Jitsi "Meet" - secure, encrypted webapp. 'Portable' and ROX-app, too!

[mikewalsh]

Evening, gang.

Video-calling/conferencing has become a large part of many people's lives over the course of the last 18 months, due to the nature of the global response to the pandemic. For a lot of folks, this automatically means Skype.

I've quit building the Skype-portable I maintained for some time, largely due to the client misbehaving itself in recent months; every time you attempt to make a call, it re-starts itself. I never did get to the bottom of this, because MyCrudSoft have suppressed error-reporting in the terminal.....makes trouble-shooting next to impossible.

For a while, I switched to using the Skype webapp instead, and advised others to do the same. In recent weeks, however, this now refuses to recognise my webcam.....and this is the same in every browser.....even M$ Edge, where you would expect it would definitely work, this being M$'s own browser. Even there, it's a no-go.

Bye-bye, Skype!

----------------------------------------------------

For some time, my alternatives to this have been Google's 'Duo' and 'Meet' video-calling webapps, both of which just work, with no fanfare. I do appreciate, however, that for many of you these are also a no-go, due to extreme mistrust by many of you of 'Big Brother'.

There's a number of other video-calling apps out there, many of which are primarily for smartphones, though with desktop clients. Too many of these, however, appear to insist on a pre-existing account already set-up ON a smartphone, before they'll allow the desktop client to connect. For old farts like me, who have no use for, or interest in, a smartphone, this puts THESE out of the ball-park.

So; what's left?

One of the halfway reasonable open-source contenders used to be Jitsi. It was not, however, the easiest thing to build packages for. Video-calling used to involve setting up a multitude of individual parameters manually, by hand. It wasn't exactly "user-friendly".

Enter Jitsi "Meet".....a secure webapp, with end-to-end encryption, and no connection to any of the big data-harvesters.

https://meet.jit.si/

Jitsi's entry into the webapp arena has put it right up there with the big boys, for sheer ease-of-use. You enter your name/meeting-name in the large white box, top left. Then hit 'Start Meeting', the big blue button beside it.

Your browser will ask your permission to use your webcam and microphone. After agreeing to this, the main screen appears. You enter your chosen name again, to 'join' the meeting, followed by hitting the big blue button beneath it. Above this, there's a link you can send to others so that they can join the meeting.

And that's ALL there is to it. Piece of cake.

I've got no hesitation in recommending this one, since Jitsi have for long enough had a decent reputation in the open-source community. And with NO ties to 'big data', it may appeal to some of you, too.

I've got this set-up as a Chrome 'desktop app', opening in its own separate window, and launched from its own, dedicated MenuEntry.

Worth investigating....?

---------------------------------------------

Download link for the 'portables':- https://mega.nz/folder/HGAxDYpT#U3FBDgTSbv-oANQ9_aWaGg

---------------------------------------------

Mike.

[mikewalsh]

Well now.... It gets better.

Not half-an-hour after I posted about the Jitsi Meet webapp, I was having a nose around on Github.....and guess what I found?

https://github.com/jitsi/jitsi-meet-electron

Somebody's converted the Jitsi 'Meet' webapp into an Electron-based AppImage. So; I've taken that AppImage - which works perfectly, BTW; even in Pups of the Tahrpup era - and used it as the basis of yet another 'portable' application, i.e., one which keeps all its config stuff within its own directory, sym-linking it out to the 'expected' location at run-time. At close, the config symlink is removed again.

Similar to the webapp, just enter a name for your meeting in the box, followed by hitting "Go". Then you re-enter your name again, and hit the big, blue "Join meeting" button, annnd.......you're up-and-running. It recognises every single one of my microphone/speaker/headset inputs & outputs, and gives you the choice to use these in any combination that suits you.

As with all my recent offerings, there's the option to add a MenuEntry pointing to the portable's location, wherever that happens to be. The "MenuReadMe" explains how to use it, including what to do if you move the portable to a new location.

The beauty of this being an Electron app means that the 'client' will talk to the webapp flawlessly.....AND vice-versa, naturally. The same principle applies; all you need do is send the meeting URL to somebody, and all they need to do is to paste that into their browser. Moments later, you're talking face-to-face....

-------------------------------------------

If anybody would like to try the portable version of Jitsi 'Meet', you can find it here:-

https://mega.nz/folder/HGAxDYpT#U3FBDgTSbv-oANQ9_aWaGg

I'm hoping this will turn out to be a viable replacement for the now-defunct Skype-portable. Guys'n'gals.....enjoy.

Mike.

[rockedge]

@mikewalsh Awesome! I'm downloading and looking forward to testing Jitsi-portable.

