Where can I get DharmaPhone?
DharmaPhone (and its future versions) can be downloaded from DataVoice's web pages. The
official download site is http://www.datavoice.es/DharmaPhone/en/download.htm.
Is it free?
DharmaPhone is ABSOLUTELY free (FreeWare).
Can I use DharmaPhone to call any user in the world? How much does the call
cost?
You can use DharmaPhone to call any other DharmaPhone user in the world. You can call
completely for free (except for Internet connection costs).
How can I install it?
DharmaPhone requires no installation at all. Just copy the executable anywhere in your
hard disk and run it. No other files are required.
It takes a lot of time to download it!
Our server is doing a really hard job trying to attend all download queries. The
world-wide success DharmaPhone is having means a LOT of traffic on our machines. We are
constantly trying to improve our services (mainly widening Internet connection). Thank you
for the patience!
I cannot get DharmaPhone to work. It shows a cryptic message and quits. By the
way, my machine runs Windows 3.11.
DharmaPhone REQUIRES Windows 95 or Windows NT to run. It will not run on Windows 3.X.
Can I run DharmaPhone on a 486 processor?
One of the hardest jobs DharmaPhone does is compressing (the most) and decompressing
the audio stream. Sadly, an impressive amount of CPU power is devoted to this purpose, and
a 486 processor (even a 100 MHz fast one) can't cope with the amount of floating point
operations needed. You need a Pentium processor running at 100MHz or higher.
Is there a Mac version?
Currently there is no Mac version of DharmaPhone.
Sound
It is highly recommended that before trying to make a call, you adjust your
audio settings on your machine. Use the control panel to select the microphone as the
input device and check its sensivity (using the Sound Recorder accesory provided with
Windows). Doing this before trying to call will avoid a lot of frustration.
When starting DharmaPhone I get a message saying that my sound hardware does not
support full-duplex operation.
DharmaPhone requires a sound board capable of simultaneous audio playing and audio
recording (full-duplex operation). Some older boards do not offer this capability, thus
makes impossible for DharmaPhone to operate with them.
There are a number of more recent cards capable of full-duplex operation but do not
allow it until activated in the Windows Control Panel. Check your sound board
documentation on how to configure this.
How can I check if my sound board supports full-duplex operation?
The easiest way to check this is starting the "Sound Recorder" accesory
provided with Windows twice. Record a message on the first window, and start playing it.
While playing, try to record a different message using the other window. If the system
allows to record the second message while playing the first one, then you have a
full-duplex board.
I get no sound at all
We always ask our users to be a little more specific when reporting such as this error.
Please, check (using the "Sound Recorder tool provided with Windows) that you can
both record a message using your microphone and play it again. Also check that you can do
it simultaneously (see 'How can I check if my sound board supports full-duplex
operation?').
How can I adjust my microphone volume?
You can check your microphone's level using Control Panel's Multimedia applet. Select
'Options/Properties' and then 'Adjust volume for recording'. Use the 'Microphone' slider
to adjust microphone sensivity.
You can also double click on the speaker icon placed near the clock in the task-bar.
I cannot get good quality sound
Many factors affect the overall sound quality. If you get distorted audio the most
probable cause is a badly adjusted microphone. Check 'How can I adjust my microphone
volume' to see how to configure it.
If you do not get a continuous sound stream it may be probably caused by insufficient
network bandwidth. DharmaPhone needs a 600 (aprox.) byte per second stream to generate a
good quality conversation.
Finally, CPU usage can degrade audio quality. Check that your computer has a Pentium
processor running at least at 100MHz. Also check that you are not running CPU intensive
applications.
The quality of the audio I receive is excellent, but on the other side they
badly hear me.
Most Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have different bandwidths for sending and
receiving Internet content. Most of the users traffic is based on little transmissions
followed by huge receptions (i.e., getting a web page), so ISPs have wide 'input' pipes
and little 'output' ones. This causes that the audio you get is good (good 'input') but
what you transmit passes thru a bottleneck (bad 'output').
IP Addressing
For users not familiar with Internet 'inner workings' is better to place
calls using DharmaPhone directory services than trying to establish connections using IP
addresses.
When I select Call/Address, what is an IP address?
Any computer connected to a TCP/IP network (and Internet is nothing more than a huge
TCP/IP network) has an address that other computers use to talk to it, and is displayed as
4 numbers delimited by periods (i.e. 194.200.121.6). When you use a modem and call an ISP
to access Internet, you get a 'temporary' address, that lasts until you finish the
connection. DharmaPhone allows to place a call to a known IP address, thus not needing the
directory services. To use this feature you must be certain about the IP address the
target machine has assigned.
How can I check my IPaddress?
There are several ways to discover the temporary IP address assigned to Internet
connection. Windows 95 provides a little program (WINIPCFG.EXE) that shows all the IP
addreses assigned and the interface on which they are used.
Can I use DharmaPhone in my local area network?
Yes, you can place calls inside your local area network provided it runs with the
TCP/IP protocol. Just open DharmaPhone, select 'Call/Address...' and type the address of
the machine you want to call.
Why can't I make Internet calls from my corporate network to Internet?
Typically corporate networks are protected from external attacks using a proxy or
firewall. These devices block unwanted accesses either from the interior and exterior of
the network.
If you want to make outside calls from a corporate network behind a firewall, ask your
network administrator to allow DharmaPhone traffic. DharmaPhone requires an outbound TCP
connection to port 2332, and an arbitrary (0-65535) UDP port which is negotiated upon
connection.
