On 07/03/15 14:38, Ben Finney wrote: > What would be the software freedom requirements for a video chat > system?
I feel the main consideration is that such functionality should not be centralised, or at least not mandatory that it is so. If it cannot work directly P2P and must rely on another server to initiate the connection (STUN), proxy to get around NAT (TURN), etc. then there should be free software available to host this yourself. > Does “Firefox Hello”, included in recent versions of Mozilla Firefox > <URL:https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/hello/>, satisfy the > requirements? As far as the Firefox Hello "Start a conversation" button specifically? I'm not certain. If you search about:config for "loop.", you see various Hello-related strings (eg. "loop.server"). This suggests that replacing the server is possible. Although I haven't tried using Firefox Hello to communicate with anyone, I have "started a conversation" successfully without requiring a Mozilla account. This just generates a URL that needs to be shared for other people to join the video conference (where the URL appears as https://hello.firefox.com/somehash). There is server software provided by Mozilla, but I'm unsure if it's exactly what Firefox Hello is running. https://docs.services.mozilla.com/loop/ https://github.com/mozilla-services/loop-server > Are there patent holders who could threaten users and/or > implementors? Not that I've heard, but that's not saying much. > That also requires users to understand that there's a third party > involved: the WebRTC service provider, mediating the connection > between the parties who want to communicate. That's a significant > learning barrier for many people. There's a clear reference to the Terms of Use and Privacy Notice when clicking the "Start a conversation" icon in Firefox, which is a strong indicator IMO. > What software-freedom implications are there? Can the client easily > choose to use any WebRTC server? I wouldn't call editing settings in about:config difficult, but it's certainly not obvious. Of course, Firefox Hello isn't necessary to use WebRTC with Firefox, but I imagine that's not what you're asking. The main frustration I have with Mozilla right now is that they are preparing to drop Firefox Sync 1.1 support. The latest Sync 1.5 includes integration with a Mozilla account AFAICT, and there is no easy way to self-host this (although it is possible - it's not well documented and quite complex). I feel Mozilla is very much trying to push end users towards centralised services which Mozilla will provide - ignoring people most keen to maintain freedom while instead concerning themselves with providing convenience for the masses. -Adam
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