Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

xmacintosh · Dec 1, 2005, 07:14 AM

Skype now has free video calling. No Mac version. They say "Apple does not document their API for video"...

Uisce · Dec 1, 2005, 12:20 PM

No help with the video thing, buy Fyi, Gizmo looks like a good alternative to Skype these days - better feature set and its all open. www.gizmo.com

xmacintosh · Dec 1, 2005, 12:58 PM

There is a REQUEST Thread to Skype Video on Mac OS X.

Thain Esh Kelch · Dec 1, 2005, 01:13 PM

Originally Posted by xmacintosh

Skype now has free video calling. No Mac version. They say "Apple does not document their API for video"...

Where exactly does they say that? And afaik Apple has nothing to do with this, because Skype is probably using its own video-API anyway.

TETENAL · Dec 1, 2005, 01:59 PM

Apple's API for video is called "QuickTime" and it is documented.

http://developer.apple.com/documentation/QuickTime/

What are you talking about?

brutal · Dec 1, 2005, 05:01 PM

"We are working on bringing video to Mac - so don't totally despair!"

JoshuaZ · Dec 1, 2005, 08:58 PM

hmm... I wonder if iChat will ever have video...

EmmEff · Dec 2, 2005, 12:39 AM

Huh? iChat has had video for a while...

doublep · Dec 3, 2005, 06:52 AM

Ha..... I really want a good trans-platform video conferencing system for Mac OS X... Skype 2 would be good!

xmacintosh · Dec 3, 2005, 07:41 AM

Originally Posted by EmmEff

Huh? iChat has had video for a while...

iChat is not available for Windows. Here in Brazil everybody use MSN Messenger that is not good for Mac...

monkeybrain · Dec 3, 2005, 09:16 AM

Yeah in Europe hardly anyone uses AIM, so iChat is not much use. Plus, the iSight is very expensive.

TETENAL · Dec 3, 2005, 02:24 PM

Originally Posted by monkeybrain

Yeah in Europe hardly anyone uses AIM, so iChat is not much use.

Afaik video in iChat AV also works via Jabber (so with any instant messaging service) as long as your opponent is also using iChat AV.

rocky2 · Dec 3, 2005, 05:51 PM

And worse, even the latest 1.4.0.27 beta is not a Universal Binary. I would have hoped that getting so close to the Xintels (if rumours are to be believed), Skype would have started releasing Mac versions as UBs. Let's hope the coders do the right thing with Skype 2.0!

King Bob On The Cob · Dec 3, 2005, 08:33 PM

Originally Posted by rocky2

And worse, even the latest 1.4.0.27 beta is not a Universal Binary. I would have hoped that getting so close to the Xintels (if rumours are to be believed), Skype would have started releasing Mac versions as UBs. Let's hope the coders do the right thing with Skype 2.0!

There are 0 OS X Intel macs legally out that should be used as more than a test machine why should Skype support them right now and make the download bigger for the rest of us?

rocky2 · Dec 3, 2005, 09:12 PM

The main point is that Xintels might be as little as 5 weeks away and Skype (along with many other developers) shows no signs (such as a mention on it's website) of thinking about UBs. Given that Skype for Mac OS X has always been a couple of feature iterations behind the Windows version (understandable given market shares), I see long delays before a Skype 2.0 UB appears. Apple has been trying to get developers to start compiling UBs, but there is precious little evidence on the web (including Apple's UB page for developers) that UBs for the major and popular apps (Mathematica doesn't count for me!) are waiting in the wings for release en masse as soon as the new Xintels appear. I count only about a dozen (mostly minor apps) who have either released or announced that they will release UBs as soon as Xintels ship.
Other rumor sites say that many PPC apps, including Skype 1.3.0.x, are broken under current versions of Rosetta (note proviso "current"—I know this could change overnight). As someone intending to be first in line buying an Xintel PB or iBook (please SJ in January) and who uses Skype a lot, this worries me. If Skype does not run under Rosetta emulation and there is no UB for months, I will be screwed and it won't be worth my time buying an Xintel for months—yes, I use Skype that much.
Similar problems could impact other Mac users relying heavily on apps broken under Rosetta and with no UBs.

production_coordinator · Dec 3, 2005, 10:19 PM

Originally Posted by rocky2

The main point is that Xintels might be as little as 5 weeks away and Skype (along with many other developers) shows no signs (such as a mention on it's website) of thinking about UBs.

