Skype Video

Sun Nov 4 00:30:19 UTC 2007

Hi Denver,
  Thanks,that answered my questions.Will try Wengo tomorrow.
  Laurie

UBUNTU - I am what I am because of who we all are.

----- Original Message ----
From: Denver Gingerich <denver at ossguy.com>
To: The Canadian Ubuntu Users Community <ubuntu-ca at lists.ubuntu.com>
Sent: Saturday, November 3, 2007 7:36:56 PM
Subject: Re: Skype Video

On 11/2/07, Laurie Bell <lveeb at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> Hi Denver,
> I would be interested in hearing more about open source as opposed to
> closed.

To understand open source and closed source software, it helps to use
an analogy.  Here, I'll use an analogy between software and baked
goods (such as cookies, cakes, etc.).

To make a new type of baked good, one has to create a recipe for it.
The same is true of software except that this recipe is called source
code, which is a set of instructions that a computer programmer
writes.  This source code is later translated (or "compiled") by a
computer into something the computer can run in the same way baking
ingredients are translated (mixed and baked) by a person into
something that one can eat (by using the recipe).

You can purchase baked goods from a baker in the same way you can
purchase a software product from the store.  In most cases, the baker
will not give you the recipe to their baked goods, just as the
software company will not give you the source code to their software
product (making their software product "closed source").

What if you like the baked goods you purchased from the baker but you
would prefer a different type of icing?  Since the baker will not give
you the recipe (at least in this scenario), you have to make a whole
new baked good to get a different type of icing (I suppose you could
scrape off the icing and apply your own, but let's assume the icing
cannot easily be separated from the baked good).  The same is true of
a closed source software product.  If you want to change its
functionality in some way, you have to make a whole new software
product unless you can convince the software company to make the
change for you (which is often unlikely, especially with larger
software companies).

With the baked goods made by your friend that gave you the recipe, you
can make your own baked good with different icing by modifying the
recipe.  In the same way, with open source software, you can change
its functionality if it doesn't do what you want.

This is an over-simplification (as any computer programmer would tell
you), but I believe the analogy is close enough to be useful and not
too inaccurate.  If anyone on the list wishes to make corrections,
feel free.

It should be noted that by "open source software", I really mean "free
software" as defined by the Free Software Foundation (linked in my
previous e-mail).  These terms are often used interchangeably as
meaning the same thing, but they suggest different things by their
names.  I recommend familiarizing yourself with these and other terms
by reading http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FLOSS.

If there is anything that doesn't make sense or needs clearing up,
please let me know and I'll do my best to provide some answers.

> Do you have to pay for SIP service?

No.  You can get a free SIP account from a variety of places; you are
automatically registered with the WengoPhone SIP service when you
create an account through the WengoPhone software.

Other free SIP services include Free World Dialup
(http://www.freeworlddialup.com/) and SIPphone
(http://www.sipphone.com/).  If you're using WengoPhone, you don't
have to worry about these; I'm including them so you can see what
sorts of other services are out there.

If you wish to call landline or cell phones from a SIP account, there
is generally a fee (just as there is with Skype).  I listed these in
my previous e-mail (which I've just corrected).  You usually pay for
these by buying $10 or so of prepaid minutes via credit card.

You can use a SIP account without a computer if you have a hardware
SIP phone or a SIP ATA (telephone adapter).  You connect a hardware
SIP phone to your broadband router and then it behaves similarly to a
standard telephone, except you are making and receiving calls with
your SIP account, not your landline telephone connection.  A SIP ATA
is also connected to your broadband router, but you need to plug in a
standard telephone to the SIP ATA.  On some models, you can also
connect the ATA to your landline so you can make and receive both
landline calls and SIP calls.

You can order SIP phone and ATAs from a variety of distributors.  A
brief web search brought up netVOICE communications, which sells the
Budgetone 101 (a SIP phone) for $59.95 and the Handytone 486 (a SIP
ATA that supports landline connections) for $69.95.  These are listed
at http://www.netvoice.ca/grandstream/.

Let me know if you have any questions about any of this.

Denver

> ----- Original Message ----
> From: Denver Gingerich <denver at ossguy.com>
> To: The Canadian Ubuntu Users Community <ubuntu-ca at lists.ubuntu.com>
> Sent: Thursday, November 1, 2007 1:51:10 PM
> Subject: Re: Skype Video
>
>  Hi Laurie,
>
> There is at least one alternative to Skype that already supports
 video
> calling.  It's called WengoPhone and it runs on Windows, Mac OS X,
 and
> Linux.  You can find more information about it at
> http://www.wengophone.com/index.php.  To install it on
> Ubuntu, run
> "sudo apt-get install wengophone" from a command line.
>
> I would highly suggest using WengoPhone or another open source
> application for voice or video chatting rather than Skype.  Skype is
> closed-source and uses closed standards for voice calling.  Using
> closed standards means that you can only call people on Skype if they
> are also using Skype.  WengoPhone allows you to call anyone with a
 SIP
> account (SIP is an open standard for voice chatting), not just people
> using WengoPhone.
>
> The service that WengoPhone uses also has lower per-minute
 PC-to-phone
> calling rates than Skype.  For Canada and the USA, Skype charges
> $0.024/min while the WengoPhone service charges $0.009/min.
>
> I would also suggest that you avoid Skype because it is closed-source
> and, as a result, restricts your freedom, but that requires a bit
 more
> explanation.  If you want a brief overview of this, check out the
 Free
> Software Definition (according to the Free Software Foundation) at
> http://www.fsf.org/licensing/essays/free-sw.html.  From
> this
> definition, WengoPhone is free software, but Skype is not.  I'd be
> happy to discuss more about why open source software should be used
> instead of closed-source software if you're interested.
>
> Let me know if you have any questions about WengoPhone or other
> alternatives to Skype.  Thanks.
>
> Denver
>
>
> On 10/29/07, Laurie Bell <lveeb at yahoo.com> wrote:
> >
> > Hi Everyone,
> > Skype was rumoured to be enabling video calling for 7.10,does
 anyone know
> if
> > it available?
> >  Thanks
> >  UBUNTU - I am what I am because of who we all are.
> >
> >
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> >
> >
>
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