Category Archives: Jitsi

The Jitsi Meet Android SDK provides the same user experience as the Jitsi Meet app,in a customizable way which you can embed in your apps.

Android 6.0 or higher is required.

If you want to see how easy integrating the Jitsi Meet SDK into a native application is, take a look at thesample applications repository.

Jitsi conveniently provides a pre-build SDK artifacts/binaries in its Maven repository. When you do not require anymodification to the SDK itself or any of its dependencies, it's suggested to use the pre-build SDK. This avoids thecomplexity of building and installing your own SDK artifacts/binaries.

In your project, add the Maven repositoryhttps://github.com/jitsi/jitsi-maven-repository/raw/master/releases and thedependency org.jitsi.react:jitsi-meet-sdk into your build.gradle files.

The repository typically goes into the build.gradle file in the root of your project:

Dependency definitions belong in the individual module build.gradle files:

Show building instructions

Start by making sure that your development environment is set up correctly.

A note on dependencies: Apart from the SDK, Jitsi also publishes a binary Maven artifact for some of the SDK dependencies (that are not otherwise publicly available) to the Jitsi Maven repository. When you're planning to use a SDK that is built from source, you'll likely use a version of the source code that is newer (or at least different) than the version of the source that was used to create the binary SDK artifact. As a consequence, the dependencies that your project will need, might also be different from those that are published in the Jitsi Maven repository. This might lead to build problems, caused by dependencies that are unavailable.

If you want to use a SDK that is built from source, you will likely benefit from composing a local Maven repository that contains these dependencies. The text below describes how you create a repository that includes both the SDK as well as these dependencies. For illustration purposes, we'll define the location of this local Maven repository as /tmp/repo

In source code form, the Android SDK dependencies are locked/pinned by package.json and package-lock.json of the Jitsi Meet project. To obtain the data, execute NPM in the jitsi-meet project directory:

This will pull in the dependencies in either binary format, or in source code format, somewhere under /node_modules/

Third-party React Native modules, which Jitsi Meet SDK for Android depends on, are download by NPM in source codeor binary form. These need to be assembled into Maven artifacts, and then published to your local Maven repository.A script is provided to facilitate this. From the root of the jitsi-meet project repository, run:

This will build and publish the SDK, and all of its dependencies to the specified Maven repository (/tmp/repo) inthis example.

You're now ready to use the artifacts. In your project, add the Maven repository that you used above (/tmp/repo) into your top-level build.gradle file:

You can use your local repository to replace the Jitsi repository (maven { url "https://github.com/jitsi/jitsi-maven-repository/raw/master/releases" }) when you published all subprojects. If you didn't do that, you'll have to add both repositories. Make sure your local repository is listed first!

Then, define the dependency org.jitsi.react:jitsi-meet-sdk into the build.gradle file of your module:

Note that there should not be a need to explicitly add the other dependencies, as they will be pulled in as transitivedependencies of jitsi-meet-sdk.

Jitsi Meet SDK is an Android library which embodies the whole Jitsi Meetexperience and makes it reusable by third-party apps.

First, add Java 1.8 compatibility support to your project by adding thefollowing lines into your build.gradle file:

To get started, extends your android.app.Activity fromorg.jitsi.meet.sdk.JitsiMeetActivity:

Alternatively, you can use the org.jitsi.meet.sdk.JitsiMeetView class whichextends android.view.View.

Note that this should only be needed when JitsiMeetActivity cannot be used forsome reason. Extending JitsiMeetView requires manual wiring of the view tothe activity, using a lot of boilerplate code. Using the Activity instead of theView is strongly recommended.

Show example

This class encapsulates a high level API in the form of an Android FragmentActivitywhich displays a single JitsiMeetView. You can pass a URL as a ACTION_VIEWon the Intent when starting it and it will join the conference, and will beautomatically terminated (finish() will be called on the activity) when theconference ends or fails.

The JitsiMeetView class is the core of Jitsi Meet SDK. It's designed todisplay a Jitsi Meet conference (or a welcome page).

Joins the conference specified by the given JitsiMeetConferenceOptions.

Leaves the currently active conference. If the welcome page is enabled it willgo back to it, otherwise a black window will be shown.

Releases all resources associated with this view. This method MUST be calledwhen the Activity holding this view is going to be destroyed, usually in theonDestroy() method.

Returns the JitsiMeetViewListener instance attached to the view.

Sets the given listener (class implementing the JitsiMeetViewListenerinterface) on the view.

This object encapsulates all the options that can be tweaked when joininga conference.

Example:

See the JitsiMeetConferenceOptions implementation for all available options.

This class handles the interaction between JitsiMeetView and its enclosingActivity. Generally this shouldn't be consumed by users, because they'd beusing JitsiMeetActivity instead, which is already completely integrated.

All its methods are static.

Helper method to handle results of auxiliary activities launched by the SDK.Should be called from the activity method of the same name.

Helper method which should be called from the activity's onBackPressed method.If this function returns true, it means the action was handled and thus noextra processing is required; otherwise the app should call the parent'sonBackPressed method.

Helper method which should be called from the activity's onDestroy method.

Helper method which should be called from the activity's onResume or onStopmethod.

Helper method which should be called from the activity's onSstop method.

Helper method for integrating the deep linking functionality. If your app'sactivity is launched in "singleTask" mode this method should be called from theactivity's onNewIntent method.