Are you serious? ALL Mac developers are talking/thinking about UBs... but you must realize that not every application is a simple recompile away... many will take years to create... that's why Apple has Rosetta. It's going to work just fine for most applications...

http://developer.apple.com/documenta...section_1.html

Given that Skype for Mac OS X has always been a couple of feature iterations behind the Windows version (understandable given market shares), I see long delays before a Skype 2.0 UB appears. Apple has been trying to get developers to start compiling UBs, but there is precious little evidence on the web (including Apple's UB page for developers) that UBs for the major and popular apps (Mathematica doesn't count for me!) are waiting in the wings for release en masse as soon as the new Xintels appear. I count only about a dozen (mostly minor apps) who have either released or announced that they will release UBs as soon as Xintels ship.

Why would they? Why should Adobe stumble over itself to release a UB (off release cycle)? If Photoshop works under Rosetta at roughly the same speed as a native PPC system... no offense, but Adobe isn't going to go out of the way to release a UB. They will just wait for Adobe CS3 or the upgrade after that.

If Photoshop didn't work under Rosetta, I would be singing a different story.

Other rumor sites say that many PPC apps, including Skype 1.3.0.x, are broken under current versions of Rosetta (note proviso "current"—I know this could change overnight). As someone intending to be first in line buying an Xintel PB or iBook (please SJ in January) and who uses Skype a lot, this worries me. If Skype does not run under Rosetta emulation and there is no UB for months, I will be screwed and it won't be worth my time buying an Xintel for months—yes, I use Skype that much.
Similar problems could impact other Mac users relying heavily on apps broken under Rosetta and with no UBs.

Here is a hint for life... don't buy the first model of a major platform shift if you are going to be "screwed if it doesn't work. Few (if any) professionals will be buying a x86 Mac in rev1.

production_coordinator · Dec 3, 2005, 10:20 PM

dp__

rocky2 · Dec 4, 2005, 08:51 AM

Quote: If Photoshop didn't work under Rosetta, I would be singing a different story.

My point exactly. Skype for me is Photoshop for you. Which tunes can you sing in key? Might be wise to start practising. But the good news is that MacGimp is availabe as a UB now.
Thanks for the life tip—I forgot that rule about 30 years ago. Usually, I would not buy v1 of any Mac with such a major change but a dead PB motherboard compels me to do so soon and I am hanging on in hope that the new Xintels will do the job. And please, none of the "If you need it now buy it now" marketing junk. I am damned if I am going to buy into PPC at the end of its life when new Xintels are supposedly just around the corner.
Of course, I could always install and boot into Windows to use Skype but .... ugh.

TETENAL · Dec 4, 2005, 03:17 PM

Originally Posted by rocky2

Skype for me is Photoshop for you.

Skype is Cacoa which means that adoption to Intel shouldn't be too difficult. How do you know that Skype doesn't have it building as universal binary already? It completely doesn't make sense to panic now.

rocky2 · Dec 4, 2005, 05:20 PM

Being Cocoa IS good news so it might not be too hard to recompile a UB.
Nobody is panicing. I said the lack of UB NEWS from Skype and on the Web is worrying, but Skype support has always been pretty awful in terms of timely responses (remember the refused credit card debacle) and press releases. As to the size of UB downloads, didn't SJ say somewhere that compling a UB does not add significantly to app size (and hence download time).
And the majority of Skype users have decent speeds or they likely wouldn't be using Skype!
Just keep waiting and holding my breath for some good news on January 10 I suppose.