Google Blogoscoped

Forum

Finanlly, a new Google Talk client!  (View post)

Garett Rogers [PersonRank 10]

Saturday, April 5, 2008
16 years ago17,116 views

It's called Google Talk Labs Edition.. you can download it here:
http://www.google.com/talk/labsedition/index.html

Here's my take on it:
http://blogs.zdnet.com/Google/?p=993

/pd [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

actaully I am not seeing really anything like ...new new!!

Jared Cherup [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

Finally, my complaining paid off.

sanderqd [PersonRank 1]

16 years ago #

Is the Labs Edition using Flash? It looks exactly the same, except for the notifications. (Can't install it here in Linux.)

Garett Rogers [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

nothing new new, you're right pd...
bummer that there is no voice/file transfer support...

Jared Cherup [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

I spoke to soon. The great features such as file sharing, voice chat, and voicemail are not present in this release.

Jared Cherup [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

Okay, so how does this differ from the gadget other than the notifications? This is actually a pretty sore release in my opinion. It's like they stripped everything from the client that made it worth downloading. I can only hope that since it's a Labs edition, that it's very preliminary.

Colin Colehour [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

This just seems like they made a Google Notifier part of Google Talk. The only new feature would really be the Orkut notifications. I don't think that was ever part of Google Notifier for the Mac.

I still wish they would make a Google Talk client for the Mac that had Voice support. Right now it seems like Skype is the best cross platform instant messaging app that allows for Voice, Video and text chat capabilities.

Mambo [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

<< I still wish they would make a Google Talk client for the Mac that had Voice support. Right now it seems like Skype is the best cross platform instant messaging app that allows for Voice, Video and text chat capabilities. >>

Without a doubt, Skype is the best cross-platform for VoIP. Adium is great for mixing all the IM programs together – hopefully Adium will soon find a way of making MSN video capable.

Colin Colehour [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

[put at-character here]Mambo, it will be an interesting summer to see what happens with Adium and the GSoC sponsorship.

http://trac.adiumx.com/wiki/SummerOfCode

Rohit Srivastwa [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

first cut feedback

a) emoticons works here – Good
b) tabbed chat windows – Good
c) can't detach chat windows from mail window – BAD
d) mouseover on friend name doesn't show details – BAD
e) where is settings and customization window – BAD
f) no scroll bar in friends list – BAD
g) in smaller window many online friends not visible and offline still visible – BAD
h) one online friend is visible between busy and idle list. – BAD
i) where is file transfer – BAD
j) where is call button, can't i talk using gtalk – BAD

Hong Xiaowan [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

I like pidgin.

Ben Allen [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

There's still no native Linux client.

Tony Ruscoe [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

> Is the Labs Edition using Flash?

Exactly what I was thinking. It's just the Google Talk Gadget packaged into a desktop format with notifications added. How disappointing.

If you've installed it, the files are in here:

%USERPROFILE%\Local Settings\Application Data\Google\Google Talk, Labs Edition\1.0.184.1150

No sign of SWF files but they could easily be complied into the DLLs I guess...

TOMHTML [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

I've read Ionut's and Garrett's articles. They don't warn that this program is only available for Windows users. And there is nothing really new and useful.
So I will not install it.

sanderqd [PersonRank 1]

16 years ago #

I think I can understand what they're coming from. Google is a web company and wants everything to happen on the web, but they must have seen that users prefer desktop clients. (Note they're experimenting with what client to advertise on http://www.google.com/talk/)

So now they'll try integrating the web client in the desktop in an Adobe Air-kind of way, bringing the best desktop experience as possible while still developing the web client. If the brilliant minds behind the old desktop client put their time in the Gadget now, everything will be fine.

Mrrix32 [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

I've installed it and can run the 'new' and old versions side by side, some more points to add.

• You can't change your DP (apart from to a Google selected ones)
• There IS a settings window, but there's hardly anything to set
http://cheesemonger32.googlepages.com/Settings.PNG

Talk, Talk, Talk – Side by Side
http://cheesemonger32.googlepages.com/talktalktalk.PNG

sanderqd [PersonRank 1]

16 years ago #

According to Google Operating System it uses WebKit:
http://googlesystem.blogspot.com/2008/04/google-talk-labs-edition.html
In the comments, it's mentioned that Flash is required. Any idea of how it's all integrated? Not sure whether WebKit is available when programming plain Win32, so are they using Qt? That might make porting to Linux and Mac very easy.