Helper method to handle permission requests inside the SDK. It should be calledfrom the activity method of the same name.

Helper method for integrating automatic Picture-in-Picture. It should be calledfrom the activity's onUserLeaveHint method.

This is a static method.

JitsiMeetViewListener provides an interface apps can implement to listen tothe state of the Jitsi Meet conference displayed in a JitsiMeetView.

Called when a conference was joined.

The data Map contains a "url" key with the conference URL.

Called when a conference was terminated either by user choice or due to afailure.

The data Map contains an "error" key with the error and a "url" keywith the conference URL. If the conference finished gracefully no errorkey will be present.

Called before a conference is joined.

The data Map contains a "url" key with the conference URL.

The SDK broadcasts several events that the users can listen for.

Please see JitsiMeetActivity, which registers for all the events and can serve as an example.

Broadcasted when a conference was joined.The data HashMap contains a url key with the conference URL.

Broadcasted when the active conference ends, be it because of user choice orbecause of a failure.The data HashMap contains an error key with the error and a url keywith the conference URL. If the conference finished gracefully no errorkey will be present.

Broadcasted before a conference is joined.The data HashMap contains a url key with the conference URL.

Broadcasted when audioMuted state changed.The data HashMap contains a muted key with state of the audioMuted for the localParticipant.

Broadcasted when videoMuted state changed.The data HashMap contains a muted key with state of the videoMuted for the localParticipant.

Broadcasted when a participant has joined the conference.The data HashMap contains information of the participant that has joined.Depending of whether the participant is the local one or not, some of them arepresent/missing.isLocalemailnameparticipantId

Broadcasted when a participant has joined the conference.The data HashMap contains information of the participant that has left.Depending of whether the participant is the local one or not, some of them arepresent/missing.isLocalemailnameparticipantId

Broadcasted when an endpoint text message is received.The data HashMap contains a senderId key with the participantId of the sender and a message key with the content.

Broadcasted when a RETRIEVE_PARTICIPANTS_INFO action is called.The data HashMap contains a participantsInfo key with a list of participants information and a requestId key with the id that was sent in the RETRIEVE_PARTICIPANTS_INFO action.

Broadcasted when a chat text message is received.The data HashMap contains a senderId key with the participantId of the sender, a message key with the content, a isPrivate key with a boolean value and a timestamp key.

Broadcasted when the chat dialog is opened or closed.The data HashMap contains a isOpen key with a boolean value.

The SDK listens for broadcasted actions from the users and reacts accordingly.

The intents can be build manually (as shown above) or through the methods in BroadcastIntentHelper.

Please see JitsiMeetOngoingConferenceService for more examples of sending actions.

Sets the state of the localParticipant audio muted according to the muted parameter.Expects a muted key on the intent extra with a boolean value.

Sets the state of the localParticipant video muted according to the muted parameter.Expects a muted key on the intent extra with a boolean value.

The localParticipant leaves the current conference.Does not expect any extra value.

Sends a messaage via the data channel to one particular participant or to all of them.Expects a to key on the intent extra with the id of the participant to which the messaageis meant and a message key with a string value, the actual content of the message.If the to key is not present or it's value is empty, the message will be sentto all the participants in the conference.

In order to get the participantId, the PARTICIPANT_JOINED event should be listened for,which data includes the id and this should be stored somehow.

Sets the state of the localParticipant screen share according to the enabled parameter.Expects a enabled key on the intent extra with a boolean value.

Signals the SDK to retrieve a list with the participants information. The SDK will emit a PARTICIPANTS_INFO_RETRIEVED event.Expects a requestId key on the intent extra with a string value, this parameter will be present on the PARTICIPANTS_INFO_RETRIEVED event.

Opens the chat dialog. If a to key is present with a valid participantId, the private chat for that particular participant will be opened.

Closes the chat dialog.Does not expect any extra value.

Sends a chat message, either a private one if a to key is present with a valid participantId and to everybody otherwise.Expects a message key with a string value.

When using the SDK on a project some proguard rules have to be added in orderto avoid necessary code being stripped. Add the following to your project'srules file: https://github.com/jitsi/jitsi-meet/blob/master/android/app/proguard-rules.pro

JitsiMeetView will automatically adjust its UI when presented in aPicture-in-Picture style scenario, in a rectangle too small to accommodate its"full" UI.

To setup the Dropbox integration, follow these steps:

View original post here:
Android SDK Jitsi Meet Handbook

After releasing its own search engine earlier this year, Brave Software has announced the launch of a new privacy-focused video conferencing feature built directly into its browser.

With Brave Talk, users of the company's browser can now initiate a call directly through Brave on desktop. All they have to do is click on the Brave Talk camera icon though they can also visit talk.brave.com to launch a video call from the Brave browser on either desktop or mobile.

While video calls need to be initiated from Brave, users can invite others to join a video conference from any modern browser.

Brave Talk is powered by the open source Jitsi as a Service video meeting platform from 8x8 and features many of the same privacy features included in Jitsi Meet.

Zoom and many other video conferencing providers monitor calls, metadata and images but with Brave Talk, users can enable multiple layers of encryption on calls to prevent eavesdropping. Brave Software's servers also don't save metadata so calls, images and activities are never recorded or shared without user consent. At the same time, since Brave Talk is available within Brave browser, users don't need to download any additional apps or extensions.

