April 2021 Summaries

Daily Prebuilt is a plug-and-play video call product for developers that allows them to add powerful real-time video calls into any site or app with just two lines of code. The latest update features a new, intuitive user-friendly UI and a powerful back-end redesigned to support larger group calls and deliver even higher call quality. Daily Prebuilt supports up to 15,000 call participants, dual screen sharing, recording, and more, with automatic bandwidth management for the best possible call quality regardless of network conditions. The product also includes features such as P2P/SFU smooth switching, host controls, and pre-call test screens or lobbies, all designed to guarantee the best possible call quality and user experience. With enterprise-level security and compliance, including 256-bit TLS encryption and SOC 1, SOC 2, and ISO 27001 certification, Daily Prebuilt is an affordable HIPAA compliant solution for developers, supporting use cases such as telehealth, productivity, webinars, events, and social networks. The product offers a flexible user layout control, mobile-optimized UI, and rich collaboration features out of the box, making it easy to build video into any site or app in minutes.

This is a new release of Daily Prebuilt, a ready-to-use video call interface for developers, which includes an improved user interface, better large meeting support, and a simplified mobile experience. The new release keeps the same easy-to-integrate design as before and doesn't require any changes to front-end code. It also introduces features such as participant name entry, browser access configuration, device configuration, and cat detection, as well as improvements to the in-call experience, including new layouts and camera/mic toggles. Additionally, the new release includes responsive layouts on mobile devices, camera flip controls, and call tray modifications. The previous prebuilt experience will be retired towards the end of summer, and developers are encouraged to test out the new Daily Prebuilt, share feedback, and plan their migration to the new call UI.

We've been frustrated by the limitations of video calls, particularly when trying to watch a video simultaneously. To overcome this, we've developed a quick hack using the Daily API's startScreenShare() method, which allows us to stream local video files during calls. The hack involves uploading a local video file and creating a stream from it, sharing that stream with call participants, and ensuring compatibility across different browsers.

Audio social networks are growing exponentially, with various use cases such as panel discussions, VIP radio shows, talk with friends, daily regular shows, virtual DJ parties, networking, and more. These platforms have attracted users from different communities, including startup founders, investors, marketers, journalists, students, and businesses, who are adapting to leverage their benefits. Businesses are using these apps to build engaged communities, issue announcements, open the door to consumer feedback, keep up with current trends in the industry, and advertise through guest hosting, product placement, and branded clubs. With WebRTC audio APIs, daily social networks are becoming a vital part of communication channels for businesses and individuals alike.

This tutorial covers how to build a flexible chat input React component that integrates with Daily's video call feature, allowing users to send messages to specific audiences, including the entire group or individual participants. The component uses Daily's `sendAppMessage` instance method to send messages and handle recipient selection, which can be either * for broadcast messages or participant session IDs for direct messages. The chat input is structured with a form that includes a textarea for message entry, a select element for choosing the audience, and an input for submitting the message. The component handles form submission, prevents page reloads, and updates the state with the received message. The tutorial also touches on potential upgrades to expand the component's functionality, such as sending messages to multiple hosts or displaying local error messages.