Open channels in Loudtalks

In the new release of Loudtalks, which we released on the last day of April, an interesting feature appeared that I want to talk about.



Loudtalks is a push-to-talk voice messenger. Instead of typing messages like in ICQ or calling as in Skype, you press the hot key, speak and the sound is transmitted in real time to the other person. It turns out quickly and in many cases more convenient calls or IM.

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Until recently, it was possible to communicate only with those who are clearly added to contacts - that is, with acquaintances, colleagues. We wanted to give users a way to find new contacts, so we made open channels .



Open channels allow groups of up to 100 people to communicate on the same wavelength. At the same time, it is not necessary to add interlocutors to contacts, it is enough to find an interesting channel, connect to it and you can talk. Skype previously had a similar feature called Skypecasts , but for reasons unknown to me, they removed it from the program.



The very first conversation, after the launch of the new version, took place on the Lobby channel between me, a fun German from Bavaria and a Google programmer from San Jose.

Instructions for use

1. Download and install the client application for PC or Windows Mobile communicator (unfortunately, so far only Windows).
2. After installation, a registration screen will appear. Required fields - username and password only
3. Use the menu command Actions> Add Channel ... and add the desired channel.
4. I recommend adding the channel Lobby (English) and habr
5. Enjoy communication!

If you want, you can create your own channels. Both public and personal channels are supported, where only you can broadcast. In order not to break away from the audience, you can create a separate channel for comments and discussion of your personal radio station.



The function is completely new, so there may be crashes and bugs. Please report them and we will try to fix everything. Even more interesting is your assessment of the usefulness (uselessness) of this function and of this type of communication in general.



PS Before you enter into a dialogue with real people, you can (and should!) Check the operation of the microphone and practice on the echo robot. If you managed to achieve that he answers you about the same thing that you told him, then everything is fine.