CEO and co-founder of Brave, Brendan Eich explained in a press release why the company decided to add video conferencing to its browser, saying:

Connecting with colleagues and friends through video conferencing channels is now the norm, and as users become increasingly aware of online privacy concerns, there is a growing need for a privacy-first option. Big tech has a firm grip on the market as it exists today, and Brave is determined to offer users an alternative that challenges the giants and puts the power back in the hands of the user. With over 36 million monthly active users on our browser, we are reshaping the industry with our privacy-by-default ecosystem.

Alongside its privacy features, Brave Talk also features video group watch, YouTube live streaming and unlimited call times for free users. However, those interested in hosting calls for three or more people, can upgrade to the premium version of Brave Talk for $7 per month which provides call recordings and hosting tools such as participant muting and entry passcodes.

Read more here:
Brave is taking the video conferencing fight to Zoom - Techradar

Brave, the startup behind the eponymous non-tracking browser, has launched a non-tracking video conferencing add-on out of beta letting all users make and receive video calls straight from their browser.

The tool, called Brave Talk, has been in beta testing since May last year. And Brave told us its had some 14,000 daily active users over this period aka, earlier adopters and developers tapping in via Braves test version.

Now its been made open access with Brave making a pitch to internet users of privacy-focused video conferencing.

Many other video conferencing providers, including Zoom, monitor calls, metadata, and images, and the records of that data can be sold or shared without user consent, it writes in a blog post announcing the wider launch.

Brave Talk users can enable multiple layers of encryption on calls, so an eavesdropper cannot listen in on users calls, and our servers dont save metadata, so calls, images, and activities are never recorded or shared without user consent, it adds.

The video calling software is a subscription offering costing $7 per month for premium features (like group calls and call recording) but basic one-to-one calls are free and unlimited. (NB: Braves Android and iOS apps only currently offer Brave Talk Premium but will have the free version too in the coming weeks).

Users initiating a video call must do so from within the Brave browser; however, recipients need only be using any modern browser (so basically Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, Opera etc.) to participate in a video chat.

While Brave is touting its non-tracking credentials as a differentiating plus for the video conferencing software versus mainstream players like Zoom, its worth noting that Brave Talk does not (yet) have end-to-end encryption rolled out.

Brave says its using the Jitsi as a Service open source video meeting platform from 88 which relies on WebRTC open source technology to enable developers to embed HD video directly into the browser.

On encryption it says users can enable different layers in the settings. It describes the current strongest level of encryption available in both free and premium versions of Brave Talk as Video Bridge Encryption.

This setting ensures that the video and audio streams are encrypted using keys generated by the participants, which prevents eavesdropping on the Video Bridge Server, said co-founder and CEO Brendan Eich. Video Bridge Encryption can be enabled under Security Options.

Because we find the phrase end to end encryption to be confusing and overloaded, Brave Talk refers to the setting as Video Bridge Encryption, he also told us, adding: End to end encrypted calls are just one dimension of privacy and security when participating in video calls. Even when using encryption, most of the Big Tech video tools actively collect and store data about your call: Who the participants were, when the call took place and for how long, and a host of other information.

The anonymous credential system employed by Brave Talk ensures that we dont know who users are and who they are talking to, and we cant link them across sessions. Brave Talk is a privacy-by-default tool that does not track users.

Pushed for more clarity on the difference between Video Bridge Encryption (VBE) and E2EE, he also told TechCrunch: The reason that we refer to it as Video Bridge Encryption and not End to End Encryption is that, while VBE does ensure that audio and video remain encrypted from Brave, 88, and any other passive eavesdroppers, we are still working with 88 on a way to make this more robust against active attackers by automatically authenticating meeting participants.

When that work is complete, we will feel comfortable introducing it as full end to end encryption, and it will provide significant advantages over platforms like Zoom, which require participants to read a security code out loud to confirm end to end encryption is working.

Internet users wanting to kick the tyres of Brave Talk which was previously called Brave Together will first need to download the Brave browser in order to initiate a call. Receiving calls doesnt require using Brave, as mentioned earlier.

Per Eich, Brave recently passed 36 million monthly active users across its suite of anti-tracking products which also includes a search engine and a Firewall+VPN.

More here:
Braves non-tracking, browser-based video conferencing tool is out of beta - TechCrunch

Brave talk is a new video conferencing service built around the increasingly popular web browser and, therefore, focused on respecting user privacy.

The developers of the Brave web browser never cease to amaze us and after announcing nothing less than their own search engine, Brave Search, different from the rest of the alternatives in its category for offering their own results, now present Brave Talk, a videoconferencing service, as we say , focused on privacy and linked to the same browser.

The latter is important, because unlike Brave Search, Brave Talk only works through Brave, or so it is at least for now: just enter the Brave Talk site to confirm the requirement, and without Brave there is no Talk worthwhile. However, only the person initiating the chat should be using Brave; all other participants can use any other modern web browser.

Otherwise, Brave Talk is exactly what you would expect: a service in the style of Zoom and the like with an equally simple operation: you create a room, share the link between the participants, enable the camera and microphone, etc. It has no loss. Anyone who has used a current video conferencing service will be able to get on with Brave Talk without the slightest problem.

In fact, Brave Talk does not reinvent the wheel, but rather is based on the popular open source software Jitsi, which in turn runs on the open standard WebRTC, whose support is available in all current web browsers. As presented, Brave Talk is a Jitsi as a Service, as is the Jitsi Meet itself.

