Getting Lincoln a friend?

[israel_gcc]

Today I've been trying to work out a method to remotely initiate a video chat with my parrot (without it being necessary to have someone else with the parrot to set it up). So if I were at work, class, or anywhere with phone service, I could call him to chat for a couple minutes, or even keep the connection open throughout the work day.

Haven't thoroughly tested it yet, but I think I've found a method that works for me, and I thought it might be useful to you in the context of this thread. (I did a search to see if anyone here had previously worked out a system, but didn't find anything.)

First, I selected the device to station next to the cage. My retired Nexus 4 (Android) phone has a bad screen, but I managed to install Skype on it, set up a new account, and set it to auto-answer incoming calls. I'll position it so that its selfie camera is pointed at the cage, and its screen is clearly visible from the cage.

When I video call the dedicated parrot Skype account from my computer or my main phone, the call will automatically connect. The video feed of me from wherever I am, will show up on the Nexus that's next to the cage. He'll be able to hear me and I'll be able to hear him.

However, due to Skype's settings for mobile devices, I won't be able to see him through the Skype call. (Auto-answering calls with outgoing video isn't available on the Skype mobile app - I think it's a privacy thing.)

The Skype setup process is explained at this link.

I don't need a data connection for any of this - both devices are connected to the internet using wifi.

Next step for me is to find a (hopefully free) app that will let me get a video feed via the selfie camera, in parallel with the skype call.

 

[Owlet]

That's ingenious. I could use my old note 4. I do wish I'd be able to see him in return though. Might fiddle with that some.

 

[israel_gcc]

Right now my best result for seeing him through the connection is via the Airdroid phone/computer app. Remote camera access is a paid or bonus feature, though.

If you put a computer with a webcam next to his cage, I think you do have the option to turn on video auto-answering! I just have 1 laptop and I usually take it with me, so I'm hoping to make it work with my old phone too.

I'll make a proper thread when I figure out all the details, and verify you see it once I do.

 

[Owlet]

I do have a computer with a Webcam but it doesn't have a very good view of the cage and it doesn't have speakers.hmmmm

 

[israel_gcc]

Speakers are pretty cheap, and you can always get a usb webcam and put it in a better position.

I bet though that if you made a general request to your friends & acquaintances on Facebook, at least one person has a ****ty 10+ year old laptop lying in a drawer somewhere that they haven't touched for years! For example, a lot of people just upgrade to a new computer once the battery stops holding juice, but you'd have it plugged in so the battery wouldn't matter.

Honestly it'd probably be better for me to do that instead of mucking around with android camera streaming apps - but it just bothers me to have a perfectly good (only slightly broken!) electronic device go to waste, haha

PS: I couldn't get Skype to automatically put the audio over the phone loudspeaker rather than the regular speaker, which was too soft for my bird to hear clearly. But I installed this volume booster app (ETA: actually wait on downloading that, the ads are super annoying) and it made the regular speaker much louder - problem solved.

 

[Owlet]

Thought I'd update you guys on what steps have been made to make sure Lincoln gets more socialization during the evening while I'm at school.

I've talked to my dad about just taking him out of the cage every now and again and bringing him to the living room to just hang out. I've also asked him to take Lincoln down during dinner if he and my mom are sitting down for dinner and give him his dinner then as well. Since I do night school I'm rarely home for dinner. So this way he A) Get his dinner earlier and B) Get to be with the flock

My dad and I are still working on the play stand, we've both been putting it off because it got frustrating. Once that's done it'll be a lot easier to get him down with the family because as of now he doesn't really have a place to sit in the living room other than in the back of the couch

It's my first day back at school today so we'll see how this goes.

 

[israel_gcc]

That sounds like a great idea! (I brought my bird to the dining room to have Friday night dinner with us last week, and he had the time of his life. )

The setup you had in that photo, with the dish clamped to a chair, looked like a perfect place for him to sit - is that the play stand you're talking about?