[mikewalsh]

@mikewalsh Awesome! I'm downloading and looking forward to testing Jitsi-portable.

Let me know what you think of it, Erik. I know you tend to rely a lot on Skype because of other people insisting on using it..?

It's annoying, really, because for a long time it just worked, flawlessly. But, MyCrudSoft being MyCrudSoft, they just can't resist tinkering with things.....and their "improvements" then break previously stable functionality.

Jitsi's been around for what seems like ages. I tried building a package for this two or three years back, but it was a nightmare; instead of there being one single Jitsi team that work on the video-client as a whole, between them, the "Jitsi" name appears to be an 'umbrella' term that brings together many small projects.....one works on the audio, another on the video stuff, yet another on the web-protocols, a fourth on the framework itself. That kind of thing.

As such they all want separate recognition & billing, and insist on separate packaging, too. If you have a trawl through the main Jitsi repos, there's something like 14 separate .deb packages needed in total for the thing to work (and that's before you get started on dependencies!)

I'm really pleased they got it running as a webapp. Because existing web functionality means it's a piece of cake to then turn THAT into an Electron app.....and from there to an AppImage is but a short step.

Which is exactly the same route M$ have taken with the current Skype.....and why the client & webapp look identical. Because to all intents & purposes, they ARE.....

Mike.

[rockedge]

@mikewalsh worked right away, I set up a test meeting and could have proceeded with both camera and audio it appeared. Next test is to have some others join a meeting.

Ran Jitisi-portable in Bionic64-8.0 which operated smoothly and as expected.

[mikewalsh]

@rockedge :-

@mikewalsh worked right away, I set up a test meeting and could have proceeded with both camera and audio it appeared. Next test is to have some others join a meeting.

Ran Jitisi-portable in Bionic64-8.0 which operated smoothly and as expected.

Ah, nice one. We shall have to have a wee chat, as & when we can arrange a time to suit both of us.....if you want to.

I'm busy for the next couple of days; Mama's got a hospital appointment tomorrow (sorry, that's today now!), and Tuesday we have family coming over. And there's also the time-zone thing to factor in; you being t'other side of "the Pond" means you're several hours behind me, of course.

I'll leave that one with you. I'm heading up the "wooden hill" now; the Sandman's a-calling. As & when, mate, as & when....

No rush.

Mike.

[rockedge]

Yes! we must give a chat a whirl soon! Time difference is not a problem and you are one hour better than a chat with my sons living in Hamburg Germany, so we should be able to find a time that suits us both.

Looking forward to this test. Still no rush, and we will definitely have a chat...we were spared getting hit by the storm Henri....turned out to be an average rainy day.

[mikewalsh]

Morning, gang.

Following a query from MochiMoppel as to why I don't pack my 'portables' as ROX-apps - Puppy's 'native' portable format - in another thread:-

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=3796

.....I've followed the simple advice given, and....it works. Beautifully.

I was a wee bit concerned as to whether my practice of locating the config stuff inside the portable directory would still work like this, but I needn't have worried. It DOES; a ROX-App, after all, is still just a standard directory, albeit with a special way of 'launching' the executable within, transferring that exec action to the next level out, the portable directory itself (the 'container', if you like). Which makes it a one-click launch affair - like an AppImage - yet with the flexibility of standard directory/file-system behaviour.

I like this!

You may be seeing some of my other stuff packed this way soon. I shall probably offer both options; 'standard' portable, AND ROX-app.

Anyway; for those who would like it, here's the JitsiMeet 'portable' packed as a ROX-app:-

https://mega.nz/folder/OaoFVaaQ#BTSAmqZquotBd1z0IEjx1Q

See what y'all think.

Mike.

[amethyst]

Morning, gang.

Following a query from MochiMoppel as to why I don't pack my 'portables' as ROX-apps - Puppy's 'native' portable format - in another thread:-

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=3796

.....I've followed the simple advice given, and....it works. Beautifully.

I was a wee bit concerned as to whether my practice of locating the config stuff inside the portable directory would still work like this, but I needn't have worried. It DOES; a ROX-App, after all, is still just a standard directory, albeit with a special way of 'launching' the executable within, transferring that exec action to the next level out, the portable directory itself (the 'container', if you like). Which makes it a one-click launch affair - like an AppImage - yet with the flexibility of standard directory/file-system behaviour.

I like this!

You may be seeing some of my other stuff packed this way soon. I shall probably offer both options; 'standard' portable, AND ROX-app.

Anyway; for those who would like it, here's the JitsiMeet 'portable' packed as a ROX-app:-

https://mega.nz/folder/OaoFVaaQ#BTSAmqZquotBd1z0IEjx1Q

See what y'all think.

Mike.