Connecting with colleagues and friends via video conferencing channels is now the norm, and as users become increasingly aware of privacy concerns online, there is a growing need for an option that puts privacy first.Explains Brendan Eich, CEO and co-founder of Brave. Big Tech has a firm grip on todays market and Brave is determined to offer users an alternative that defies the giants and puts power back in the hands of the user..

After more than a year in testing under the name Brave Together, Brave Talk is now available to all web browser users, some 36 million monthly active users according to Eich, as well as anyone else who wants to use it. Its accessory features include group video viewing, YouTube live streaming, and unlimited call duration for all free users Because there is also a paid version, yes.

Brave offers a Premium version of Brave Talk for $ 7 / month, which provides call recordings, hosting tools such as participant muting and entry access codes, and more for calls with hundreds of people , they indicate in the official announcement, without specifying the limit of users in the free mode. If it works as a Jitsi Meet, it would have 75 participants, always depending on the load to which its servers are subjected, but this point has not been disclosed.

On the other hand, access to Brave Talk from Android and iOS is covered for the moment, restricted to the paid version of the service, although the free version will be enabled in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, you can try this private video conferencing alternative from your PC desktop.

It might seem that Brave Talk arrives very late, when the explosion of this type of service has already flattened everything it had to do, but it is never too late if the happiness is good, which is often said, and any service that respects the user is Welcome. Most interesting of all, however, is where it comes from.

Continue reading here:
Brave Talk, a new private video conferencing service tied to the web browser - InTallaght

Videoconferences without installing anything and focus in privacy are the trump cards of Brave Talk (Image: Reproduction/Brave)

Unlike other similar apps, which the company accuses of monitoring calls and collecting images, Talk will allow the use of layers of encryption to prevent interception by unauthorized persons. Servers should not store metadata or log call history, which should be an asset for you who dont want snoopers going about your business.

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You will be able to quickly make connections on the New tab page of your browser, from the new camera icon. If you prefer, you can access the service through an exclusive website: talk.brave.com. To start a videoconference it will be necessary to use Brave, but guests can participate in the conference with the browser of their choice.

Another advantage is that it does not require the installation of extensions or extra applications because of the WebRTC technology. There is a free version for conversations between two people and a paid version for those who need to hold meetings with three or more, at a cost of $7 a month. This premium version will also have other benefits such as call recording, moderation tools (silence participants and require entry passwords), in addition to allowing the entry of hundreds of people.

Talk x Together

In May of last year, Brave had released the same tool under the name Brave Together. At the time, the company wanted to catch a ride on the booming wave of video conferencing applications and add its usual touch of privacy. It can be said that Talk is just an improved version of Together, as both have the same features and were built on top of Jitsi.

For now, Brave apps for Android and iOS only feature Brave Talk Premium, but will support the free version in the coming weeks, according to the developers.

Brave was released in 2016 and the project is run by Brave Software, a company founded by former Mozilla president and Javascript creator Brendan Eich. The browser uses Chromium as a base and is known for having resources dedicated to the security and privacy of users.

Apparently, Brave is on the way to being a complete solutions provider, just like Google and Microsoft, after all, the companys suite already has a search engine, news aggregator, browser and videoconference platform. With a growing concern for privacy, this seems to be the ideal time to scale up your services and attract more people.

Source: Brave

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Brave gets a video call service integrated with the browser and leaves no traces The Clare People - The Clare People

The author selected the Open Internet/Free Speech Fund to receive a donation as part of the Write for DOnations program.

Jitsi Meet is an open-source video-conferencing application based on WebRTC. A Jitsi Meet server provides multi-person video conference rooms that you can access using nothing more than your browser and provides comparable functionality to a Zoom or Skype conference call. The benefit of a Jitsi conference is that all your data only passes through your server, and the end-to-end TLS encryption ensures that no one can snoop on the call. With Jitsi you can be sure that your private information stays that way.

In this tutorial, you will install and configure a Jitsi Meet server on Ubuntu 18.04. The default configuration allows anyone to create a new conference room. This is not ideal for a server that is publicly available on the internet so you will also configure Jitsi Meet so that only registered users can create new conference rooms. After you have created the conference room, any users can join, as long as they have the unique address and the optional password.

Before you begin this guide youll need the following:

When you are choosing a server to run your Jitsi Meet instance you will need to consider the system resources needed to host conference rooms. The following benchmark information was collected from a single-core virtual machine using high-quality video settings:

The jump in resource use between two and three participants is because Jitsi will route the call data directly between the clients when there are two of them. When more than two clients are present then call data is routed through the Jitsi Meet server.

In this step, you will change the systems hostname to match the domain name that you intend to use for your Jitsi Meet instance and resolve that hostname to the localhost IP, 127.0.0.1. Jitsi Meet uses both of these settings when it installs and generates its configuration files.

First, set the systems hostname to the domain name that you will use for your Jitsi instance. The following command will set the current hostname and modify the /etc/hostname that holds the systems hostname between reboots:

The command that you ran breaks down as follows:

Check that this was successful by running the following:

This will return the hostname you set with the hostnamectl command:

Output

Next, you will set a local mapping of the servers hostname to the loopback IP address, 127.0.0.1. Do this by opening the /etc/hosts file with a text editor:

Then, add the following line:

/etc/hosts

Mapping your Jitsi Meet servers domain name to 127.0.0.1 allows your Jitsi Meet server to use several networked processes that accept local connections from each other on the 127.0.0.1 IP address. These connections are authenticated and encrypted with a TLS certificate, which is registered to your domain name. Locally mapping the domain name to 127.0.0.1 makes it possible to use the TLS certificate for these local network connections.

