, non-disclosed
| code and property. So we don’t know what it contains.
|
| [...]
|
| It’s time to stop accepting that *we* are the bad guys, and to stop consuming
| things we just don’t understand (and cannot, because they are proprietary,
| closed-source systems).
|
| Say no to companies, or even governments who treat you like this. Start using
| open sourced products and protocols wherever you can. Even if *you* could
| still never understand the code used in these systems, there are still lots
| of people who can, and who will examine it. The magic word here is “peer
| review” - your friend or buddy or neighbour may be able to understand all
| that, and to help. No, not with Skype or Windows or any black box from Cisco.
`----
http://wolfgang.lonien.de/?p=394
Beware of Skype
,----[ Quote ]
| The Skype network has been a concern of government intelligence agencies
| since its inception because it provides a worldwide network of encrypted VoIP
| calls to potential “terrorists”. So how coincidental is it that 10 days after
| Bush signs into law a Bill giving the government authority to track foreign
| calls that go through U.S. networks that Skype, for the first time in its
| existence, undergoes a massive worldwide outage?
|
| [...]
|
| But there are FOSS alternatives to Skype people really should start
| considering now. One is the OpenWengo Project. Businesses, and even
| individuals, should also consider setting up their own Asterisk servers with
| encryption.
`----
http://www.freesoftwaremagazine.com/node/2479
Skype staff play good cop bad cop with Linux users
,----[ Quote ]
| Thank goodness for another staff member, Ryan Hunt, who injected a
| little decorum into the thread, and more than a little honesty, by
| admitting “With 1.4 we're taking it back to basics so we can do it
| right - because that's what you deserve” and stating that “One of
| the features at the heart of 1.4 is the greatly improved audio
| quality and stability.
`----
http://www.daniweb.com/blogs/entry1501.html
Closed Skype wants open networks
,----[ Quote ]
| For Skype is a closed system itself, using a proprietary signalling
| protocol, in contrast to the open SIP (Session Initiation Protocol)
| family of industry standards. In addition, the Skype client is closed
| proprietary software - in contrast to the software libre WengoPhone
| project, and in contrast to much of the core infrastructure used by
| VoIP service providers, which is often based on Asterisk, which isa
| vailable under GPL.
`----
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/02/22/skype_fcc_open_up/
WengoPhone 2.1 gives Linux users a solid softphone
,----[ Quote ]
| The OpenWengo project recently released version 2.1 of its WengoPhone VoIP
| softphone. It's a big step forward for Linux users.
|
| [...]
|
| Ekiga has a brilliant configuration druid that can autodetect the
| network address translation settings on your router and configure
| itself appropriately. Which best fits your needs depends on the
| particulars of your usage scenario.
|
| On the other hand, WengoPhone 2.1 is hands-down a better option
| for cross-platform VoIP calls than proprietary applications like
| Skype and Gizmo Project. The Linux build is a big step up from
| the previous 2.0-RC releases. If you need to set up a VoIP call
| to someone on another operating system, give WengoPhone a try.
`----
http://community.linux.com/article.pl?sid=07/06/05/1911209&from=rss
SIP vs. Skype: Making the 'Open' Choice
,----[ Final Thoughts... ]
| Today, I have presented a number of options to consider. If you want to
| use Skype, great! But I would definitely consider Gizmo, or even better,
| take the leap into coolness with Ekiga.
|
| Every Linux user is going to have his preferred application, but in thee
| nd, what good is it if the person you are trying to reach is not using
| something that is compatible to accept the call, right?
`----
http://www.madpenguin.org/cms/?m=show&id=7577
Alternatives to Skype beginning Jan 1, 2007 : Ubuntu (6.10)
,----[ Quote ]
| My reasons are not the price. Yes, free is appealing and $14.95 /
| year is by no means a large expense to anyone. My main reason is
| that Skype does not use a standard protocol for its communication.
| There are many other SIP options available, most of which use an
| open communication protocol.
|
| What does that mean? This means that whether you use Gizmo, Ekiga
| or Wengo, Linphone, Kphone or gphone you are using a "free"
| open protocol. This does not apply to Skype
`----
http://ubuntu-tutorials.com/2006/12/26/alternatives-to-skype-beginning-jan-1-2007-ubuntu-610/
http://tinyurl.com/yg6fux
--
~~ Best of wishes
Roy S. Schestowitz | Useless fact: 12345679 x 8 = 98765432
http://Schestowitz.com | GNU/Linux | PGP-Key: 0x74572E8E
Mem: 515500k total, 444420k used, 71080k free, 5316k buffers
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