Using free Skype video phone for tv troublshooting help.

[ronl]

How's it going Members?
Just curious if anybody else uses free skype vid phone or other vidphone programs for virtual tv troubleshooting help?
I have used skype to help one member over at arf with his vintage tv as well,helped hookup or troubleshooting of friends entertainment system,furnaces,electrical...etc gear.
i find as long as camera is held steady and with good lite,it works well.
especially if both sides of a skype call have schematics and can work a meter/soldering iron,scope...etc

i have even used skype to work on my brothers commercial fishing boat-lol

since i got into electronics in 1970 and became a professional electronic tech in 1981,it was natural for me to focus on audio/video as soon as i got online in 1993! got webcam capability going in 1996.
webcam was rare in 1996 but now skype is very popular and i finally got most of my long distant friends and family on it-saves a LOT of long distance calls on phone! plus ,i hate typing so skype works better for me-ha!

i also discovered a free site a few years ago that allows upto 12 cameras at once. i figure tinychat dot com would be great for arf/ videokarma discussions or demo's.
Cheers.
RonL

[MIPS]

I think the main issue is that most webcams are trash for quality.
I kinda like the whiteboard form the early MSN days where you could draw stuff or pull up files and in a group you could draw and make notes. I don't think Skype ever supported that.

[ronl]

Yes Mips. some of the early webcams were trash-in the early days,i used a capture card and ntsc vid camera. if held still, u could read part # on boards and resistor bands. now-a-days,webcams and smartphones have better quaity video.u still need to hold it steady though.
it helps if both partys have a copy of the schematic in front of them.
i do miss the whiteboard though. i used iphone program by vocaltech back in 1996 and it had that.
u can also take a extreme close up still image and send the file using skype.
Skype has worked great for many virtual service calls i have done.
iic, didnt i skype u to help with some vintage set a while ago? are u a member of arf?i think u have the same name as a member i helped at arf.

cheers,
RonL

[Kamakiri]

I'd find it pretty difficult to position and/or hold a webcam while working on a TV, even if it was on a phone or tablet. When I'm working I usually have enough wires to trip over as it is

[ronl]

i know what you mean Kamakiri.
been there myself many times-too many wires! lol
but think about the amount of help you could get with just 1 more wire and a cheap tabletop tripod?sometimes i have gotten people to tape the cam to the adjustable bench lamp-works very well.most of us have 2 or more adjustable lamps on our bench so getting the lighting and cam placement right would be an easy adjustment?

im thinking that could this be a extra tool to use more on arf and videokarma?
i read the posts in the tv section and see that sometimes perhaps a experianced member might have an easier time helping if it was possible to be there in person. virtualy via webcam if long distance?

with a little work getting camera postioned stable and good lighting,its amasing what can be done. expecialy when both have a schematic.perhaps use this when posting is taking a long time?

i ussaly dont post much because i see most members have covered what i would suggest anyway.
mostly i see if any members need rare canadian vintage tvservice info that i have a lot of. the arf forum helped me a lot on my fansworth 651 p (service info and knobs) plus i see a lot of arf member names that helped me on this forum too and i see that i can help with my old service info.

i have posted this on arf as well. 1 member there has posted that he used vidphone for remote troubleshooting so far.good to see im not the only one-ha

just some ideas for more tools that the forums could use perhaps?

Cheers
RonL