Setting up a Jitsi-meet server

[GreyGeek]

Zoom is getting some well deserved bad press. Many educational, corporate and government agencies are forbidding the use of Zoom. The "free" version of Zoom limits the number of participants to 100 and limits the meeting time to 40 minutes.

Jitsi-Meet is a drop-in replacement, is open source and free. There are no limits on participants, frequency or time.

IF you don't want to set up your own Jitsi-meet server and are fine with 8x8 being your server you can get a Jitsi client from here:
https://github.com/jitsi/jitsi-meet-...ses/tag/v2.0.0
I installed the appimage and it works great.

[woodsmoke]

Ok,
kinda dumb here.
I do not think that the college would allow me to use this. They made a ballyhoo about Zoom being "upgraded" on the classroom machines, which is kind of. well... we are not to even go to campus but... I contacted them about particularly what was being upgraded so I could check if my client would "upgrade" and he could not give a particular answer and that if it needed an upgrade it would so say... but...NO SOUP FOR YOU woodsmoke... no upgrades listed!

BUT...I have an abstract question.

IF I INSTALLED THIS... and sent a "code" for a meeting to students, which is what we are to do with ZOOM so that the students can "open in a browser" they do not "need" the Zoom client itself... would this work the same way?

Could they "just open in a browser"?

If so then I would install it and ask a couple of students to respond since I am not "teaching" with ZOOM, I am just telling the students that i will be available at their behest?

Just a question and if you do not know, that is ok.

woody

[woodsmoke]

I tried installing jitsi.
it is not in the NEON repositories.

So, I used this.

https://desktop.jitsi.org/Main/DebianRepository

It provides a link in "internet" but when clicked it hangs at the splash screen.

apparently it is a java thing, and that may be a problem with NEON

https://community.jitsi.org/t/jitsi-...8java-10/13857

So I installed the java runtime from the repos and it still hangs but now there is both a jitsi and a java in Ksysguard that need to be killed and, for some reason jitsi produces two processes, one of which is a "zombie".

I tried installing these .debs but none would even work using ARK.

I also tried the Windoz .exe and it "seemed" to install under WINE it produced two desktop items as per Windblows, the app and a link but didn't work.

So, anyway... I don't need a server just the app running maybe.

woodsmoke

[GreyGeek]

Ok,
kinda dumb here.
I do not think that the college would allow me to use this. They made a ballyhoo about Zoom being "upgraded" on the classroom machines, which is kind of. well... we are not to even go to campus but... I contacted them about particularly what was being upgraded so I could check if my client would "upgrade" and he could not give a particular answer and that if it needed an upgrade it would so say... but...NO SOUP FOR YOU woodsmoke... no upgrades listed!

BUT...I have an abstract question.

IF I INSTALLED THIS... and sent a "code" for a meeting to students, which is what we are to do with ZOOM so that the students can "open in a browser" they do not "need" the Zoom client itself... would this work the same way?

Could they "just open in a browser"?

If so then I would install it and ask a couple of students to respond since I am not "teaching" with ZOOM, I am just telling the students that i will be available at their behest?

Just a question and if you do not know, that is ok.

woody

As far as updating Jitsi from the github jitsi site:

This update comes with some caveats: the Windows and macOS releases are unsigned, so auto-update won't work.

As far as "just opening a browser" to use Jitsi ... yes. There is an html version that you can run using any browser without a client side application. https://meet.jit.si/

[woodsmoke]

Hi GG
thanks for the weblink, THAT does seem to be the way to go in terms of students who are never going to download some OTHER kind of client when they are now being forced to use ZOOM in the space of a week after moving from a seated class to "remote learning'... arrgh, I just detest all the "education speak"...

But, I'll try to get the colleague to try it out and also if a student ever actually asks for a meeting i'll try it with them if they wish to be a guinea pig.

Thanks again!
woody