Pau Tomàs [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

So, without the notifications, this is no different than use Fluid or Mozilla Prism to create a desktop Google Talk Gadget?

I never liked the gadget, it has some good new features but it lacks a lot of basic ones (like detaching chat tabs). Let's see what Google is planning for that.

[put at-character here]Tony maybe they're accessing a remote swf file.

[put at-character here]sanderqd if Safari runs on Windows, why not any other Webkit based application?

sanderqd [PersonRank 1]

16 years ago #

With this desktop client, they might be able extend the Gadget with C++ code, and thus add voice and file transfer capability (for which the web isn't ready yet).

Safari uses Apple code (CoreGraphics etc.) to paint WebKit stuff on the screen, also in Windows. That code is probably not available to Google, so they need to do something else. Maybe they have a special version of Adobe Air (which also combines Flash with WebKit)?

Ionut Alex. Chitu [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

[put at-character here]sandergd:
I think Google uses something called Glint. The XML files that describe Google Talk's UI start like this:

<Node xmlns="http: //www.google.com/glint"
   id="container"
   min_width="370"
   max_width="370" >
.......................................

sanderqd [PersonRank 1]

16 years ago #

In core.dll, it also seems to use (code from) libjingle, which would indeed allow for voice and file transfer in the future.

beussery [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

added to labs page:
http://labs.google.com/

James Xuan [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

I get fatal error 1603 when installing :(

Martin Porcheron [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

>>I get fatal error 1603 when installing :(

Same.

Juha-Matti Laurio [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

A typo in the title field;
Finanlly -> Finally

/pd [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

I tip my hat to Juha-Matti Laurio!!

This guy has eyes like a hawk. Seen him all over the place in FD and SeCon zones and even the smallest of details (err) does not get by him :)-

Brinke Guthrie [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

heh. I STILL don't know of anyone who uses this. Tho, I guess I am not the IMing type.

Above 28 comments were made in the forum before this was blogged,

sanderqd [PersonRank 1]

16 years ago #

Philipp wrote that this Talk LE provides a wrapper for those who prefer the look and feel of desktop apps, but it will also enable Google to add stuff that can't be done in a Flash web client yet, like desktop notifications and Jingle stuff. Eventually, I guess they'll add that sort of functionality to Gears.

Jason Adams [PersonRank 1]

16 years ago #

Yeah this version is junk. I switched back after 5 minutes of frustration. It's even worse than the old gtalk version for missing chats that go to your gmail in-browser chat instead.

Cyndy Aleo-Carreira [PersonRank 0]

16 years ago #

They have to use Gears or SOMETHING.

Mrrix32 [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

[put at-character here]Cyndy
An offline Instant Messenger? Don't think that's gonna work :-)

bradsucks [PersonRank 1]

16 years ago #

Sad. Seems like Google's backtracking on all its desktop applications. Picasa and Google Talk haven't been updated in a long time and Google Desktop seems to be stuck as well. Search has been de-emphasized and nothing particularly exciting's been added.

I would guess they've realized developing Windows applications is counter-productive and are working on a webbier, cross-platform solution. It's unlikely to me that any version of compiled Flash or AIR or Gears can compete with a well-done desktop app at this point, but we'll see.

J. McNair [PersonRank 10]

16 years ago #

Eh. seems like this is the "future" of Google Talk. It won't leave labs until Google finds a secure, cross platform way of doing Webkit plugins that add back the missing features from the desktop client (File Transfer, anyone?).

I'm a little disappointed, but not surprised for a company that avoids maintaining desktop applications if they can. They are forced to SOLELY by the limits of the web as a platform. I'd bet my own money there's a team in Google waiting for cross-platform 3D for web browsers so that Google Earth can join the cloud with Talk. Prism, Webkit or Adobe AIR could kill off other desktop apps and who knows what else will become part of Gears?