Save and exit your file.

Your server now has the hostname that Jitsi requires for installation. In the next step, you will open the firewall ports that are needed by Jitsi and the TLS certificate installer.

When you followed the Initial Server Setup with Ubuntu 18.04 guide you enabled the UFW firewall and opened the SSH port. The Jitsi server needs some ports opened so that it can communicate with the call clients. Also, the TLS installation process needs to have a port open so that it can authenticate the certificate request.

The ports that you will open are the following:

Run the following ufw commands to open these ports:

Check that they were all added with the ufw status command:

You will see the following output if these ports are open:

Output

The server is now ready for the Jitsi installation, which you will complete in the next step.

In this step, you will add the Jitsi stable repository to your server and then install the Jitsi Meet package from that repository. This will ensure that you are always running the latest stable Jitsi Meet package.

First, download the Jitsi GPG key with the wget downloading utility:

The apt package manager will use this GPG key to validate the packages that you will download from the Jitsi repository.

Next, add the GPG key you downloaded to apts keyring using the apt-key utility:

You can now delete the GPG key file as it is no longer needed:

Now, you will add the Jitsi repository to your server by creating a new source file that contains the Jitsi repository. Open and create the new file with your editor:

Add this line to the file for the Jitsi repository:

/etc/apt/sources.list.d/jitsi-stable.list

Save and exit your editor.

Finally, perform a system update to collect the package list from the Jitsi repository and then install the jitsi-meet package:

During the installation of jitsi-meet you will be prompted to enter the domain name (for example, jitsi.your-domain) that you want to use for your Jitsi Meet instance.

Note: You move the cursor from the hostname field to highlight the button with the TAB key. Press ENTER when is highlighted to submit the hostname.

You will then be shown a new dialog box that asks if you want Jitsi to create and use a self-signed TLS certificate or use an existing one you already have:

If you do not have a TLS certificate for your Jitsi domain select the first, Generate a new self-signed certificate, option.

Your Jitsi Meet instance is now installed using a self-signed TLS certificate. This will cause browser warnings, so you will get a signed TLS certificate in the next step.

Jitsi Meet uses TLS certificates to encrypt the call traffic so that no one can listen to your call as it travels over the internet. TLS certificates are the same certificates that are used by websites to enable HTTPS URLs.

Jitsi Meet supplies a program to automatically download a TLS certificate for your domain name that uses the Certbot utility. You will need to install this program before you run the certificate installation script.

First, add the Certbot repository to your system to ensure that you have the latest version of Certbot. Run the following command to add the new repository and update your system:

Next, install the certbot package:

Your server is now ready to run the TLS certificate installation program provided by Jitsi Meet:

When you run the script you will be shown the following prompt for an email address:

Output

This email address will be submitted to the certificate issuer https://letsencrypt.org and will be used to notify you about security and other matters related to the TLS certificate. You must enter an email address here to proceed with the installation. The installation will then complete without any further prompts.

When it finishes, your Jitsi Meet instance will be configured to use a signed TLS certificate for your domain name. Certificate renewals will also happen automatically because the installer placed a renewal script at /etc/cron.weekly/letsencrypt-renew that will run each week.

The TLS installer used port 80 to verify you had control of your domain name. Now that you have obtained the certificate your server no longer needs to have port 80 open because port 80 is used for regular, non-encrypted HTTP traffic. Jitsi Meet only serves its website via HTTPS on port 443.

Close this port in your firewall with the following ufw command:

Your Jitsi Meet server is now up and running and available for testing. Open a browser and point it to your domain name. You will be able to create a new conference room and invite others to join you.

The default configuration for Jitsi Meet is that anyone visiting your Jitsi Meet server homepage can create a new conference room. This will use your servers system resources to run the conference room and is not desirable for unauthorized users. In the next step, you will configure your Jitsi Meet instance to only allow registered users to create conference rooms.

In this step, you will configure your Jitsi Meet server to only allow registered users to create conference rooms. The files that you will edit were generated by the installer and are configured with your domain name.

The variable your_domain will be used in place of a domain name in the following examples.

First, open sudo nano /etc/prosody/conf.avail/your_domain.cfg.lua with a text editor:

Edit this line:

/etc/prosody/conf.avail/your_domain.cfg.lua

To the following:

/etc/prosody/conf.avail/your_domain.cfg.lua

This configuration tells Jitsi Meet to force username and password authentication before allowing conference room creation by a new visitor.

Then, in the same file, add the following section to the end of the file:

/etc/prosody/conf.avail/your_domain.cfg.lua

This configuration allows anonymous users to join conference rooms that were created by an authenticated user. However, the guest must have a unique address and an optional password for the room to enter it.

Here, you added guest. to the front of your domain name. For example, for jitsi.your-domain you would put guest.jitsi.your-domain. The guest. hostname is only used internally by Jitsi Meet. You will never enter it into a browser or need to create a DNS record for it.

Open another configuration file at /etc/jitsi/meet/your_domain-config.js with a text editor:

Edit this line:

/etc/jitsi/meet/your_domain-config.js

To the following:

/etc/jitsi/meet/your_domain-config.js

Again, by using the guest.your_domain hostname that you used earlier this configuration tells Jitsi Meet what internal hostname to use for the un-authenticated guests.

