Internet VoiceChat Version 1.0 Help

Welcome to Internet VoiceChat!  IVC is a unique program which allows users with Internet connectivity to conduct live, two-way voice conversations anywhere in the world that has net access.  Amenities such as an answering machine and call screening are all included, yet IVC is amazingly easy to use.  Version 1.0 is just the beginning of what is planned for this program.  Internet VoiceChat is Shareware and is Copyright © 1994, Richard L. Ahrens.  Continued use after 30 days requires registration.

System Requirements

Getting Started

Controls

Talking With a Remote User

Modes of Operation

VoiceChat

Call Screen

Answering Machine

Fax (and why it is listed but dimmed)

Caller History

Registering IVC

Planned Enhancements

VoiceChat with the Author!

Known Bugs

Special Thanks to my Beta Testers


System Requirements

To use IVC, the following must be installed on your system:

• WinSock 1.1

• Any Windows™-compatible sound card with microphone

• Good net connectivity (e.g. Ethernet)

• A 386 processor or better; a 486 is preferred


Internet VoiceChat should work with SL/IP connections, albeit slower than with a direct connection.  Due to the sizable amount of data that is transmitted, SL/IP users can expect to wait longer between exchanges.  Voice quality will not be affected, however.


WinSock is a Windows API which provides a common programming interface for all networking software.  WinSock is provided by your TCP/IP software vendor.


I'd like to take this opportunity to thank my beta testers, without whom Internet VoiceChat would not have been possible:

Evan Robinson, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

John Gottstein, University of Pennsylvania

Peter Pecsvaradi, University of Pennsylvania

James Chen, University of Pennsylvania

Michael B. Herf, Carnegie Mellon University

Zippy the Wonder Chimp :-), Pennsylvania State University

Thanks a lot, guys!


During the months when school is in session (September through May), I would like to VoiceChat with as many IVC users as possible!  Please send email to: ahrens26@wharton.upenn.edu so we can arrange a date and time.  I look forward to our conversations!


Getting Started

When running IVC for the first time, you must specify your user name.  Move the mouse pointer to the field marked User name in the Dialing Information section.  Click the mouse on the old name, and enter a new name of your choice.  The user name may be your last name, your full name, your "handle," or any other moniker of your choice.  Your user name is used to identify you to parties you call.  Note that you will not be able to place a call until you have input a user name.

You should next proceed to the Setup screen.  Once this is completed, you are ready to place a call.  Click on the Dial field in the Dialing Information section and enter the IP address of the party you wish to call.

Next, click the Call button in the Controls section.  If the party you are dialing is running IVC, the Connect and Data Line indicators will light up.  See Talking With a Remote User for information on what to do next.

If you are calling a particular IP address for the first time, it is automatically added to the drop-down quick-dialing list when you click Call.  You may optionally include a user name followed by the @ symbol before the IP address to serve as a reminder.  Instead of entering host.domain.edu, for example, you may enter bob@host.domain.edu.  All text prior to and including the @ symbol is ignored by IVC.


Controls

The Controls section of the main IVC screen provides six buttons which perform the main functions.  For more information about a specific button, click on the appropriate topic below:

Call / Hangup

Setup

Reset

Help

About

Exit


Known Bugs

Following is a list of bugs which are known to exist and are currently being resolved:

• If you place a call and it is rejected by the remote user, you may have to restart IVC to place

  another call.

• Sampling rate adjustments were not working properly during testing, so this feature has been

  disabled until the next version.

• Leaving the Answering Machine on without having an outgoing message is asking for trouble.

The next item is not a bug, but will be of interest to Novell LWP users:

• If you are using Novell Lan WorkPlace for DOS, you must be using the most current WinSock

  patch, or IVC will not work.  As of May 5, 1994, the patch file could be found via anonymous

  FTP to sjf-lwp.sjf.novell.com, directory /lwp4dos/winsock.

Bug reports should be sent to ahrens26@wharton.upenn.edu.


This button displays the help file you are reading now.  Alternatively, you may press the F1 key to bring up the help screen.


Clicking this button displays the about screen with copyright and version information.


Registering Internet VoiceChat

Internet VoiceChat is a shareware product.  You are licensed to use IVC on an evaluation basis for 30 days.  After that time, you must either register the program or discontinue its use.

Registration of Version 1.0 costs only $20 for individual users.  (Site licenses / distribution licenses are available for corporations, academic institutions, and government agencies.  Please contact the author for more information.)

