Introduction
Ekiga was the default Internet telephony (VoIP) application/SoftPhone in Ubuntu until Ubuntu 9.10 (Karmic Koala), when it was replaced by Empathy. It lets you make audio and video calls over the Internet to people who have hardware or software that follows the SIP or H.323 standards. Ekiga also features basic instant messaging.
Ekiga has a robust and wide support for multimedia, and is compatible with Windows Messenger and most VoIP applications. Ekiga cannot communicate with Skype because Skype uses its own non-standard protocols. If you have a suitable SIP provider, you can also use Ekiga to place calls to any normal phone line.
During installation of Ekiga, it might be necessary to change router settings.
Desktop interoperability
Ekiga works with Linux or Windows. For Mac OS, you can use the free software xmeeting.
Ekiga is compatible with Netmeeting (H.323, windows), Windows Messenger (SIP, Windows), Gizmo (SIP, multi-platform), and other programs listed on the Ekiga documentation.
Ekiga.net services (free calls PC-to-PC)
Ekiga.net is a free service (no ads) based upon Free Software (iptel and Asterisk) ran by the Ekiga team.
Register to a commercial VoIP provider (landline and mobile phones)
You can register to a commercial VoIP provider to place calls to normal phone line or cell phone (POTS). Ekiga allows you to register with several VoIP providers.
* See Ekiga/VoIPProviders - How to register to a commercial VoIP provider.
Configuration
* See Ekiga/Configuration for help on configuring Ekiga.
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
* See Ekiga/FAQ for answers to frequently asked questions about Ekiga.
Install Ekiga
In trusty (14.04) and later, Ekiga is available in the Universe repository. The package name is ekiga.
Install snapshots from the website
You can get the latest development snapshots from snapshots.ekiga.net. Installing them may solve problems you are experiencing, but be aware that the snapshots could also cause more problems. This package will replace your actual and stable version.
I don't know why this image is necessary.
Install snapshots using a repository
Add this GPG key to verify the repository
- Add the key to your key list
$ gpg --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com --recv-keys 3596ED6E
- Add the key to apt utils
$ gpg --export --armor 3596ED6E | sudo apt-key add -
Add the repositories
- The Ekiga SVN snapshot repository
deb http://snapshots.ekiga.net/snapshots/ubuntu/ <release> main
- The updates repository (official)
deb http://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ <release>-updates main multiverse
where <release> is the codename of the Ubuntu release used, for example 'natty'.
Optionally you can add more features installing those packages:
for webcam support using only V4L API: libpt-snapshot-plugins-v4l
FireWire camera AVC video support: libpt-snapshot-plugins-avc
FireWire camera DC video support: libpt-snapshot-plugins-dc
The H264 Video codec: libopal-snapshot-plugins-h264
Install Ekiga Snapshot
Install the package ekiga-snapshot
Ekiga Links
Navigate to Ekiga pages at Ubuntu Help
Ekiga - Telephony Software
Ekiga/VoIPProviders - Commercial VoIP Providers
Ekiga/Configuration - Configuring Ekiga
Ekiga/FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions about Ekiga
See also
External links
- To read the Ekiga Documentation : run Ekiga and press F1 (requires yelp)
Asterisk is a full featured PABX including VoIP facitlies which complement Ekiga's capabilities.
Ekiga needs you! Let's spread Ekiga!