Mac/PC desktop capture video streaming and conferencing

November 18, 2005 6:46 PM

I have a Mac and my friend has a PC. How can we stream a live video capture of our desktops to each other ?

I've heard of technology that converts live capturing into a imaginary device, which the computer can then use with any video conferencing program, but this is only for Windows and I'm not sure how good a solution it is.

posted by jruckman to Computers & Internet (4 answers total)

Do you really mean video, or do you just want to see each other's desktops? If so, would VNC do the trick? There are VNC clients and servers for Macs and PCs.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 7:28 PM on November 18, 2005

If you decide to go the VNC route, there's also this addition to allow you to capture VNC sessions to video (SWF format), suitable for emailing etc.
posted by harmfulray at 10:42 PM on November 18, 2005

EvoCam on the Mac can use your desktop as a video source, and it has streaming server facility.

However, any webcam-level video streaming is going to be pretty low-resolution (a few hundred pixels by a few hundred pixels), and the compression is designed for people's faces, not desktop captures.

VNC is almost definitely what you really want.
posted by chrismear at 12:47 AM on November 19, 2005

Most VNC implementations can be set up for viewing-only, too, so you don't have to worry about your nefarious friend messing with your computer. ;-)

I know RealVNC does this.
posted by PuGZ at 1:40 AM on November 19, 2005