Ventrilo and Teamspeak are inherently two very similar apps. In its purest form, both use voice over IP technology in a client-server design to allow players to communicate online. In other words, many users can install the software on their home computer (the “client”), which is hosted through a central hub (the “server”) ideally located in a well-connected data center in the region. local to minimize latency.
Teamspeak and Ventrilo are most often used with a computer headset, however both will work just fine with just a microphone and speakers. Some popular games that use these technologies include World of Warcraft, Everquest, Counterstrike, America’s Army, and virtually any other online game where players can use teamwork to achieve in-game goals. Client-side applications for any of the speech utilities have been successfully implemented for Windows, Apple OS X, and a wide variety of Unix-based operating systems.
Ventrilo Servers
The first release of Ventrilo launched on August 3, 2002 and replaced the obsolete Roger Wilco predecessor released in October 1999. Although it has not completely outpaced the market, Ventrilo has expanded its market share considerably in the multi-user VoIP industry in the last years. Ventrilo communicates primarily over TCP, and depending on the level of active codecs, it tends to use more bandwidth. Users of the Ventrilo client interface tend to prefer its simple and light screen.
Teamspeak servers
Teamspeak was initially released on August 29, 2003 by Ralf Ludwig and Niels Werensteijn in Germany. The current version of Teamspeak is Teamspeak 2. Teamspeak communicates its packets primarily over UDP and is a processor-intensive application due to its reliance on server-side SQL database queries. The Teamspeak 2 client interface is very feature-rich, if a bit bulkier than Ventrilo.
future development
The Alpha version of Teamspeak 3 currently contains a number of new features, such as tabbed server sharing, revised IRC-like instant messaging and AIM, and is expected to be released before the end of 2007. Little has been said about the next release. version of Ventrilo, however a new Ventrilo release is also expected soon, which should remain very competitive with Teamspeak as well as every other entry into the voice industry for the foreseeable future.
As online voice communication evolves, one thing is certain: with the fiercely competitive development of any of the applications, users should not disappoint their hopes for the future of online gaming.