So what about the application's config files. Symlinking like you did with the portable apps?

[mikewalsh]

@amethyst :-

Yep. Exactly the same as the 'standard' portables. I didn't know if it would work as a ROX-app, but it seems to behave in precisely the same way. Just transfers the executable action out to the main directory, or 'container'.

All it appears to take, as Mochi said, is the renaming of the 'LAUNCH' script to 'AppRun' instead. That one simple action makes ROX see it in a completely different light. The 'mechanics' of the thing are still the same, but it launches slightly differently.

So it's download; unzip; click to run. One click LESS than the standard portable. And you really cannot get any simpler than that.

Mike.

[bigpup]

The info on the https://meet.jit.si/

It has one feature I am not sure about.

Remotely control other participants desktop

Any info on exactly what that is saying?
Exactly what control are they talking about?

Screenshot.jpg (17.03 KiB) Viewed 794 times

[mikewalsh]

@bigpup :-

Hm. TBH, I don't know.

I cannot find any reference to this at all. Not on the main Jitsi website, nor the Jitsi Forums.....not anywhere. Odd. I can't answer your question, I'm afraid....'cos it certainly doesn't show up in settings, either for the webapp OR the client.

No idea, I'm sorry to say.

(*shrug...*)

-------------------------------------

EDIT:- Ah. Here we are. It doesn't appear to be a general thing; only available under certain, specific circumstances. It's not like, say, TeamViewer.....where remote control is the entire, specific purpose of the app, and it appears to be only available to the meeting's "host". And it must be used with the client; it won't work if the one you want to control is running the webapp.

https://community.jitsi.org/t/howto-use ... reen/48910

It also appears to be simply to help other users to get the best out of the app itself. (It's not a general thing, where you can simply seize control of somebody else's machine, and do what the hell you like with it. It seems to be limited to the app's own code-base.)

And even then, only a 'shared' screen....

----------------------------------------------------

EDIT2:-

Reading further through the thread, it appears this was only available on some of the older code-base. It's since been de-activated on the current release for security reasons. If you specifically WANT this functionality, you will now need to re-compile the whole thing yourself, from scratch.

The web-site, it would seem, has NOT been 'updated' to reflect this fact. (You would also need to 'persuade' the other participants to let you substitute their version of Jitsi with a re-built one. How many are going to agree to that?)

Not many, I daresay.

Mike.

[bigpup]

Any control of my computer is not something I will give to anyone.

I see your search ability is beyond my ability.

Thanks for the info!!

[mikewalsh]

Right, boys & girls.

Here's the new version, released 2 days ago - v2.8.11. Packed as a standard 'portable', and also as a ROXapp.

The main improvement with this release is that of switching to a newer version of the Chromium-based Electron framework. Hence - hopefully! - a wee bit more secure.

• If you want to be able to add a Menu entry, choose the standard version.

• If all you want to do is click'n'go, choose the ROXapp.

Both available from the link in post #1. Enjoy!

Mike.

[mikewalsh]

Interesting discovery, gang.

Apparently, this thing auto-updates itself, so no need for me to keep providing packages for it. The last version I packaged & made available was definitely v2.8.11.....yet the Help button, bottom left-hand corner, is telling me I now have v2.8.12 (released about 6 days ago). And that's the 'Change' time under 'Properties'; 15th Sept 2021.

Which is neat. (And shows the Jitsi Team must be using the AppImage release type that is updateable via what are known as .yml packages. Nice!)

So now you're as wise as I am..!

Mike.

[mikewalsh]

Afternoon, gang.

Just a heads-up for y'all.

Jitsi-Meet is Electron-based, as you know. Up to now, there's been no requirement for it, but it seems that with the latest Jan 2022 update, you'll now need to add the

Code: Select all

--no-sandbox

.....'switch' to the exec line in the 'LAUNCH' script. Instead of:-

Code: Select all

"$HERE/JitsiMeet64" "$@"

.....just amend it to read as follows:-

Code: Select all

"$HERE/JitsiMeet64" --no-sandbox "$@"

I would guess the Jitsi team have built this latest update with a newer version of Electron, hence the "--no-sandbox" requirement. It still works as well as ever.

Mike.

[backi]

Hey @mikewalsh :

Just discovered this awesome App. (Exploring it now)
Fantastico.........Applause...Applause.....Applause!!!!

Many Thanks for this !
Keep on rocking

[mikewalsh]

Hey @mikewalsh :

Just discovered this awesome App. (Exploring it now)
Fantastico.........Applause...Applause.....Applause!!!!

Many Thanks for this !
Keep on rocking

@backi :-

Just so's you know, the Jitsi team are producing this with a more modern type of AppImage which updates itself, automatically. You'll find the updates seem to run around every 5-6 weeks on average; you can check 'em with the 'About' icon down the bottom of the sidebar.