When you register, you receive the following benefits:

• The "Shareware Notice" screen seen at startup is no longer displayed.

• The answering machine is completely enabled.

• You will (with your permission) be part of the Internet VoiceChat Phone Book, a listing of IVC

  users around the world in Windows Help format.

• You will be supporting future versions of IVC.  Many exciting new features are planned.

To register, send your name, address, email, and a check or money order for US $20 to:

Richard L. Ahrens

7 Omega Ct.

Middletown, NJ  07748

email: ahrens26@wharton.upenn.edu

A lot of time and effort went into producing Internet VoiceChat.  If you find it useful, please register and help support this product!


Planned Enhancements

Many enhancements are planned for the next version of Internet VoiceChat, which should be released some time in September or October, 1994.  Some of them are listed here:

• Dynamic sampling rate - sampling rate is continually adjusted based on data transfer rates

• On-the-fly compression - voice data is automatically compressed/decompressed to reduce

  data transmission times.

• Voice actuation - instead of clicking to indicate beginning of speech, IVC senses when user is

  talking and automatically starts recording.  Recording stops when user stops talking.

• Fax machine metaphor - send graphics and pictures to another IVC user

• CB Server - rather than point-to-point calls, users can call into a CB Server which will support

  "conference calls" of 5 or 10 users.

• Improvements to Answering Machine and Caller History

• Improved help file - with graphics from the program, etc.

• And a couple of other really interesting surprises

But none of these enhancements can be made without user support and registration!  If you use IVC, please register it!  To find out how, see Registering IVC.


Reset Button

Clicking Reset clears the contents of the Caller History window.

Note: If the amount of text in the Caller History window exceeds approximately 32,000 bytes, IVC automatically clears its contents.  This is due to a limitation in the text box control, and is not a fault of IVC.  A message indicating the time of automatic clearing is placed as the first entry in the Caller History window.


Exit Button

The Exit button disconnects a connection if one exists, and unloads Internet VoiceChat from memory.


Caller History

Internet VoiceChat keeps a list of all users who have made incoming calls since the program was started.  When a user calls you, the time of day, his or her user ID, and his or her hostname are added to the Caller History window.  This provides a convenient record of all of your incoming calls.  (Outgoing calls are not logged.)

Use the arrow buttons to scroll through the list of callers.  To reset the contents of this window, press the Reset button.

Note: If the amount of text in the Caller History window exceeds approximately 32,000 bytes, IVC automatically clears its contents.  This is due to a limitation in the text box control, and is not a fault of IVC.  A message indicating the time of automatic clearing is placed as the first entry in the Caller History window.


Call / Hangup Button

The Call button is used to initiate a call; the Hangup button is used to terminate one.  Once a connection is made, the Call button is automatically replaced by Hangup.

As soon as either Hangup is clicked, or you are hung up on by the remote user, IVC resumes listening for incoming calls.

To place a call, enter the remote IP address in the Dial field of the Dialing Information section.  If you are calling a particular IP address for the first time, it is automatically added to the drop-down quick-dialing list when you click Call.  You may optionally include a user name followed by the @ symbol before the IP address to serve as a reminder.  Instead of entering host.domain.edu, for example, you may enter bob@host.domain.edu.  All text prior to and including the @ symbol is ignored by IVC.

As soon as both the Connect and Data Line indicators are lit, a connection has been established.  See Talking With a Remote User for information on what to do next.


Setup Button

This button brings up IVC's configuration screen.  First-time should use Setup before making or receiving any calls.

Many of the items in the Setup screen are dimmed.  Space for these dimmed items was allocated now in preparation for future versions which will incorporate them.

Set the Call Screen Timeout field to the number of seconds you want IVC to wait before defaulting to the specified option when Call Screen is active.  This number may only be two digits, and defaults to 15 seconds.

Immediately below Call Screen Timeout are two selections, Answering Machine and Reject.  Choose Answering Machine to instruct Call Screen to activate the answering machine after the specified number of seconds.  Choose Reject to force Call Screen to disconnect if action is not taken by the user after the specified number of seconds.  Note: In the unregistered version of Internet VoiceChat, the Answering Machine is not available, and thus will be dimmed.

The Messages Directory, located under the Paths section, tells IVC in what directory to store your outgoing answering machine message and incoming messages.  Ideally, it should be the directory that IVC resides in.

