Call in the new version of VK. There is no video call icon next to "send messages"

Not long ago I wrote an article about how to make calls. And having learned that the administration of the VKontakte site also “attached” such a function to their site, I decided to figure it out and explain to you, how to call on VKontakte.

I want to say that I only tested the conversational option. At the time of writing, the project is in alpha testing, which means that you may have great difficulties in communicating. However, I managed to call and talk to my friend.

And so let's begin. To call us we need a VKontakte account. The next step is updating adobe flash player. We wrote how to do this in the article.

And so, after the above operations, we can finally try to call. To do this, go to the page of the person we want to contact.

We are interested in the send message button under the photo. Next to it, recently, there has been a button with an image of a webcam, when we click on it, a window pops up in which we need to make some settings. (If you read a similar article about classmates, then you can handle it yourself)

We carry out the settings as shown in the figure below.

Click Allow and Remember, and then Close.

After all the settings, you should be able to connect with your interlocutor. If it goes well, you will hear and maybe even see each other. The conversation window is very similar to the video viewing window. It displays the video or photo of the interlocutor in the middle, and at the bottom: the off button. microphone, on or off video, volume control, and on the right side expand to full page.

And now I want to show what the window will look like if they call you.

Window view “they are calling you”

It displays a photo, as well as two buttons to reply or reject. Click reply and enjoy!

That's all for you nik-tut.

Ask questions in the comments.

The fact that you won’t surprise us with Skype is already clear, and even our early-rising grandparents chat in the morning with their grandchildren living in America in the evening using practically free video communication. But not everyone knows that the same can be done on the VKontakte social network using the “VKontakte video call” function.

In 2012, a new beta function “video call” appeared for the first million clients of the VKontakte network. After successful testing, this service became available to all service users. Of course, functionally it is much weaker than Skype, but perhaps the goal was not to surpass the competitor at all.

For video communication you will need a video camera and microphone with any interfaces. Also, a flash player must be installed on the computer, preferably the latest version.

To establish a video call, your interlocutor must have a video camera and microphone installed, and the video call function must be enabled in the VKontakte program settings.

If you use a laptop, then you can use the built-in devices accordingly.

How to set up the equipment?


First, connect the video camera.

There may be three options:

  • web camera with USB interface;
  • IP video camera wireless, or with RJ-45 connector;
  • video camera with analog or SDI output;

The easiest way is to connect a USB camera. Simply plug the USB connector of the camera cord into the appropriate socket on your computer.

Please note that if your camera has an interface that supports USB 3.0, it is unlikely to work through a USB 2.0 connector. These connectors are compatible and similar in appearance, but have different colors. USB 3.0 is marked in blue, very rarely red.

After connecting, the operating system will detect a new device and if there is a corresponding driver in its database, then you don’t need to do anything, it will automatically install the device software itself. You may need to restart your computer.

If this does not happen, you will need to install the driver from the disk that came with the camera. If there is no such thing, then you need to find it and download it on the Internet.


You can check the camera's functionality using the popular Skype application. Select the “Tools” tab at the top of the program window, then “Settings”. You can use the hotkey combination CTR+. And select "Video Settings". If you see an image from the camera in the window that pops up, then everything is fine.

In Windows XP, the camera connection can be checked using standard operating system tools.

You should connect and identify the IP camera in a slightly different way. First you need to install the IP Camera DirectShow Filter driver, which will emulate an IP camera like a web. You can also use VH Multi Camera Studio.

Connect the camera with a cable with an RJ-45 network connector to the computer. If the camera even has wireless connectivity, the first turn on for setup must be done via a cable.

It may turn out that your computer only has one network connector, which is already used to connect to the Internet. In this case, you will either have to sacrifice the Internet during installation, or install an additional network card.

To see the image, you need to enter the camera's IP address in the browser command line.

If you would like to use a regular video camera, you will have to use cards or external video and audio input modules. For example, Mini Recorder Blackmagic Design for SDI and HDMI interfaces. For an analog camera, you need to purchase a composite signal to USB converter.

A little expensive, but the best device in this regard is the Blackmagic Design Intensity Pro 4K. Although you can choose something simpler, such as EasyCap DVR, which costs only $15. If you don't need to count the beard hairs of your interlocutor, then this device is quite suitable.

But in any case, connecting an analog video camera to the VKontakte service will depend on the compatibility of the software that comes with the device or is supported by it. There is only one piece of advice, even for engineers who despise those who read the instructions before installing equipment, to still read it. You will find a lot of interesting things there.

The microphone integrated into the camera will connect without any problems. But if you have a separate device with a USB interface, then you may need to install a driver. A regular microphone with a mini Jack connector can be safely inserted into the pink jack next to the headphone output.

How to make a video call?

