Macworld: Isight and Ichat ...

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6 Replies Last post: Dec 11, 2003 4:06 PM by rockinphotog

badboy02136

9 posts since
Dec 4, 2003

Dec 5, 2003 8:29 AM

Isight and Ichat

is there any Windows based IChat "like" program that can be used to chat with Ichat and Isight?

MUGlover

60 posts since
May 17, 2001

1. Dec 5, 2003 8:34 AM

in response to: badboy02136

Re: Isight and Ichat

I'm no expert on this. In a recent work assignment I demonstrated a Windows program called NetMeeting. It began as a free download and is now part of some installations of Windows 2000 and maybe others. It complies with a videoconferencing standard called H.323 and so, I believe, does iChat AV.

I may be trying this myself using ichatUSB, a program to allow even my slow 500 MHz G3 iBook to use videoconferencing.

The thread Isight and Windows World mentions iVisit, which I have heard of. Good luck!

badboy02136

9 posts since
Dec 4, 2003

2. Dec 5, 2003 8:55 AM

in response to: MUGlover

Re: Isight and Ichat

How would you conect to the windows machine?

DaBeav

23 posts since
Mar 18, 2001

3. Dec 5, 2003 12:38 PM

in response to: badboy02136

Re: Isight and Ichat

Unless (until?) Apple ports iChat to Windows and writes official Windows drivers for iSight, you're pretty limited.

You can use a different multiplatform app like Yahoo! Messenger, but I believe that Y!M is somewhat limited.

I hate to say it, but if Apple wants videoconfercing to take off, they need to make it compatible with "the other guys".

sjbartnik

198 posts since
May 31, 2003

4. Dec 6, 2003 10:52 AM

in response to: DaBeav

Re: Isight and Ichat

I'm hoping that AOL will add video chat capability to AOL Instant Messenger sometime in the near future.

If they do it seems reasonable to expect it will be compatible with iChat AV. I guess we'll have to wait and see how it plays out, but that would pretty much solve the cross-platform video chat problem.

I don't think you'd be able to connect iChat AV to NetMeeting. They may conform to the same standards for data transmission but I think the problem there is more in figuring out how to establish a connection between iChat AV and NetMeeting.

plsommer

3 posts since
Dec 7, 2003

5. Dec 10, 2003 10:51 AM

in response to: sjbartnik

Re: Isight and Ichat

We've also been looking for something to video chat between Mac and Wintel. So far we have looked at little at iVisit , but haven't been able to test is out yet with a camera on the PC end.

rockinphotog

2,977 posts since
Oct 27, 2001

6. Dec 11, 2003 4:06 PM

in response to: plsommer

Re: Isight and Ichat

Here is a quote from David Pogues' technology column in the NY Times:

In reply to:<hr />
I did ask Microsoft if you could get iSight-quality video, at any cost-say, with a FireWire camera and a high-speed Internet connection. The response: "On the Windows XP platform, all the pieces aren't in place yet."

Still, I can't believe there's no way to solve this problem. Windows gurus: If you know of an inexpensive way to get TV-quality, Internet video chatting in Windows-30 frames per second, 640 x 480 window-please send me the recipe, and I'll pass it along next week.

<hr />

Basically, even if you could get it to work on the Windows side, it would be pointless, because you couldn't experience the high quality coming from the Mac.

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Dec 5, 2003 8:29 AM

Isight and Ichat

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