For maximum performance, the Working Directory should be set to a RAM disk with at least 700k of free space.  If this is not an option for you, a directory such as C:\TEMP is suitable.

Click Done when you are finished modifying Setup options.


Namely:  Dynamic Sampling Rate, Standard Rate, Local Rate, Voice Actuation, Activation Threshold, and Compression.


Talking With a Remote User

Talking with a remote user is quite simple, and actually very similar to having a phone conversation, or using a CB radio.

Once you are connected, the record and stop buttons will light up on the audio controls of the Voice System.  To say something to the remote user, wait for your traffic light to turn green, press the Record button, and talk into the microphone.  When you are done talking, press the Stop button.  The light will turn red, and the Status bar will indicate the transmission progress of your voice data.  After the data is transmitted, the Status bar will display a message explaining that the remote user is listening.  Following that, your traffic light turns green again.  Usually the remote user will respond at this point.

When the remote user is recording his or her voice, your traffic light will turn red and your audio controls will be temporarily disabled.  The Status bar will indicate that the remote is recording.  Soon after, you will receive the remote's voice data (progress will be monitored in the Status bar).

Each user is allowed to record up to a minute's worth of contiguous speech.  The bar underneath the audio controls monitors the amount of time remaining.  If a minute expires and the user has not pressed Stop, recording automatically terminates and the voice data is transmitted up to that point.

Internet VoiceChat does not transmit voice data as it is recorded; rather, the entire recording is transmitted in one large "chunk" and then played back all at once.  This is done for several reasons, however the most important one is that transmission speeds--critical to continuous voice playback-- cannot be predicted ahead of time.

The amount of time required to transmit a block of speech will vary by network, and by how long a sample is recorded.  On a high-speed 10Mbit/second local network, you will barely notice the transmission.  However, long-distance connections to slower networks will of course slow transmission times.  Compression algorithms to be introduced in the next version of IVC should help to alleviate any delays.

If you connect to an IVC Answering Machine, you will hear the remote user's answering machine message.  To leave a message, press the Record button as usual and say your message.  Once you press stop, the data is transmitted, and you are automatically disconnected.  If you do not wish to leave a message, just press the Hangup button.


VoiceChat Mode

This is the default operating mode for Internet VoiceChat.  When VoiceChat is selected, IVC will automatically listen for incoming calls as soon as it is started up.  However, IVC may be minimized while it is listening, so the user can work with other programs.

If an incoming call is received in VoiceChat mode, IVC automatically accepts the call, restores itself if it was minimized, and displays the name of the caller in the title bar.  The users may then begin their conversation.

Once the call is terminated, IVC returns to its listening mode.  Outgoing calls may also be placed by using the Call button.


Call Screen Mode

Call Screen mode is similar to VoiceChat mode, except that when an incoming call is received, a small window containing the incoming caller's name is displayed.  The user is given the choice of accepting the call, rejecting it, or sending it to the answering machine.  If a selection is not made within the time specified in the Setup screen, Call Screen defaults to the specified mode, either Reject or Answering Machine.


Answering Machine Mode

This is one of the most exciting features of Internet VoiceChat, but it is available only in the registered version.  (The three Answering Machine controls are still active in the unregistered version, but Answering Machine mode cannot be selected.)  The Answering Machine allows you to leave IVC running without worrying about missing calls.  If the Answering Machine is active, incoming callers are greeted with your pre-recorded message, and then may leave you a voice message.

Before using Answering Machine mode, be sure to record your announcement!  Just press the Annc button located in the bottom right corner of the screen, and record your outgoing message.  Press the Stop button when you have finished.  Leaving the Answering Machine on without a recorded message will cause problems.

If you'd like to make a more customized answering machine message with patched-in sound effects, etc., click here.

You can always tell at a glance if you have messages waiting.  Simply look at the digital indicator immediately to the left of the Msgs button.  To replay your messages, click the Msgs button.  The digital display will indicate which message is being played.

To delete messages after you have listened to them, press the Kill button.


The message file IVC looks for is called MESSAGE.WAV and is stored in the Messages Directory specified in the Setup screen.  Simply rename your custom message to MESSAGE.WAV and place it in the Messages Directory.


Fax Mode (and why it is listed but dimmed)

Fax mode is not currently available but planned for a future release of IVC.  It will allow users to transmit .GIF and .BMP pictures to each other, just like a fax machine.  The dimmed option button is included in this version in preparation for future releases.