Codec2 project on frontpage of Slashdot

[KC2UGV]

http://slashdot.org/

http://news.slashdot.org/story/10/09/21/0428259/Codec2-mdash-an-Open-Source-Low-Bandwidth-Voice-Codec


Codec2 is an Open Source digital voice codec for low-bandwidth applications (http://www.rowetel.com/blog/?page_id=452), in its first Alpha release. Currently it can encode 3.75 seconds of clear speech in 1050 bytes, and there are opportunities to code in additional compression that will further reduce its bandwidth. The main developer is David Rowe (http://www.rowetel.com/), who also worked on Speex (http://www.speex.org/index.shtml.en). Originally designed for Amateur Radio, both via sound-card software modems on HF radio and as an alternative to the proprietary voice codec presently used in D-STAR (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D-STAR), the codec is probably also useful for telephony at a fraction of current bandwidths. The algorithm is based on papers from the 1980s, and is intended to be unencumbered by valid unexpired patent claims. The license is LGPL2. The project is seeking developers for testing in applications, algorithmic improvement, conversion to fixed-point, and coding to be more suitable for embedded systems.

[NQ6U]

Verrrry interesting. Might become a viable competitor to D-Star, which costs way too much because of the proprietary chip it requires. The whole concept of software patents is absurd; some countries have already done away with them, I hope the U.S. will do the same very soon.

[KC2UGV]

Verrrry interesting. Might become a viable competitor to D-Star, which costs way too much because of the proprietary chip it requires.

Yup. Codec2 is meant to be a replacement codec for D* type applications. Not a drop-in replacement (A Codec2 setup can not "speak" to a AMBE2020 setup).