This is a "simple", but complete example of how to utilize WebRTC to do peer to peer voice and video chatting between two or more people.
This example uses node.js and socket.io to create a "Signaling Server", which runs on (or near) your web server to manage who should talk to who. The purpose of the signaling server is to relay information between peers while you are setting them up to talk directly to each other.
Included is client.html which contains all of the logic to connect to the
signaling server, join a virtual group chat channel, connect with peers, and
stream video and audio to all party members using the raw WebRTC API.
You'll need to install node.js for the signaling server portion of this code to run.
Once node.js is installed, install the packages we need for this demo
npm install
Then simply run the signaling server:
npm run start
All modern browsers require webrtc stuff to be run over SSL, so this sample uses a self signed certificate for the signaling server and host of client.html. Because of this, you'll be presented with a certificate warning when you open the page, simply click advanced to click accept and the browser should connect to your server.
Head to https://localhost:8080/ , or if you are accessing the server from another device,
simply replace localhost with the IP or hostname of the server (and click through all
of the certificate warning stuff.)
At this point you should be presented with a dialog asking permission to access your microphone / webcam. Once accepted, you should see a local stream appear on the page. Now open up the same page in another browser, on the same computer or another, and watch as the magic of WebRTC takes effect and both images and audio samples mysteriously move from one browser to the other. Repeat with as many browsers as you dare.
Note: At the time of writing this, only firefox and chrome support WebRTC,
however both browsers support this on Windows, Linux, Mac, and Android, so lots
of fun can be had pointing everyones' phones, tablets, and laptops at that client.html
and bogging down your network with audio/video traffic.
The choice of node.js and socket.io is based purely on my familiarity with them and the fact that their fairly easy to understand even if you aren't familiar with them. However, you can use any mechanisms you want for your signaling system, you just need a way to exchange ICE candidates and session descriptions between clients.
The use of jQuery is even less important, I just like using it for DOM manipulation, and we only do that to add and remove the