Tox: Text, voice, and video chats without a central server

The popular messaging application WhatsApp has recently alienated many users with its new terms of service and privacy policy. It's a situation that once again illustrates that when you put yourself in the hands of a proprietary service, you put yourself at the mercy of the operator. If you are dissatisfied with a change, either you grudgingly continue using the service, or you move to a different application with similar features.

In the case of WhatsApp, there are quite a few alternatives, and many were suddenly overrun with WhatsApp users looking for another option. This article looks at the different categories of messaging services, and then delves into one particular option – using peer-to-peer messaging apps based on the Tox protocol.

Open Source Clients

Signal [1], Threema [2], and Telegram [3] are widely regarded as good alternatives to WhatsApp, partly on the grounds that they operate more freely and openly than the Facebook service. This typically means releasing the app source code under open source licenses and disclosing the underlying protocol so that other app developers can develop alternative clients (see Table 1).

[...]

Use Express-Checkout link below to read the full article (PDF).

Buy this article as PDF

Express-Checkout as PDF
Price $2.95
(incl. VAT)

Buy Linux Magazine

SINGLE ISSUES
Print Issues
Digital Issues
 
SUBSCRIPTIONS
Print Subs
Digisubs
 
TABLET & SMARTPHONE APPS
Get it on Google Play

US / Canada

Get it on Google Play

UK / Australia

Related content

  • Yahoo Chat Tools

    Kopete and Gyachi bring Yahoo videochat services to Linux.

    more »
  • Chat Alternatives

    HipChat and Slack are in when it comes to communicating with customers or colleagues, but data security is out. InspIRCd, Rocket.Chat, or Mattermost are better alternatives.

    more »
  • Matrix

    One tool to rule all online communication: one tool to find them, one tool to bring them all in, and the Matrix to bind them. An open standard for decentralized communication enters the scene.

    more »
  • Chat Freely with Jami

    The messenger app Jami offers clients for all popular operating systems and promises maximum anonymity for chats, as well as voice and video calls, by dispensing with central servers.

    more »
  • Skype for Linux

    The old Microsoft gave the cold shoulder to Skype for Linux, neither updating it nor equipping it with new features. The new Microsoft promises to do better, with a brand new alpha prerelease version of a Linux client for the famous telephony tool.

    more »
comments powered by Disqus