Y'know what? I do not want a #mobile #phone.
What I **want** is phone services on my laptop. We're talking voice and video calls, messages, and equivalent answering/recording services.
We have all these possible via #XMPP, now, but none of them are easy to use.
So, sorry about Android, but I really do not want anyone to put the effort into fixing it. I won't back that. But I will back projects enabling me to use my current hardware instead of a pocket spy.
@Amgine SIP is a good option for phone calls too (cf. Linphone)
Dino is very decent on desktop, and it's easy to call from it, can you explain why you don't find it easy to use? Devs are on ActivityPub btw ( @dino ). I think that Gajim plans to reintroduce modern calls too.
On Libervia (the one I'm working on), you can even make call from the CLI, meaning that you can easily make automation or your own UI with that (e.g. associate keybinding to someone you call often).
I will work through these this weekend and share my experience(s)
Just to clarify, I need an alternative to the existing global telephone system. I need to be able to initiate and to receive connections for voice, SMS/MMS, and (old tek) FAX, with a telephone number.
If possible, I want these services to operate on the same priority backbone as the global telephone system.
I am clarifying because the examples I am working through thus far do not mention these capabilities in their introductory docs & FAQs.
[EDIT: using a phone number.]
Isn't it terrible when one needs to be grateful for #Google?
Working backwards, it appears the general portion of #XMPP extensions (#XEP) most-likely involved in any client managing mult stream multimedia includes #XEP0166 - #Jingle. - https://xmpp.org/extensions/#xep-0166-implementations
#Dino is partway there.
I do not have the chops for erlang/elixir. But there are a number of projects working on getting to usable.
& saw other discussions about an XMPP<->SIP 'unified signalling protocol" theory.
The core specifications for XMPP are developed at the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). The XSF develops extensions to XMPP through a lightweight standards process centered around XMPP Extension Protocols (XEPs). XMPP RFCs RFC 6120 XMPP Core …
@Amgine I'm grateful to the people who worked on those project. That some of them were paid by Google is a detail, it would have been done in other conditions otherwise, but still done. The result is open standard, not tied to any company.
Most of the web techs/specs are nowadays made by private companies, in particular Google, too.
Anyway, yes Jingle (XEP-0166) is the base of any feature involving direct connection when possible (A/V, direct file transfer, etc).
Yes, I **am** grateful for a number of technologies which were initiated within big tech - think of all the stuff with Apple and OpenDarwin!
And SIP, too, has some great options, which is why I am pleased to see work to use the strengths of both together.
And it is why I plan to put some money where my mouth is, and support some projects working to do this. This wkend has given me some good insights into some of them.
@Amgine in the XMPP world, you probably want to check JMP Chat, https://jmp.chat/ , the company is from Canada, but I believe they also offer calls to other parts of the world, and that they do SMS. It's probably the best expertise in connecting XMPP with phone lines.
There is also the SMS4You project (by @debacle) at https://sms4you-team.pages.debian.net/sms4you/ . This one uses a device, not sure if this is what you are looking for.
Beside that, the SIP world is known to connect to phones.
Amgine
Goffi