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Related tags: voip [+], j2me [+], ekiga [+], dbus [+], bluetooth [+], Skype [+], Linux [+], Internet [+], review [+], nokia20e61i [+], nokia [+], lost [+], e61i [+], Missing [+]
Those who are used to VoIP and internet phone might already familiar with Ekiga, an open source VoIP client for Linux and Windows operating system.
Formerly known as GnomeMeeting, Ekiga allows you to place call and hold video conferencing session with any VoIP client that supports SIP and H323 protocol, including Microsoft Netmeeting, Gizmo, Linphone and XMeeting.
Ekiga allows you to call ordinary phone number at affordable rate via its PC-to-Phone account, all you need to do is to purchase Ekiga PC-to-Phone credits and you’re ready to call any phones in the world!
Stuck behind NAT? Ekiga enable you to talk over the internet even when your router does not support SIP/H323. The configuration druid will automatically detect your network connection and configures itself to adapt to your network environment.
Here are some Ekiga’s Screenshots
Interesting Ekiga Phone Numbers
You might notice I dialed ‘500′ in my Ekiga. Well that’s the number for an Ekiga echo service useful for testing your software setup. Here are some interesting Ekiga numbers for you to try.
Contact Me on Ekiga
You might also want to contact me using Ekiga at sip:mypapit@ekiga.net, I’m pretty open for some quick conversation or a helo.
p/s: I wrote this post as a respond to one of my blog readers request for me to write a post on Ekiga. Please refer to Howto Install Skype on Ubuntu if you’re more interested in Skype.
p/s 2: Base on my personal experience, I found Skype voice quality and service is noticeably more superior than Ekiga or Gizmo, your mileage may vary however
Tags: ekiga, voip, skype, internet, phone, linux, open source
As more of my tech-savvy friends start purchasing Nokia E61i’s, it only makes sense for me to actually document my experiences with the phone. I’ve had the privilege of using it for a few weeks now, and find that its rather useful for a lot of things. The SIM in it belongs to the 3 network, so I might be able to provide some war stories of the network, as well.
The Phone
Build quality looks pretty good. Its quite wide, but is thinner than my Nokia N73. Both phones fit quite nicely in my pocket, side-by-side. It comes with a wide screen (display resolution set at 320×240 pixels, with 16 million colors), that makes it very efficient for web browsing. The QWERTY keypad is a more efficient way of entering text, and you slowly get very used to using your thumbs for text input. I guess if you’re a Blackberry person, the E61i is a no-brainer.
Its a Series 60 phone. 3rd Edition. The edition is important, because a lot of freeware you see out there might only be compatible with the 2nd editions.
The Camera
There’s a camera, rated at 2 megapixels. No flash in sight, and there’s no cover for the camera lens (like on the N73), so eventually its probably going to get quite scratched up. The camera is nothing to shout about, its actually pretty weak in comparison to what the N73 can offer. I’ve been taking a few photos with it, so don’t hesitate to check the NokiaE61i tag on Flickr, to see the somewhat horrendous quality of photos.
It also does video, and like all modern 3G mobiles, its meant to allow you to video-conference (i.e. make video calls). I’ve never found the video call feature terribly useful (having it for over 3 years), except when shopping last month. Since there’s no camera on the front, either you see whom you’re talking to and let them see what you’re pointing your phone at, or you turn it around and your other party sees you and you don’t see them. Not very intuitive.
My conclusion is that the camera is a gimmick. Look at the quality. It doesn’t go far. Its just there to be like all other phones that are being sold. Don’t use it if you can avoid it (I know I can, since most times my N73 is in my pocket).
Bluetooth
Worked without a hitch. I’ve sent images to Linux and OS X, and there was no problem whatsoever. If you need to find out the Bluetooth adapter’s MAC address, enter *#2820#. On OS X, when you add a new mobile phone, it also automatically asks if you’d like to configure it as a modem for data transfer. I declined, and will look into using the E61i as a modem later.
WiFi
Connected to several WiFi networks successfully. 802.11g, 802.11b, WEP keys, WPA keys, MAC based authentication, it has all worked for me so far. If you need to find the MAC address of the wireless adapter (its on your box), enter *#62209526#.
SIP (and VoIP)
The phone natively supports the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP). So all sensible VoIP providers, including your Gizmoproject account will work, natively on the phone. Once configured, you can receive incoming phone calls on all your active SIP profiles, however, you can only make Internet calls via your currently active SIP profile (you can check which this is via Menu -> Connect -> Internet tel.). The only way to change it is via the Internet tel. option as well.
I have been told that SIP should work on any WiFi network. I’ve tested it on two access points (an old D-Link and a Linksys WRT54G) and since I know my router allows SIP traffic, it worked. I did attempt trying to connect on another network, which was based on a Netgear router - I failed. More extensive testing is clearly needed on this feature, and I’ll report back when I have more information.
You can’t initiate in-phone SIP calls via your 3G/GPRS connection. It only allows you to connect via a WiFi access point. You can work-around this via Fring (as some countries have unlimited data plans, making all calls over SIP might be cheaper).