Next, open /etc/jitsi/jicofo/sip-communicator.properties:

And add the following line to complete the configuration changes:

/etc/jitsi/jicofo/sip-communicator.properties

This configuration points one of the Jitsi Meet processes to the local server that performs the user authentication that is now required.

Your Jitsi Meet instance is now configured so that only registered users can create conference rooms. After a conference room is created, anyone can join it without needing to be a registered user. All they will need is the unique conference room address and an optional password set by the rooms creator.

Now that Jitsi Meet is configured to require authenticated users for room creation you need to register these users and their passwords. You will use the prosodyctl utility to do this.

Run the following command to add a user to your server:

The user that you add here is not a system user. They will only be able to create a conference room and are not able to log in to your server via SSH.

Finally, restart the Jitsi Meet processes to load the new configuration:

The Jitsi Meet instance will now request a username and password with a dialog box when a conference room is created.

Your Jitsi Meet server is now set up and securely configured.

In this article, you deployed a Jitsi Meet server that you can use to host secure and private video conference rooms. You can extend your Jitsi Meet instance with instructions from the Jitsi Meet Wiki.

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How To Install Jitsi Meet on Ubuntu 18.04 | DigitalOcean

Zoom's new Zoom Apps and Zoom Events have launched, with Zoom Apps "seamlessly embedding third-party apps within the Zoom Meetings and desktop client experience, enhancing collaboration, productivity, and entertainment for todays hybrid workforce," while Zoom Events is "an all-in-one platform for creating a wide range of interactive and immersive virtual events to reach and engage audiences."

Zoom. Despite free alternatives and strong competition from Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, FaceTime, WhatsApp, Skype, Jitsi and others, Zoom remains the market leader and is practically as synonymous with video conferencing as Google is with search, Kleenex with tissues and Band-Aid for sticky healing patches.

Now comes Zoom Appsand Zoom Events,Zoom's latest innovations. As noted above, Zoom Apps "seamlessly embeds third-party apps within the Zoom Meetings and desktop client experience, enhancing collaboration, productivity, and entertainment for todays hybrid workforce," while Zoom Events is "an all-in-one platform for creating a wide range of interactive and immersive virtual events to reach and engage audiences."

Eric S. Yuan, Founder and CEO of Zoom said: Im thrilled to see our platform vision expand through Zoom Apps and Zoom Events, as the world embraces hybrid work, empowering the workforce today and into the future.

These innovations will enhance the ways in which we connect and collaborate with our colleagues, clients, friends, family members, and others, improving productivity and collaboration while maintaining elements of fun and well-being.

Roopam Jain, Vice President, Information and Communications Technologies at Frost & Sullivan said: "Zoom Apps and Zoom Events are critical components in broadening Zooms offering and reach.

These solutions empower users to accomplish more with video communications and are a testament to Zooms focus of enabling customers to create and grow businesses entirely on its platformwhether through applications, integrations, events, or other services.

Bringing Your Favourite Apps to the Zoom Platform

We're told Zoom Apps"expand the offerings of the Zoom App Marketplace,which already hosts over 1,500 third-party integrations. With Zoom Apps, you can boost productivity and stay focused on your workflows by incorporating your favorite apps into your meetings. There are over 50 Zoom Apps available now,ranging from enterprise to consumer use cases including whiteboarding, project management, note-taking, and video games, with more in development and available soon."

A few Zoom Apps currently available include:

Asana: Host purposeful meetings with the ability to create in-meeting action items and next steps beforehand so your teams are always moving forward with clarity. You can also create, edit, and assign tasks, all without leaving your Zoom meeting.

Dot Collector: The Dot Collector app allows everyone in a meeting to share their perspective through real-time feedback and polling. Dots are systematically collected, shared and preserved enabling adjustments to be made in the moment and over time. The Dot Collector app fosters more inclusive collaboration, transparency, and meaningful relationships among colleagues, while empowering individuals with insights that help them to unlock their full potential.

Dropbox Spaces: Get more out of your meetings with the Dropbox Spaces app for Zoom. Keep everyone on the same page by collaborating in real time in a single shared workspace before, during, and after Zoom Meetings.

Heads Up!: Heads Up! is a fun and hilarious game by Ellen DeGeneres. Heads Up! is the perfect party game to play with your colleagues and friends, and is a fun way to pass time with your coworkers while waiting for meetings to start. The app is developed for Zoom by Ellen Digital and Playco.

SurveyMonkey Enterprise by Momentive: Drive more engaging and inclusive meetings with in-the-moment feedback from surveys and polls available directly within the Zoom meeting experience. Capture optimal stakeholder insights from customers, employees, patientsany meeting attendees. Take action to increase employee engagement, improve the customer or patient experience, and make remote meetings more productive.

Wellness That Works by WW: Wellness that Works by WW, a leader in weight loss and wellness, helps users move more, eat better and shift their mindset with push notifications to stand and stretch, along with a hydration tracker, mindset tools, and go-to recipes. Wellness that Works reinforces WW's credentials in behavior change science by helping users build and maintain healthy habits wherever they are... even in meetings!

Improving the Hybrid and Virtual Event Experiences

The company explains "Zoom Events gives organisations the power to create engaging hybrid and virtual experiences. Zoom Events enables large and small businesses alike to seamlessly manage and host back-to-back event sessions from sales summits, customer events, trade shows, and internal events.

