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Wengo Releases Flash Softphone For Web Pages
bolsh writes "Wengo, a French company specializing in VoIP and instant messaging, and patron of the OpenWengo project (previously featured in Free Software magazine and here on Slashdot), has just released WengoVisio — a Flash softphone that you can download and embed in your Web page, to allow readers to call you when you're available through their browser, without downloading any software. (Disclaimer: I work for Wengo, on the OpenWengo project.) It's functionally cut down from the full Wengophone, but it's enough to be able to make a phone call in a Web page for the first time."
Sounds cool, but why did you name it after a Microsoft Office component?!
Random harassing phone call from any slob on the internet? No thanks!
"Click here to speak to one of our representatives now"
Should attract a lot of impulse buyers.
Do not try to read the dupe, thats impossible. Instead, only try to realize the truth
What truth?
There is no dupe
Do you really think those same non-tech savvy customers can configure microphones (or even have them)?
Honestly, I don't see a real use for this. If a company wants to leverage their telephony infrastructure, they can post their phone number in an easy to find location. If they want to cut down on costs, they can simply post a direct number and not a toll-free number (which cost extra).
Real phones have the advantage of not disconnecting if a user closes their browser window, their laptop suddenly goes into standby, Windows decides its time to reboot for updates, or Spyware decides to show 20 popup windows.
Cool idea, I just don't see much application for this.
Wengo is advertising itself as a Skype replacement. The free WengoPhone is Open Source and SIP (telephone standards) compatible.
Does anyone have experience with Wengo? Skype is excellent, of course, but not open source and not compatible with standards.
Wengo Links:
Wengo French
Wengo English
WengoPhone
OpenWengo
Wengo consulting. Sell your technical knowledge over the phone.
"Who is Wengo? People like you all over the world
and the team: 35 people in France keeping you in touch."
Wengo started in 2005. "Wengo is a subsidiary of the group neufcegetel."
Confusion: It is difficult to find their telephone service rates pages. The one linked is for the countries beginning with B.
Debian Wengo: Package: wengophone (2.0.0~rc5-svn8108-2) "SIP-based software telephone with video and chat features."
Observations: Their web site is confused. The site is incorrectly translated to English in some places.
All Macs that come with built-in monitors also come with built-in microphones. This has been the case for quite a few years. They just work and have sound quality that's good enough for audio chats.
Help I'm a rock.
That was fine for me, I type quickly, and I'm at home with text (and I liked the ability to keep an exact record of the conversation). A lot of people, however, prefer to use voice for that kind of thing. Imagine putting a link on your support site saying 'click here to talk to a customer support representative,' and having it just work. You can route it to any SIP phone, or to a POTS line, and the customer doesn't have to know any of the technical details. If I were setting up support for a company these days, I would want to offer both solutions; text for those that don't have a microphone, voice for those that do.
My hosting company uses iChat for support; I can bing-bong them with quick queries, or have a full video or audio chat if that's more useful. Having the CEO and CTO on your Jabber roster, and the ability to bitch at them directly when things break, provides a certain level of confidence in a company that you rarely find these days.
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