Proof that Google Maps Satellite View is ancient (~3 years+) - my house doesn’t exist!
Essential Software
Considering you have access to a WiFi connection, there are bits and pieces of essential software that I have installed:

Driving directions, assuming I’m GPS-less
Bundled Software
What else is there to look for
I personally would like a mobile blogging tool. Maybe if I took a photo, I’d like that uploaded to a blog, where I write about today’s zeitgeist. I’m unsure if Azure is a good tool, or if KABLOG will even work on the device. Bonus points for supporting multiple blogs and multiple blog APIs.
A tool like GAIM Pidgin that supported multiple IM networks. I’d ideally like my AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo!, Gtalk, Jabber all in one.
Planet 3 to actually work. This isn’t a phone problem, its a 3 problem. They do browser detection, and if you didn’t buy a phone from them, they just disable your access to Planet 3. Seems kind of daft, but at least for my main usage, I found a solution on the Web (see what my monthly account usage is like).
I have yet to try out SSH (via s2putty) or even the new Gizmoproject client for the phone. There’s bundled QuickOffice, though I’m unsure of its usefulness. Syncing always gives me nightmares, and its not something I’ve attempted (or honestly want to attempt); I think the future of syncing will happen via the Web, so maybe ShoZu for contact backups? Are there more cool software packages to try out? I have no (or limited) interest in commercial software, free and open source is preferred.
Technorati Tags: nokia e61i, e61i, nokia, review, phone, mobile, camera, cameraphone, bluetooth, wifi, sip, voip, google maps, gmail, fring, jmirc, widsets
I’ve got this link (LBRC) from TuxMobil. LBRC is a set of application which enables a Linux computer to be controlled from a mobile device using Bluetooth technology.
LBRC consists of two part, client and server. The server part uses dbus and python and the client part uses JavaME application on JSR-82 (Bluetooth) capable mobile devices.
My Thoughts about it ?

I’ve a bluetooth receiver I bought for RM15 from lelong.com.my, I’ve a bluetooth capable phone, I can cook out a mobile phone application that can utilize bluetooth transceiver either in JavaME or Python.
A tempting thought, may be i’ll try out this stunt once I’ve *much* more time
Tags: phone, linux, j2me, bluetooth, j2me, dbus, javame, pys60, python
I’ve got this link (LBRC) from TuxMobil. LBRC is a set of application which enables a Linux computer to be controlled from a mobile device using Bluetooth technology.
LBRC consists of two part, client and server. The server part uses dbus and python and the client part uses JavaME application on JSR-82 (Bluetooth) capable mobile devices.
My Thoughts about it ?

I’ve a bluetooth receiver I bought for RM15 from lelong.com.my, I’ve a bluetooth capable phone, I can cook out a mobile phone application that can utilize bluetooth transceiver either in JavaME or Python.
A tempting thought, may be i’ll try out this stunt once I’ve *much* more time
Tags: phone, linux, j2me, bluetooth, j2me, dbus, javame, pys60, python