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Re: [LUG] Video chat

 

On 11/05/11 11:27, Neil Winchurst wrote:
>
> I have heard of Skype and Ekiga. I also heard on the news last night
> that MS has just bought Skype. That has put me right off Skype.
> 
> Anyway, is it all a lot of work/expense and is it worth the bother at
> the end please?

Ekiga worked well for me when I was calling people like Matt in Boston,
i.e. where the other end can sort out any technical issues themselves.

My previous experience of Skype was very good, so when I did it again I
ignored the "non-free" aspect and tried Skype.

Skype for GNU/Linux can be picky about the audio configuration although
if your audio "just worked" with GNU/Linux, it is likely Skype audio
will "just work", ironically it seems to work better for webcams with
GNU/Linux than it does with Windows, not least for the issue I hit that
many cheap webcams don't have drivers for 64 bit windows.

Skype for GNU/Linux also lags on features compared to the Windows
client, and I can't imagine this will improve with the new owners.

On balance on the GNU/Linux side I'd say there isn't much to pick
between Ekiga and Skype on a technical basis except that the conference
calling is easier in Skype because it is built in, but as I commented
before I don't know about clients for other platforms, and Ekiga usually
achieves conference calls by using a suitable exchange so it is probably
quite easy these days.

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