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[eden]

Instructions for installing

 Installing Skype Public Beta 2.0.0.27 on a Fedora7-based OLPC Laptop

over at laptop.org

http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Skype

carllinde, if you tried this, were you able to make video calls?

[N. Holzschuch]

carllinde, if you tried this, were you able to make video calls?

Hi Eden,
as I said in a different thread http://olpcnews.com/forum/index.php?topic=1038.0, I tried it, and I had a somewhat better experience than Atif: I can both receive and initiate voice calls from the XO. And I can receive video, but not send it. I have also tested two Instant Messaging programs (aMSN and Kopete) that let me send and receive video, along with text messaging, but without voice.

[eden]

carllinde, if you tried this, were you able to make video calls?

Hi Eden,
as I said in a different thread http://olpcnews.com/forum/index.php?topic=1038.0, I tried it, and I had a somewhat better experience than Atif: I can both receive and initiate voice calls from the XO. And I can receive video, but not send it. I have also tested two Instant Messaging programs (aMSN and Kopete) that let me send and receive video, along with text messaging, but without voice.

Thank you.  I had read your earlier post and I was impressed with the amount of testing you did (and I thank you for posting it!).  I just got all excited thinking some miracle cure happened because of the new info posted on the OLPC wiki page and perhaps someone found some magical way to get video with Skype and voice working at the same time...doh.
 :

[Atif]

carllinde, if you tried this, were you able to make video calls?

Hi Eden,
as I said in a different thread http://olpcnews.com/forum/index.php?topic=1038.0, I tried it, and I had a somewhat better experience than Atif: I can both receive and initiate voice calls from the XO. And I can receive video, but not send it. I have also tested two Instant Messaging programs (aMSN and Kopete) that let me send and receive video, along with text messaging, but without voice.

Thank you.  I had read your earlier post and I was impressed with the amount of testing you did (and I thank you for posting it!).  I just got all excited thinking some miracle cure happened because of the new info posted on the OLPC wiki page and perhaps someone found some magical way to get video with Skype and voice working at the same time...doh.
 :

Hi Everyone....catching up after a few days... I'll have to try the skype install instructions on the wiki page....  With sound working well with the version 2 beta and being able to RECEIVE video...I am hopeful that we'll be able to send video too eventually.  From what I've read over at the skype forum, it isn't just the XO that is having camera issues...hmm... I almost wonder if it is worth trying it by connecting my own USB camera to my XO...will give that a try later today...

[Atif]

Can someone tell me EXACTLY what all your settings for alsamixer are?

I'm just not sure what is my problem and I'm pulling my hair out over this!

So I completely re-installed Skype 2.0.0.27

When I do the:
cd /usr/share/skype/sounds
aplay *

With out headphones I hear them all in both XO speakers AND with headphones I hear all the sounds IN STEREO.  So I'm thinking all is good...

HOWEVER when I start up skype, I can now make calls and receive calls just fine and without the headset everything goes through BOTH the XO speakers....

BUT with the headset I only here in the LEFT ear!  It is not the headset because I could here all the skype sounds in stereo using: "aplay *"

As per the instructions I have all the sound preferences set to:
CS5535 Audio (hw:Audio,0)

So what is going on?  Any help would be greatly appreciated!  I can only think that somehow I messed up the alsamixer settings...so if someone who has Skype working probably with a headset could tell me EXACTLY what the settings should be, that would be a GREAT help!

[Atif]

I've heard from others that they are getting this same behavior.

After doing some checking and experimenting I do not think it is an alsamixer settings issue.

Searching the web, other Linux users have had similar problems.  The solution is to create a ".asoundrc" file.  Since the latest version of Skype uses ALSA, when you start it, it looks for the ".asoundrc" file.

So in theory you can use the .asoundrc file to force Skype to send the audio out to both ears on a headset.

Unfortunately I couldn't quite get this to work.

These links give info including sample .asoundrc files:
http://forum.skype.com/index.php?showtopic=85880&hl=\.asoundrc
http://forum.skype.com/index.php?showtopic=88995&hl=

The part I am having problems with is getting it to recognize the XO's sound "card"

I say "card" because apparently the CS5535 is not a card but a low power CHIP that the XO uses to handle sound and a whole host of other jobs!

If anyone gets it working with two ears please let us know....

[Uri]

Hi,

Managed to get 2 way sound and receipt of video working (thanks for the instructions). However, have had the same experience that I can't get the video from the camera into skype. Actually, the camera does not seem to work in Record while Skype is running.
Am relatively new to linux, so apologies if my suggestion is not relevant, but noticed a post about skype video hijacker on one of the skype forums: http://forum.skype.com/index.php?showtopic=102838
and wonder if it might allow the camera to work with skype. The developer's page is referenced in the forum:
http://mrk.sed.pl/node/22/
However, he's updated it, renamed it gstfakevideo, and it's available through something called svn now hosted at code.google.com
I can't get the non-updated file on his website to work (download it but can't unzip it on the xo - though it unzips when I download it to my mac). And, sorry to say, I don't know how to deal with source code (which appears to be what is at the google site).
Anyway, sorry for the long post, but am hoping that if this is relevant that someone will see it and post instructions on how to get it to work. Either way, it's an amazing little machine and I'm glad to be able to access this community as I start to explore what it can do.

