openSUSE 10.2

Part II. Office and Collaboration / Chapter 6. Using Voice over IP with Ekiga
	5.4. Chatting		6.2. The Ekiga User Interface

Chapter 6. Using Voice over IP with Ekiga

Contents

6.1. Configuring Ekiga
6.2. The Ekiga User Interface
6.3. Making a Call
6.4. Answering a Call
6.5. Using the Address Book
6.6. For More Information

Abstract

Modern telecommunication means far more than just doing a phone call. It is also about exchanging text messages and sometimes even video conferencing. Roaming enables you to be reachable under one phone number all across the world. Ekiga brings these features to your Linux desktop allowing you to communicate over broadband Internet.

Before you start, make sure the following requirements are met:

Your sound card is properly configured.
A headset or a microphone and speakers are attached to your computer.
For dialing in to regular phone networks you have created a SIP account. For a list of providers refer to http://www.voipproviderslist.com/. Free trials are provided by http://www.voipbuster.com.
For video conferencing you have attached a Web cam to your computer.

6.1. Configuring Ekiga

On first start, Ekiga comes up with a configuration assistant that requests you to enter all data needed to configure your instance of Ekiga. To configure Ekiga, proceed as follows:

Enter your user name (name and surname).
Enter your ekiga.net account data or choose not to sign up to ekiga.net.
To add other accounts later on, configure them using Edit+Accounts.
Determine your connection type.
Determine the type of firewall to use to enable you to perform calls with Ekiga.
Choose the audio manager to use. Accept the default setting ALSA, as other sound systems like OSS are not available on openSUSE.
Choose the audio input and output devices and test your settings.
Accept the video manager selection, V4L.
Choose the video input device and test your settings.
Check the summary of your settings and apply them.

Ekiga allows you to maintain multiple accounts. To configure an additional account, proceed as follows:

Open Edit+Accounts and select Add.
Choose an Account Name.
Select an appropriate Protocol depending on what type of account you use. Normally, you would select SIP here.
Enter Registrar, User and Password according to the data provided by your provider.
Leave the configuration dialog with OK and activate the account.
The status of your account displayed in the Ekiga main window changes to Registered.