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FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

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Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#211

Post by ehsankia »

axiosgunnar wrote: post #196
kevincox wrote: post #18

Wow. That is unexpected. I have to say that FaceTime in a browser sandbox is one of the few Apple products I would consider using. I wonder what made them take this path? I also wonder if someone could build a Matrix bridge if it is available via web, that would be fairly cool. Some questions: - Is it phone-number based IDs? Or can I pick a username or get a random ID? - Is spam going to be a problem? Previous Apple…

> I wonder what made them take this path? Very simple. Video conferencing software has an anti-network effect: If just one person in a group cannot use a particular app, nobody in the group can.

Doesn't the same apply to chat software / iMessage? Also, FaceTime isn't really conferencing software (though they added a bunch of conferencing feature just now). It's closer to Duo, which focuses on casual face to face meetings, not at desk, presenting slides kind of video meeting.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#212

Post by garciasn »

ehsankia wrote: post #211
axiosgunnar wrote: post #196

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I wonder what made them take this path? Very simple. Video conferencing software has an anti-network effect: If just one person in a group cannot use a particular app, nobody in the group can.

Doesn't the same apply to chat software / iMessage? Also, FaceTime isn't really conferencing software (though they added a bunch of conferencing feature just now). It's closer to Duo, which focuses on casual face to face meetings, not at desk, presenting slides kind of video meeting.

No, because it just moves to SMS for the group, instead.

Video conferencing has no ubiquitous fallback.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#213

Post by ehsankia »

skinnymuch wrote: post #114
bilal4hmed wrote: post #5

Its only 1 way which means an Apple user can send a link to a non ios user to join in. I as an Android user cant do that. Cross platform like whatsapp, duo or signal still win here

From Duo wiki: “ In August 2020, it was reported that Google was planning to eventually replace Google Duo with Google Meet, but would continue to support Duo and "invest in building new features" in the long term.[2]” I don’t know exactly what that means. Seems like not much and Duo is still a priority. But all the deprecating and switching of Google products makes them a non win for me. It’s hard for me to get frie…

It's no different than Hangouts. We got fed misleading headlines about how it was KILLED for years, but it seems like as far as users are concerned, it'll just be a UI change. Behind the scene they are migrating it to Chat, but all your chats and contacts and histogram will be migrated over.

I would assume something similar with Duo. It'll probably change look and get merged into Meet, but it'll probably still be more or less the same app.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#214

Post by gogopuppygogo »

ThomPete wrote: post #185
yhoneycomb wrote: post #161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seriously why are Google video calls SO confusing and why do they change every year?

Google Meet is a pretty solid solution and I have never had a problem with it, been using it for years.

Years? https://mobilesyrup.com/2020/04/08/google-meet-rebrand/

Google rebrands or changes entire apps at a whim. I’m shocked they haven’t ruined Google Apps (Workspace) with their changes.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#215

Post by ehsankia »

stevenicr wrote: post #208

Isn't facetime encrypted ? and assuming it is - would doing this android or web break that or keep it solid? Will the folks using iOs devices be warned that they are sharing audio/video with a lesser protected device? I wouldn't mind having another secure option that everyone could use easily.

At the presentation at least, they said it would still be E2E encrypted even on the web. Duo is also E2E encrypted and supports web.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#216

Post by macintux »

izgzhen wrote: post #192
floatingatoll wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My theory is that FaceTime calls can only be initiated/scheduled from an Apple device. That prevents most of the spam problem, since you won’t be able to initiate a call through web.

> Apple announced that FaceTime is going to be available on the web so users can call in from Android devices and Windows PCs From the article.

“call in” means an Apple user has to initiate the call, as GP stated.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#217

Post by melq »

avianlyric wrote: post #144
threatofrain wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think it's productive to equate the green/blue color thing with the accessibility or parity of experience between web apps and native apps. The green/blue distinction is very meaningful. It tells you whether your chats are encrypted, which is not a default to SMS technology. In fact it would be more honest or accurate for Apple to display a padlock to inform you that you're secure; instead we have colors.

The colours are definitely there to indicate who doesn’t have an iDevice. They predate iMessage being end-to-end encrypted, and predates Apples current privacy push. Additionally Apple senior leaders have got up on stage and joked about how people with green bubbles are second class friends. All of that together makes me think the bubble colours are primarily there to gently nudge people into getting their friends an…

>All of that together makes me think the bubble colours are primarily there to gently nudge people into getting their friends and family to buy iPhones.