Uri

[Atif]

Managed to get 2 way sound and receipt of video working (thanks for the instructions). However, have had the same experience that I can't get the video from the camera into skype.

When you say you got the 2 way sound working...does that include with a head set? It really annoys me that the sound works great through BOTH speakers, but when a head set is plugged in, sound only comes into the LEFT ear!

[Uri]

Sorry, no. I meant receiving and sending. Haven't tried the headset and suspect I would get the same problem. What I'm most desperate for is to be able to send video from the built in camera. Still haven't found anything posted that describes that working either.

[patrick.surry]

I just posted some experimental instructions for enabling the OLPC camera in skype (so you can send as well as receive video chat).  See http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Skype:_Video

I've attached the compiled version of gstfakevideo that is required. [updated attachment]

Thanks to whoever suggested looking at skype-video-hijacker - that was the key.

[Atif]

I just posted some experimental instructions for enabling the OLPC camera in skype (so you can send as well as receive video chat). 

WOAH!  I'll give this a try tonight and edit this post to give my results! I am really excited!

*UPDATE*  I could not get it to work...

I followed the instructions and if I ran ./gstfake video as SU, then I would get colored bars with a small corner full of snow.  Interestingly enough, the other end would see this same thing BUT the mirror image, the small box of snow was in the other bottom corner!

If I ran from a terminal without being super user, then for a good second the green light over the camera would actually come on, and then skype would crash.

On the xterm would be a bunch of stuff like:
**********************
gst.c shim_ioctl (201): request=4020760a nr 10
gst.c shim_ioctl (259): VIDIOSCSWIN
gst.c shim_ioctl (313): result=0 error=0 Success

Starting the process...
Aborted
*********************

Any ideas what is wrong and how I can make this work?

[N. Holzschuch]

I just posted some experimental instructions for enabling the OLPC camera in skype (so you can send as well as receive video chat).  See http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Skype:_Video

Hi!
Thanks a lot for the compilation and the effort. It doesn't work for me, though: all I see is a set of color bars, but Skype does not get the picture from the camera.

I'll keep testing.

[patrick.surry]

Oops - I notice a typo in my instructions and gstfakevideoscript: the pipe commands in the video pipeline should actually be exclamation marks.  (Updated .zip attached; re-updated to fix export/echo issues)

But I have seen that test pattern one of the initial times I tried it; it's the output you get when you use a pipeline that starts with videotestsrc.  I assumed I had done something wrong.  In the attached copy I've inserted a line like:

  echo GST_PIPE: $GST_PIPE

just before it launches skype at the end of the gstfakevideo script to confirm what the
pipe is set to.  Or maybe in some cases the gstfakevideo.c code reverts to a test pipeline?  I'll play around a bit.

You can test your video pipeline is working by trying things like this:

  gst-launch videotestsrc \! ffmpegcolorspace \! videoscale \! autovideosink

This should create a test pattern on your XO display.  (To quit, press the 'home' button and either stop the unnamed activity or return to terminal and press ctrl-C.)  Note you need backslash before the exclam in the terminal to escape them, but not in the gstfakevideo script itself.  Also the 'autovideosink' element is only needed when testing (it routes the pipeline to your screen, instead of /dev/video0 for skype like the fakevideo library does).

To test your video camera, try a pipeline like:

  gst-launch v4l2src device=/dev/video1 \! ffmpegcolorspace \! videoscale \! autovideosink

then you should see your own smiling visage.  (Same instructions to quit.)

[Atif]

Again, I'll give this a try tonight and post my results!  Thanks so much for keeping at this, it would be really great to have this working!

[N. Holzschuch]

Hi patrick, and thanks for the good work,

Oops - I notice a typo in my instructions and gstfakevideoscript: the pipe commands in the video pipeline should actually be exclamation marks.  (Updated .zip attached)

I had actually tried that...

  echo GST_PIPE: $GST_PIPE

Some leprechaun (or maybe a tokoloshe?) infiltrated your text editor and replaced the "echo" with an "export"... I replaced the "export" by "echo", and noticed that it was sending a blank line... So GST_PIPE was not set, or if it was, it was erased.

I found the culprit: line 43 "export GST_PIPE="$*"
I commented that line, and then GST_PIPE was set to the right value, and then it works. I made a call between two of my computers, sending video from the XO... Boy, that feels good. Patrick, you rock!

One word of advice for those who want to try this: when you launch Skype, go to options, check the value of your video camera. It must be "GStreamer fake video", and not "cafe_ccic". But if you have to change it, you must click on "Apply" *before* you click on "Test". Otherwise, you're testing the other pipeline, which is not working because you've moved /dev/video0 out of place....

I'm updating the post on VOIP immediately.
http://olpcnews.com/forum/index.php?topic=1038.0

The two gst-launch commands are great too. Lots of fun.