{"id":8633,"date":"2015-09-23T13:20:12","date_gmt":"2015-09-23T17:20:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.nccomputertech.com\/?p=8633"},"modified":"2015-09-23T13:20:12","modified_gmt":"2015-09-23T17:20:12","slug":"firefoxs-voip-service-firefox-hello-adds-instant-messaging","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2015\/09\/23\/firefoxs-voip-service-firefox-hello-adds-instant-messaging\/","title":{"rendered":"Firefox’s VoIP service, Firefox Hello, adds instant-messaging"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you suffered through the Skype outage earlier this week, Mozilla would like you to know that you have another option: Firefox Hello.<\/p>\n

The latest update of the Firefox browser (version 41.0) adds instant-message capabilities to Firefox Hello, the integrated VoIP client that Mozilla has put in the browser with assistance from Telefonica. It\u2019s not perfect, but it doesn\u2019t need a dedicated client\u2014or even a Mozilla browser\u2014to work.<\/p>\n

To access Firefox Hello\u2019s new capabilities, you\u2019ll need the latest version of Firefox. (Firefox should update automatically, but you can force an update by opening the \u201chamburger\u201d menu in the upper right, then finding the tiny \u201c?\u201d or help button near the bottom of the menu choices. Then click on \u201cAbout Firefox\u201d and the browser will kick off the update.)firefox hello snip retryMark HachmanFirefox Hello allows you to connect via video, or you can chat in the accompanying text box.<\/p>\n

To access Hello, you\u2019ll need to click the \u201csmiley-face\u201d conversation icon in the menu bar, to the upper right. A small video window will then open, and you\u2019ll have the option to send or share a link with your friends. (You can also adjust the \u201ccontext\u201d of the chat, meaning that you can send a quick note to let a friend know what it will be about.)<\/p>\n

Hello seems to work just fine\u2014if it can detect the correct hardware. I tried it with a Lenovo Yoga 13, and it couldn\u2019t find either my microphone or video camera. (Skype found my video camera, but not an attached microphone, so there may be issues there.) On a Surface Pro 3, FirefoxHello used the rear camera rather than the front-facing camera, so I shared a lovely view of my monitor stand. I can\u2019t see an easy way to fix that, either. Chatting worked fine, however, as you might expect. There\u2019s even an option to share your screen (either tabs or windows) through I did not try that out.<\/p>\n

Although Firefox fared well in our latest browser tests, the company has struggled to compete with the more entrenched browsers: Internet Explorer (built into Windows), Apple’s Safari (integrated into Mac OS), and the Chrome browser that ships with Chromebooks and that millions of users have independently downloaded on other platforms. According to NetApplications, Firefox ranks fourth, with 9.5 percent of the market in August.<\/p>\n

Why this matters:<\/strong> You might argue that Firefox Hello is a gimmick. On the other hand, it\u2019s also a way to add value. Browsers like Edge can tap services like Microsoft\u2019s Cortana to add new capabilties, but Mozilla doesn\u2019t have that option. On the other hand, Firefox has always been known for its extensive plugin support; Hello simply pushes one of these into the spotlight.<\/p>\n

Source: Firefox’s VoIP service, Firefox Hello, adds instant-messaging<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you suffered through the Skype outage earlier this week, Mozilla would like you to know that you have another […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9,10],"tags":[369,1173],"class_list":["post-8633","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-software","category-technology","tag-firefox","tag-voip"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/papNkV-2ff","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9428,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2018\/10\/28\/all-the-presidents-phones-this-week-in-tech-690\/","url_meta":{"origin":8633,"position":0},"title":"All the President’s Phones – This Week in Tech 690","author":"NCCT","date":"October 28, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/pmfcU05twvo IBM buys Red Hat, worst Windows 10 ever, Right to Repair wins, and more. -- What's in store for Apple's big event this Tuesday? 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