If the camera was successfully connected and it works, then we are on the way to complete success. First, go to the settings of the VKontakte service under your own account. Below the logo, find two words: “My Settings.” Go to the “Privacy” tab. It is located at the top of the screen and look for the line “Who can call me via video call” in the “Contact me” section.

Set it to any variable that suits you, but it’s better to set it to “All friends” first.

Ready! Go to the “My Friends” tab on the left side of the screen and look at the screen. If in the lists, next to someone’s name, a camera icon appears, it means that your subscriber, like you, has everything correctly configured for video communication.

If no one has this icon, it means that your friends are not on a video call or your friends do not have a camera connected. Text them for now.

If someone has a camera icon, then click on it and after a few seconds your friend will appear in the window.

Instructions

To make it easier, we summarize the above information into a protocol:

  1. Register in the VKontakte service if you are not already registered.
  2. Connect the camera and microphone.
  3. We install additional video conversion devices if necessary.
  4. We install drivers and software according to the above recommendations.
  5. We check the functionality locally.
  6. We are launching the VKontakte service.
  7. We are looking for friends with cameras;
  8. Let's get in touch.

Video calling from phone/tablet

When you set up video communication through the VKontakte service on mobile devices, the problems become much less. There is no need to connect any devices, because both the tablet and smartphone have both a camera and a microphone.

There is some inconvenience in the fact that not all phones are equipped with a camera on the screen side, which means that your interlocutor will see not you, but your knees, for example. Just sometimes turn the back of your smartphone and say: “And this is me!”

But seriously, just to make a video call to a friend you need to go to his VKontakte page and click on the button with a camera image, it is located to the right of “Send messages” under the avatar.

And if your friend is able to receive a video signal, then he will see you.

If there are problems with the connection, either there is no sound or there is no video, first try to check all the functions of a video call on Skype; if the Skype connection works, then VKontakte should also connect. If not, then look for problems in the device and its software.

Do not forget that video communication requires a stable connection with a speed of at least 1 Mbit/s, which the GPRS protocol cannot provide. This means that you will only be able to connect to your boyfriend using a WiFi or 3G connection.

Check if this communication protocol is available in your region.

Many people do not like to correspond via chats, as it is easier for them to say than to write. It is for them that the ability to make calls has been developed. Therefore, they will be interested in learning how to make calls in Contact. This is very convenient, because you don’t need to use additional programs for communication, and the list of contacts on the social network is quite large. You can hear from your best friend or classmate that is not available in other communication services. For example, in Skype.

What you will need to make a call

Before calling Contact, make sure that your computer is equipped with all the necessary equipment for this. You must have the following devices:

Microphone;
. headphones or speakers;
. webcam.

You can do without the latter, but then the interlocutor will not see you, but only hear you. Everything must be connected and in working order at the time of the call, otherwise the extension will throw an error and disconnect you. In addition, you must have the Adobe Flash Player add-on installed, which allows you to work with video transmission over the network. You should already have it if you play browser games, otherwise you'll need to download or install it.

Where to get Flash Player

First of all, see if it is listed in the list of installed programs. If it is there, then you can safely perform such an action as calling in Contact. Otherwise you need to install it.

To do this, type “Install Adobe Flash Player” into the search engine and find links that satisfy this request. Usually the very first one is the official website adobe.com. You need to select your parameters in the fields that appear:

Operating system version.
. The version of Flash Player you want to install.

FP 17 is now available for download and installation in three versions for different browsers: Internet Explorer, Opera and for programs based on Chromium, Firefox. Once you have set the required parameters, click the "Download" button. Next, the installation will only require a couple of confirmations. Be careful, because in the flash player you will be asked to install an anti-virus permission for browsers - McFree, if you do not need it - remove the checkbox in one of the windows from the request for permission to install it.

How to bring up a list of installed programs

To find out whether everything is installed and whether you can make calls in Contact, you need to call up the list of installed programs. To do this, in the Start menu or in the list of applications (for Windows 8), find the “Control Panel” icon. In the window that opens, select “Programs and Features.” After clicking on this tab, a list of all applications installed on your PC will be opened for you, in alphabetical order.

You can also use specialized software, with which you will not need to search for the desired folder with programs. For example, the CCleaner program is widely popular. It has a tab where you can see the presence of Flash Player and its version.

Instructions: how to call in "Contact"

Making the connection is quite simple. Wait until the subscriber you need is online and go to his page. Under the avatar, to the right of the “Send message” button, a small icon will appear with an image of a video camera on a blue background.

Turn on your webcam and click on this button. The first time you call, a small window will appear asking the Adobe extension to use it for the call. Place the marker on the word “Remember” and click “Allow”. Another time, you can make calls in Contact without giving permission to use the flash player.

The person you are calling will see a dark window on their PC screen. It will contain your avatar, name and two keys. With the help of them he can accept the challenge or reject it. If a call is made to you from another subscriber, then you will see such a window.

