Google voice and video v1.0.13

Today, we released the 1.0.13 update for the Google voice and video chat software. All current installations will begin an automatic update within the next few days. If you do not want to wait, you can visit http://www.google.com/chat/video and re-run the installer.

You can use your Gmail account to find out what version is currently installed. Simply go to the Gmail Settings page and look under the "Chat" tab. You will see the plugin version under the "Learn more" link, in small type.

Here's what's new in version 1.0.13:

• Improved startup time for both voice and video calls.
• Detection and recovery for some situations that would cause the plugin to hang indefinitely, which could lead to messaging like "Detecting devices" in the settings page or "Add voice/video chat" in the roster or chat menu.
• Fixed connectivity problems caused by VMWare virtual network adapters.

If you're on 1.0.13 and still having a problem, please report it on the Gmail voice and video chat forums. As always, feel free to email me directly as well.

Google video chat tips, installment #1

From the Google Talk Blog: tips on using Google video chat, from one of the engineers on our team.

Did you know you could use the "pop-out" arrow on the top of a chat window to make a video chat bigger? This will separate the video chat into its own window that you can resize and move around as you like.

If you want to make the video chat as large as possible and block everything else out, simply use the Full Screen button in the top left corner of the video area. This will fill up your screen and make your conversation much more immersive. Based on the feedback you've given us, we have added the ability to mute your microphone while in full screen mode. To do this, simply hit the space bar!

Pidgin Adds Support for Google Voice and Video Chat

Slashdot | Pidgin Adds Google Talk Voice and Video Support

Just read that Pidgin 2.6.1 (on Linux) supports interoperability with Google video chat. Haven't had a chance to try it myself yet, but we'll be checking it out this week. Nice job Pidgin team!