"Zoom Events offers features such as event hubs, dedicated corporate virtual event spaces, customisable registration, and networking through a chat-enabled virtual event lobby. Zoom Events also allows event-specific reporting around registration, attendance, and ticket sales. Zoom will be hosting its annual user conference, Zoomtopia,and Zoom Academy,on Zoom Events this year.

"OnZoom, the consumer-focused Zoom Events solution, helps brands and small businesses reach a consumer audience by creating, hosting, and monetising events, including fitness and cooking classes, theatrical presentations, and more. OnZoom will remain in beta and serve as a place where small businesses and entrepreneurs can host and publish events to our public event directory."

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The coronavirus pandemic is not over but the companies are now tiring of giving freebies. So, get ready to fork some cash for calls, as Google Meet is limiting its free calls to 60 minutes.

The firm started offering free unlimited calls for all users last April, and after a few extensions, it had set the deadline for this generous offering for June 30, 2021.

Now, as noted by 9to5Google, the company is showing a new message on its support page noting that youll get a notification of the time limit at the 55-minute mark:

Tip:At 55 minutes, everyone gets a notification that the call is about to end. To extend the call, the host can upgrade their Google account. Otherwise, the call will end at 60 minutes.

This new cap is just for three or more participants per call. If youre hosting one-on-one calls, the limit is 24 hours.To be fair, this isnt a deal-breaker since an hour is a plenty for most calls. And if its a casual hangout, you can always ask someone to start a new call and post the link in the chat.

If youre a free user, there arent many alternatives for you as Zoom and Microsoft Teams both offer free calls under 60 minutes. However, you can try open-source alternatives like Jitsi for longer group calls.

Did you know we have a newsletter all about consumer tech? Its called Plugged In and you can subscribe to it right here.

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Google Meets limiting free group calls to an hour what are your options? - The Next Web

picture alliance via Getty Images

When I was in high school, I was in a play where I got to smoke cigarettes. I say got to because back then I was something of a nerd (before nerds were cool) and loved the idea of jocks and other popular kids spying the foil lining of my artfully positioned Marlboro softpack sticking out of my jeans jacket pocket.

I hadnt quite mastered a natural grip, and couldnt take more than a few puffs without getting dizzy, so Id practice smoking after school in the parking lot behind the convenience store, where the kids who I wanted to see me smoking happened to hang out.

When I got home one evening after rehearsal, my father happened to notice the pack I was basically advertising from my jacket. He didnt yell at me. He just said lets talk after dinner. On the back porch. Bring the cigarettes.

When we got out there, he asked me to smoke one. The whole thing. And then another. You wanna smoke? Then smoke, he said. Smoke em all. By halfway through the third cigarette, I was green and ready to puke. My mom made him stop, threw out the cigarettes, and the nightmare was over. But Ill never forget just how sick I felt back then and how little Ive wanted to smoke cigarettes since.

This past year, Ive started to feel the same way about the Internet. I think a lot of us have. We wanted a life of telecommuting and shared screens, MacBook Pros, and 4k monitors, and now we have it. 24/7. Enough to puke.

Sure, it was a relief or even a thrill to get to do meetings from home on Zoom or Skype. But then came more meetings on Webex, Bluejeans, Teams, GoToMeeting, Hangouts, Zoho, Whereby, Signal, and Jitsi. Days that could have felt full with two live meetings and a work session with a colleague became jammed with six videoconferences, two Slack channel collaborations, and an Asana session. All while answering email and staying up on Discord.

Smoke em all.

As we now well know, all this online interaction can be as draining, even more draining, than real-life interaction. Video chat to live conversation is like smoking is to breathing. Things are going in and out, but theres no oxygen. No prana. On a video platform, all of the painstakingly evolved mechanisms weve developed over thousands of years for establishing rapport are neutralized. I cant see if your pupils are getting larger as you accept my ideas, if youre subtly nodding your head, or if your breathing is syncing up with mine.

You say you agree with me, but without those organic cues my mirror neurons dont fire, the oxytocin isnt released into my bloodstream, and I dont feel truly received or acknowledged. I go into a state of cognitive dissonance. We get off the call, and I subconsciously say to myself she said she agreedbut I didnt feel it. Was she lying? Trust erodes. Relationships deteriorate. The virtual meeting where something was actually accomplished and agreed upon instead feels, on some level, like a fight, a misunderstanding, or an unanswered question. Edgy and unsettled, like one too many cigarettes.

On a video platform, all of the painstakingly evolved mechanisms weve developed over thousands of years for establishing rapport are neutralized.

Were all glad, on one level, to be getting back to live work, in-person with other human beings. I miss people, faces, touching (appropriately), and even smelling other peoples lunch. But do we really want to go back to how things were? I may have this wrong, as Im mostly a professor and freelance writer, but is anyone really looking forward to going back to whatever work was like before? For me, it meant lots of flying to do talks and going into the city for meetings in conference rooms to hear about peoples new ideas for apps and platforms.

Is anyone really looking forward to going back to some steely office building, all day, five days a week? Especially when so much of the live meeting we do is really about the functioning of some organization, bank, public relations firm, or other corporation whose operations are essentially just as virtual and removed from the real world as a Zoom meeting?