After the user accepts your call, you will see an image from their webcam in a small window. He, in turn, will see what was captured by you.

What determines the quality of communication?

Image quality and audibility depend primarily on the configuration of your equipment and the speed of your Internet connection. The greatest problems are experienced by those who have low speed. In this case, the call may freeze, lag, and the more megapixels in the camera, the clearer the image will be.

Many users are interested in the question of how to make calls through Contact if there is no webcam? The connection with the subscriber will succeed, but instead of an image, a crossed out camera icon will appear on your screen.

Despite the fact that the call function appeared quite a long time ago, there was no interest in it for a long time due to serious shortcomings. It cannot be said that it has grown significantly now; despite the advantages of this application, it does not overload the system and does not need to be opened in a separate window; the list of users is quite large due to the popularity of “Contact”.

That's it. We thank every reader for your attention.

Today, the social network VK is considered one of the most popular Internet projects. Several years after the creation of the largest Internet project, the developers created a unique voice and video communication function, which is somewhat reminiscent of the famous Skype program.

How to make a video call on VKontakte: step-by-step instructions

Many users asked the question: “how to make a video chat on VKontakte and how does it work”?

Connecting the necessary devices

In order to start using this service, you must first purchase a microphone or web camera, and if you have one or another device, then you need to connect it to your computer.

Setting up a video connection

2.1. Establishing a video call via a mobile device

If you decide to establish a video call thanks to the VK service using a mobile device, then the problems with establishing a connection become much less, since there is no need to connect any devices to your tablet or smartphone.

2.2. Setting up a video call via a laptop or desktop computer

If you are an active laptop user, then, as a rule, it is equipped with a built-in microphone, all you need is to install the driver for the microphone.

Ways to solve possible problems

Step 1. Driver installation:

  • If you have a driver disk for your device, you need to do the following:
    1. Insert the disc into the drive and wait for autorun to load.
    2. Find the button to install the driver and wait for the installation to complete
    3. After successful installation of the driver, we proceed to further assigned tasks.

Once you have everything installed and connected, you can safely start making video calls.

Step 2. Install the necessary software:

To establish a video connection you will have to install Adobe Flash Player on your computer. This program will allow you to play a video call on your computer. To install this application you need:


The conversation process and its functionality

The “Video call” function is available to every registered VK user. If you have not previously registered on this social network, then you will need:

Now you can see each other and still communicate. It is worth emphasizing that your interlocutor must have a camera connected and installed on the computer. Without this moment, your video call will not be able to be made, as a notification will appear on the screen stating that it is impossible to make a video call.

How to activate the calls function and use it on your smartphone?

A new update of the VKontakte mobile application has recently been released, through which you can now make calls. A flexible list of settings is also available, and in order for users to feel “safe” all calls are encrypted.

Those people who want to immediately start using this function may be in for an unpleasant surprise - it needs to be activated, and for this you need a user who has previously used this very function. At first glance it may seem that this is a vicious circle, but in practice everything turned out to be much simpler. So, how to activate calls in VK after the 2018 update?

Activating the function

Perhaps the first thing the user will think about is asking friends. But in this case, you will have to wait a long time until they respond and it is not a fact that someone will have the function activated - the majority may simply not know about it. In addition, you can find a group of people who also encountered this problem and have already activated calls. So, enter “calls to VK” into the group search and select a thematic group:

In this case, you will have to join the group, then fulfill the conditions of the assigned post, and only after that, perhaps, they will call you back (for example, no one called me back in 3 hours).

And now we get to the simplest and fastest activation method. We go to the official group “Team VKontakte” and find a post dated April 28, in which all users were notified about the released update. Here you can leave a comment “call back” and you will receive calls in a matter of seconds.

You don’t have to pick up the phone, even if you hang up the call, the function will already be activated and you will be able to use all its capabilities.

After this, you can select any interlocutor in the dialogues and at the top, next to his name, a handset will appear; by clicking on it, a call will be made. The handset will also appear on the user’s page if he has not limited this function in the settings.

New settings

To prevent strangers from distracting you with calls, you can configure your profile accordingly. So, you need to go to the settings and select "Privacy". In the “Contact me” section, the column “Who can call me” will appear. By opening it, you can select several values ​​and limit this function to a certain circle of people.

Important! The function is only available for mobile applications, so the settings for the full version of VK have not changed, i.e. if you open the site on a PC, you will not see the corresponding item there, because it is displayed only in the application.

Technical features

VKontakte calls are positioned as an encrypted means of communication, within which communication is carried out directly, and no data is stored on the servers of the social network. This is written in black and white in the official description of the service. It says here that neither eavesdropping nor transfer of keys to third parties will be technically impossible. Apart from, probably, Roskomnadzor.