At least we'll have Sketchup for a good, long while. I think.

macbeach [PersonRank 6]

16 years ago #

I haven't tried it as it is only for Windows, but I speculate that like me, many people open and close their browser all the time throughout he day and forget that they are running an IM session in one of the windows or tabs. Web browsers notoriously use up memory and CPU cycles mostly running all the ads associated with some web pages and the best way to free that memory and those cycles up is to just close the browser from time to time.

If there is ever a Gtalk for Linux I'll be running it.

Tim Broder [PersonRank 1]

16 years ago #

was hoping this would work in Linux...

Opaquit [PersonRank 1]

16 years ago #

I came across this release yesterday and I was kind of excited to see that the desktop client would be finally updated. But honestly, this labs edition release totally sucks. What I always liked about the Google Talk client was the fact that it was a hell of a well-optimized application with low system resources usage and a quickly responding uncluttered interface—even my grandma uses Google Talk 1.0.104 for calling and chatting every day, which is pretty amazing considering she has trouble using features like text messaging on a cell phone. The new Google Talk labs edition simply lacks all the advantages of a desktop client and compared to the regular Google Talk release, it's such a downgrade, no file transfer support, no voice calling, and voicemail support. The idea of separate dockable chat windows was simply awesome and innovative—the new talk gadget like tabs are a lot less convenient. I hope they would just update the old client with new features like group chat, emoticons, AIM transport, and invisible status, without removing the old ones, the old good Google Talk 1.0.104 is still my favorite IM app, sadly, the new beta seems to be 'just another IM app' and lacks everything I always liked about Google Talk. :(

fox88 [PersonRank 1]

16 years ago #

is it working for al of you, xp users?

Pharod [PersonRank 1]

16 years ago #

I installed it and IMHO is not worth to have (unless you really like the Calendar and Orkut notifications). It has all the flaws from the Gadget (no voice, file transfer, scrollbars, etc) in a desktop version.

On another note, I had problems running it from the default folder. Because my version of Windows is in Spanish, the folder where it is installed is "C:Documents and SettingsUserConfiguración localDatos de programaGoogle". I think the software has problems with the character ó, because I can't open the settings nor sign in. Once I copied and pasted the folder on another path, the client ran how it was supposed to.

Mark M [PersonRank 1]

16 years ago #

Pidgin/Adium remains the only worthwhile solution for linux and mac users. : (

Decent cross-platform Friend2Friend file transfers is, as far as I'm concerned, a problem that has not been solved, and will not be solved until google gets into the game. All "professional" solutions like AIM are terrible at being cross-platform and negotiating firewalls, and good open-source solutions lack adoption. GTalk can just use jabber's existing implementation, can't it?

/sick of emailing still being the most convenient way to share files cross-platform

Deepanshu Shrivastava [PersonRank 0]

16 years ago #

Second Cut Feedback ;)
1. Graphic Smiley- Good
2. Group Chat-Good
3. No Show Current Music Track in Status Message – Bad
4. Picaasa albums can be seen in the chat window itself (Give the link in the status message and on click it will be displayed there.)- Good

first cut feedback

a) emoticons works here – Good
b) tabbed chat windows – Good
c) can't detach chat windows from mail window – BAD
d) mouseover on friend name doesn't show details – BAD
e) where is settings and customization window – BAD
f) no scroll bar in friends list – BAD
g) in smaller window many online friends not visible and offline still visible – BAD
h) one online friend is visible between busy and idle list. – BAD
i) where is file transfer – BAD
j) where is call button, can't i talk using gtalk – BAD

* Miss Universe [PersonRank 7]

16 years ago #

There was a time when every month there would be a new labs project.

People probably stopped checking after a while.

Probably, so many missed this addition 2 weeks ago.

But it shows Google has not abandoned labs.

http://labs.google.com/

http://www.google.com/talk/labsedition/

Louish [PersonRank 0]

16 years ago #

Uhh... No copying an IM to your clipboard. Uninstalled. This is lame. I cant copy an IM?! I had major troubles pasting content to send as an IM also..

I also need the ability to turn off text manipulation. I hate IMing code to fellow developers only to see some of my code have turned into something else. Underscores and converted to italics.. and :) are converted to similies. This needs to be turned off.

Forum home

Advertisement

 
Blog  |  Forum     more >> Archive | Feed | Google's blogs | About
Advertisement

 

This site unofficially covers Google™ and more with some rights reserved. Join our forum!