Might waking up from Zoom be waking us up from something else just as removed and virtual like sitting in a sterile glass room to talk about manufacturing in China, customer service in India, and consumers in the midwest? Chances are that meeting is itself happening around three different conference tables connected by screens, anyway. And all in order to set new growth targets for products nobody really wants or needs unless theres enough advertising to fool them into purchasing this stuff thats going to end up in landfill sooner than later.

I feel nauseous of everything. Dont get me wrong, Im happy to work. To teach, to build, to farm, to care for the sick, entertain the lonely, and comfort the distraught. But this other stuff? The pointless stuff were being compelled to do so the economy grows for the sake of growth? The flying and churning and spending and polluting that feeds some aspect of the abstracted economy but doesnt feed peoples bellies or souls? Enough.

This is what it feels like to smoke the whole pack, America. Lets use this feeling to find another way forward.

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Its Official: We ODd on the Internet - OneZero - OneZero

Google Meet vs. Google Duo: which of the two platforms is better?

Google Meet or Google Duo? You have surely asked yourself this question and with good reason. Even if both platforms are very similar, there are notable differences between them, mainly according to the use that you are going to give them.

To help you clarify this doubt, in this article we explain their differences in detail so you can see which of these two options is the one that best suits your needs.

What is Google Meet: is it the same as Google Duo?

Google Meet Its about the Hangouts evolution within the G-Suite, a platform developed by Google to perform videoconferences, both in web browsers and mobile devices (Android and iOS) and that is mainly focused on teams and users in the work and professional environment.

Unlike other applications (such as Google Duo), Google Meet It is paid or premium, at least to get all the really advanced and important business features. In addition, it is the main competitor of platforms such as Houseparty, Zoom, Messenger Room, among other.

Google Meet, a popular video phone service

To use it, just visit the Google Meet website or download the app directly to your device Android or iOS. The operation is very simple, since you will simply find the option to create a meeting or join one using an invitation code.

Google Meet is updated with reactions, new monitoring tools and more improvements

These codes are about unique passwords that are uniquely created for each video call, making it a safe method to communicate. Also, if you want, you can schedule and schedule meetings through Google Calendar.

It is important to note that they can only use Google Meet with users who have a Gmail account, since otherwise, they will not be able to participate. However, this communication tool It has different interesting features, which you should know and which we present below.

Google Meet call initiation interface

Admits meetings of up to 250 participants, making it an ideal space for group video conferences of up to 100 people in its base version and up to 250 people according to the G-Suite plan you have. meeting recording, perfect to review again the topics covered in the videoconference and share it with other users who were not present.Own phone number, since according to the plan G-Suite Enterprise that the user has, Google Meet may provide you with the possibility of create a phone number for each meeting, being a facility for those who do not have access to mobile data or WiFi. make presentations, even directly from the screen of your mobile or computer, operate the camera, zoom in or out without losing image quality.

When we refer to Google Duo, we are talking about a web application entering duo.google.com and mobile devices, with a similar operation to Apples FaceTime, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger or even Skype, where you can make audio and video calls through your phone number, with mobile data or via WiFi.

Google Duo, a mobile video chat app from Google

TO difference from Google Meet, it is a totally free alternative, both for iOS and Android. On this occasion, use your phone number so that you can communicate with anyone who is in your contact list and who also has the application.

It is developed with a end-to-end encryption system, as well as very interesting functions such as Knock knock, to see live videos of the caller before you even answer. It also has other additional features, such as:

Google Duo already allows you to call many more friends: it allows 32 participants.

Allows you to perform video calls with up to 32 participants, which compared to Google Meet is a disadvantage Video in high quality as it supports video quality up to Half HD 720pIt is developed and optimized for operation with mobile networks with low bandwidth. In addition, it automatically adapts to the connection intensity, alternating between mobile data and WiFi to ensure call quality. end-to-end encryption, which provides greater security and privacy in communication. video messagesIn addition to audio and video calls, you can send text or video messages to your contacts as you wish.Knock knock is a unique feature for Android, which allows you to see a preview of the caller before answering the call.

As you may have noticed throughout this article, the differences and the audience for each of these two applications is very marked. That is why you should consider the following:

Google Meet is primarily intended for the professional, work and even academic environment, the main competition being services such as Zoom or Jitsi Meet, where participants can only join video conferences using a Google account.

Google Meet vs. Google Duo: which is better?

In addition, its integration with Google Calendar and other applications of the G-Suite, boosts productivity and teamwork, helping to treat different topics without leaving the same place through the option of share screen, present files, documents, presentations, schedule meetings and more.

It is protected by a encryption system that works even during the live broadcast of the conference or when it is stored in Google drive. However, it supports 720p video quality with a maximum call duration of 24 hours.

Of course, we cannot forget its price, because yes, it is a premium app which is included in the G-Suite with plans from 8 USD per active user per month depending on the plan you choose.

For its part, Google Duo is primarily intended for the personal scope, in practicality and casual communication comfort, something that we see reflected in the limit of participants.

The 6 essential Google apps for telecommuting

Although it has many Google Meet features such as image quality, being able to use telephone numbers, synchronization with the phonebook, access from mobile applications or from the web, it is more an alternative to applications of traditional messaging like WhatsApp, Telegram, Messenger or others, and it is not so professionally focused.

That without forgetting that it is totally free. At this point, it will depend more on your needs when choosing one or the other.

Related topics: Apps, Google Apps, Google

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Is it the same as google duo? Explica .co - Explica