I don't think anyone can argue with a straight face that the color-coded messages aren't at least partially motivated by creating an in-crowd and out-crowd dichotomy, but its a stretch to say that they are there _primarily_ to get Apple users to bully their friends into switching platforms. Like many others have pointed out, there are a variety of reasons why one would want an obvious distinction between SMS and iMessage messages.

the obvious reasons: - knowing when your communication is encrypted - knowing when your going to incur outrageous fees from your service provider (cheap text messaging is not ubiquitous across the modern world) - knowing who you can communicate with without a cell signal (eg during flights, in remote areas, etc)

but also it serves a useful purpose for less advanced/savvy users to reduce confusion on feature discrepancies. There are a lot of niceties/features in iMessage that modern users might not realize aren't common to SMS messages. The average iMessage user might not be aware that they can't just send a huge video file over SMS, or a PDF, or send messages with the 'effects' Apple offers, or have named group chats that people have the option of joining or leaving, etc.

The 'cool kid' dynamic that the color coding creates is definitely not an accident, but there are obvious benefits to it that aren't nefarious in nature.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#218

Post by lamp_book »

afavour wrote: post #188
gambiting wrote: post #173

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I honestly 100% feel like this is the main justification for all changes happening with Google products. I swear to god Google Photos changes the entire layout every year for no reason whatsoever. Whatever they change it to isn't better, just different. But the entire website has to be remodelled and your users have to learn the entire website again because.....someone on the UI team has to justify their 6 digit sala…

The transition from Google Play Music to YouTube Music has been insane. They rebuilt apps seemingly from the ground up, only without a bunch of features. Meanwhile the actual product has, at best, stood still for about two years now. Meanwhile Spotify are running rings around them.

Spotify has atrocious quality, their apps frequently are unresponsive and crash or won't play music often. Just about everyone I know who uses it complains about it from time to time. I haven't tried YT music so I can't compare, just saying.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#219

Post by abstract_put »

NaturalPhallacy wrote: post #135
Someone1234 wrote: post #44

A lot of Apple's previous attempts at "web apps" have been pretty half-arsed. Including Apple Music currently. Let's see if this is any different. I'm currently using Signal on Windows/Android/iOS and apart from two annoyances it is fine. - No gif support on Windows (Android/iOS only) - Cannot add a second phone but can add a tablet. As soon as it detects a SIM card slot (with or without SIM in it) it only allows you…

>- Cannot add a second phone but can add a tablet. As soon as it detects a SIM card slot (with or without SIM in it) it only allows you to set it up as the primary device, rather than a secondary like a tablet. This is so infuriating. I can have Signal with the same account on my phone, my macbook pro, and my windows desktop, but not my iPad Pro. It doesn't even have a SIM card in it. Just an empty slot.

Agreed - I got a second phone and can't have Signal on both. It's a weird and off-putting limit that had me rethinking my use of Signal in general. Now I'm using Matrix with a Signal bridge, so the second device is a Matrix client. It's frustrating that messaging is so fractured. I feel like there's no go-to service that avoids lock-in and respects privacy.

Re: FaceTime is coming to Android and Windows via the web

#220

Post by commoner »

joecool1029 wrote: post #199
commoner wrote: post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My point is that Signal is preferable to Apple Messages for privacy and security. I am not claiming that Signal is the best solution for every use case. (For instance, Matrix is superior if you do not want to be tied to a phone number.) > Not really needed when your IME is spying on you. Users can choose an open source keyboard on Android, such as AnySoftKeyboard or the default Android Keyboard (on AOSP installations…

I'm not comparing Signal to Apple Messages, I am criticizing the promotion of Signal as a superior alternative while its developers will not address a major practical security concern. >Users can choose an open source keyboard on Android Then they should be made immediately aware of this in using Signal on Android. The IME issue is not going to be well-known outside the tech bubble.

> Then they should be made immediately aware of this in using Signal on Android.

Does any messaging app do this on any platform? You're demanding something that, as far as I'm aware, no messaging app currently does. Signal at least published the FAQ page, which you linked earlier, even though it's not their responsibility to ensure that the user's device is free of third-party spyware.

This entire discussion is about FaceTime and Apple Messages, which is why Signal is being compared to both. And Signal is superior to these services for privacy and security.

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