Google__ The Missing Manual - Kevin Purdy [55]
NOTE
Google+ works with most modern web browsers, but you need a pretty fast Internet connection for hangouts to work well. If you’re just going to hang out with one other person, Google recommends at least at 900 kilobytes per second (KBps) for both uploads and downloads, though you can squeak by with a bare minimum of 230 KBps uploads and 380–500 KBps downloads. For a hangout with more than two people, Google suggests a download speed of at least 2 megabytes per second (mbps) and an upload speed of 900 KBps. Most modern cable and broadband Internet connections should meet at least the two-person requirements, but if you have a really slow connection, you might have to pass on group hangouts until you can upgrade—or you’ll end up with frustratingly low-resolution (and possibly choppy) video and stuttering audio.
Not sure of your upload and download speeds? The best way to check is to head to www.speedtest.net, and then click the Begin Test button.
Starting a Hangout
IF YOU’VE PEEKED AT the right side of any of your stream pages, you’ve seen a yellow icon and a button inviting you to “Start a hangout.”
Creating a hangout is a lot like writing a post in terms of how you create and share it. You can click the “Start a hangout” button on any stream page, but the simplest thing to do is head to the stream page for the circle that includes the people you want to hang out with and then click the button. That way, the people in that circle will see your hangout in their streams. But if it’s more convenient, you can click the “Start a hangout” button anywhere it appears and then adjust the hangout’s sharing settings later (Inviting People to Hang Out).
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After you click the “Start a hangout” button, you may be prompted to install a plug-in for Google’s voice- and video-chat services. (A plug-in is a small piece of software that lets your web browser to do a little something extra, like play Flash or Quicktime videos; you probably already have several installed.) You can also download the plug-in from www.google.com/chat/video. It’s free and works on most modern computers (ones with Windows XP Service Pack 3 or later, Mac OS X 10.5 [a.k.a. Leopard] or later, and most versions of Linux). When you click the Install Plugin button, handy installation instructions appear to help you out. The whole process should take only a few seconds.
Checking Your Setup
After you click “Start a hangout” and your web browser checks to make sure you have the required plug-in installed, a new browser window pops up. The window includes a little motherly advice: check how you look and make sure people can hear you.
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In addition to checking your hair and clothes, take a sec to consider whether what’s behind you will be too distracting. For example, if you’re sitting in a busy café, the other people in your hangout might get annoyed by all the strangers in the background of your video feed, or any screens in sight behind you.
If you’re using a laptop with a built-in webcam, Google+ should be able to automatically connect to it and show you what you’ll look like to other people in the hangout. If your webcam is separate from your computer, you can plug it in while this setup screen is up; if video from the camera doesn’t show up on your screen, try closing the setup screen and then clicking “Start a hangout” again. If that doesn’t work, keep reading this section to learn how to troubleshoot it.
The setup screen is small, but it shows what kind of lighting you’re got, how your face will be framed when it shows up in the hangout—and whether you need to give your hair a quick finger brushing. Your image will show up much larger when you’re actually in the hangout, so try to look your best (or at least presentable).
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If you don’t have a webcam or are just feeling camera shy, you can still use hangouts. You don’t need a video connection to hang out—you can just stick to using a microphone. You can also do the opposite—hang out using a camera but no microphone,