As for the app itself.....it IS a neat one, isn't it? And extremely easy to use, too. If you go online, here:-

https://meet.jit.si/

.....you can make/receive calls in exactly the same way; the GUI/interface are identical. I believe you'll find the webapp and the AppImage are one & the same; at least, they're both working thru the same server, so....

Go figure. Actually, if you open up Zoom online, along with Jitsi, and Google's 'Meet' video-calling app (the successor to Hangouts), you'll see there's very little to choose between them. They're so similar, visually, it's easy to forget which one you're using sometimes!

I guess, in a way, that's a back-handed compliment (if ya think about it!) They do say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, don't they?

Mike.

[backi]

@mikewalsh wrote:

They do say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, don't they?

.....and it`s an Art .... an evolutionary (guerilla )Tactic (among other Tactics) for the Better ........ on which Civilization is build on. ......

In the End it`s only the Result which counts.....so keep on rocking Mike ....and spread the Words of Knowledge

Regards !

[backi]

Hi @mikewalsh :

So far so good .....this App is working fine.
.......But i can`t get Sound/Tone working.
Video is O.K.

Did you succeed Ton/Audio working?

Tried to find a Solution by googling......but none of the Advices did work.
Seems i am not the only One with Sound not working.

Microphone (integrated) is indicating Activity.....Test Tone audible.
But no Sound is transmitted (via Web) nor Sound is audible in my own Headphones when speaking.

So it is not a Problem in your portable Program.....or Website Access .

Cool App.....has a lot of Potential....but quite annoying i can`t get any Sound.
Don`t expect from you to find a Solution.......just want to report.

Maybe anyone knows how to solve this Problem.
Maybe i need a Headset with Microphone .

Nevertheless .....thanks a lot Mike for your never ending,restless Engagement....

and ....
Best Wishes!

[mikewalsh]

@backi :-

Hm. I confess, I haven't actually made a call with it as yet. For me, the microphone shows activity - the small green dotted bar in the wee screen preview, top right corner, and yes.....the speaker 'test tone' works. How do you know it's not actually transmitting sound? Have you tried calling someone with it? Because as far as I know, none of these video-calling apps will give you a local, 'mic' monitor to let you hear your mic input through the headphones.....and if on speakers, I fancy you'll just get feedback if your mic is particularly sensitive!

Like most, if you want to try the webapp (which is identical to the desktop client, BTW), it'll work far better with a Chromium 'clone' of some sort than it will with a 'zilla browser. Firefox will ONLY let you use the 'default' mic or 'default' speakers.....meaning they have to be set-up correctly before you even open the browser. (Black mark there, Mozilla...)

Mike.

[backi]

deleted

[backi]

Hi @mikewalsh :

Got Sound/Audio working....... if both use the Jitsi App.......
Chromium based Browsers work too.
Waterfox/Firefox as a Recipient .....seems no Sound working/transmitting.....so far.....( Maybe some addons do block Sound/audio too....will find out...)

So i regard this "Audio not working Problem" as solved.
So ..... again ......cool App .....i will do further experimenting.

Regards!

[ndujoe2]

I downloaded and unzipped the portable in a directory. Clicked Launch and the program started up and all the functions appeared to work. I am using Bionicpup64. I closed the session and tried to start it again by clicking Launch, but it did not open.

I went to through the instructions and clicked menu removie, and then restarted X.

Then I clicked Menu add and restarted X,

It did not work again.

Am I doing something wrong. The menu link did not work either.

Joe

[ndujoe2]

The browser based version worked Ok in Opera which is the browser I use now.

Joe

[backi]

Hi @ndujoe2 :
The Reason why your Jitsi App is not starting anymore is........it updated automatically .....so you need to modify the "LAUNCH" Script.
after that....as is described as below.

@mikewalsh wrote:

Jitsi-Meet is Electron-based, as you know. Up to now, there's been no requirement for it, but it seems that with the latest Jan 2022 update, you'll now need to add the

--no-sandbox
.....'switch' to the exec line in the 'LAUNCH' script. Instead of:-
"$HERE/JitsiMeet64" "$@"

.....just amend it to read as follows:-
"$HERE/JitsiMeet64" --no-sandbox "$@"

I would guess the Jitsi team have built this latest update with a newer version of Electron, hence the "--no-sandbox" requirement. It still works as well as ever.

Should work/start after doing that...it did for me...Updates are automatically.

[ndujoe2]

Thanks, I have alway appreciated your creativity in the Puppylinux space.

[backi]

Thanks.......
..........but this is Mikewalsh`s Merit.