5 ms·

> I'm not sure why they don't say which one Yeah, that's very annoying. Zoom, for example, will tell you, when you are muted and you begin to speak. It's a v

by e40 5y ago

> I'm not sure why they don't say which one Yeah, that's very annoying. Zoom, for example, will tell you, when you are muted and you begin to speak. It's a very nice thing. I have a microphone (that wasn't expensive) that has a hardware mute. I use it when I really want to make sure I'm not heard, even for "speaking" detection.

toyg 5y ago
> Zoom, for example, will tell you, when you are muted and you begin to speak MS Teams has that feature too. TBH I'm not surprised: when you mute the mic in an app, you're still letting the app in control. If you really want to be safe, you need to mute at OS level or in hardware. That's why cameras have a hardware cover in modern laptops.
- sushisource 5y ago
  Precisely, this is why I think the earlier comment's suggestion: > How about we not make the default that companies can do whatever they want and users have to take steps like a hardware-muted mic (which isn't always an option) to ensure a basic expectation of privacy? Sounds nice on the surface, but is ultimately silly. Sure, it'd be nice if everyone did the right thing, but you can never guarantee that, and hence if you really care you need to perform the mute at a lower level than what the app has access to.
  - hutzlibu 5y ago
    Well, I have hardware buttons, too. But without some basic trust, this society could not operate anymore. And the increasingly (or is it just perceived?) shady behavior of big companies are not helping.
    - chopin 5y ago
      >But without some basic trust, this society could not operate anymore. I am afraid this eludes our leaders across the board.
- the_pwner224 5y ago
  The apps can control the sound devices at the OS level too. But fortunately most(/all) don't, so muting in the sound server / OS is generally safe.
andrei_says_ 5y ago
MacBook pros already have a mute-speaker button. It would be so nice to have a mute-mic button which lights up when muted.
- martibravo 5y ago
  My ASUS laptop has a dedicated mute mic button, not a key, on top of the keyboard.
- Edd314159 5y ago
  Ironically this is a good use case for a Touch Bar: a button on your keyboard that is only there _sometimes_ because it’s only needed in certain contexts (when you’re on a call)
  - Gigachad 5y ago
    The touch bar is like an idea that works really well in your head. It has so many theoretical cool uses. But in reality I end up never using it for anything.. I would have been happy if the new one had the touch bar and the function keys, but that would have been extra cost for a feature people just aren't using.
    - month13 5y ago
      After using a stream deck for some odd automation, I think the real flaw was having the touch bar be so contextual, and replacing the existing function keys. Had both existed, and and allowed the user to extend their customisation; say buttons for common actions, siri suggestions, shortcuts it may have been perceived differently, and more of power user tool. Most of the actions just duplicated existing UI elements.
      - greyhair 5y ago
        I think one thing that makes an external stream deck work, is that it is a separate context sensitive device, that is mentally separated from the keyboard. So when you go to the deck to perform an action, you mentally context switch away from the keyboard, so your brain is looking for different clues. So even with a touch bar + function keys, the function keys stay in keyboard context, but the touch bar requires that switch in any case. Maybe taking your eyes to the touch bar is enough of a context switch, mentally.
rapnie 5y ago
> Zoom, for example, will tell you, when you are muted and you begin to speak. It's a very nice thing. Zoom was discussed 2 months ago in "Why is the Zoom app listening on my microphone when not in a meeting?" https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30266894 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30266894

by e40 5y ago

toyg 5y ago

> Zoom, for example, will tell you, when you are muted and you begin to speak MS Teams has that feature too. TBH I'm not surprised: when you mute the mic in an app, you're still letting the app in control. If you really want to be safe, you need to mute at OS level or in hardware. That's why cameras have a hardware cover in modern laptops.

sushisource 5y ago
Precisely, this is why I think the earlier comment's suggestion: > How about we not make the default that companies can do whatever they want and users have to take steps like a hardware-muted mic (which isn't always an option) to ensure a basic expectation of privacy? Sounds nice on the surface, but is ultimately silly. Sure, it'd be nice if everyone did the right thing, but you can never guarantee that, and hence if you really care you need to perform the mute at a lower level than what the app has access to.
- hutzlibu 5y ago
  Well, I have hardware buttons, too. But without some basic trust, this society could not operate anymore. And the increasingly (or is it just perceived?) shady behavior of big companies are not helping.
  - chopin 5y ago
    >But without some basic trust, this society could not operate anymore. I am afraid this eludes our leaders across the board.
the_pwner224 5y ago
The apps can control the sound devices at the OS level too. But fortunately most(/all) don't, so muting in the sound server / OS is generally safe.

andrei_says_ 5y ago

MacBook pros already have a mute-speaker button. It would be so nice to have a mute-mic button which lights up when muted.

martibravo 5y ago
My ASUS laptop has a dedicated mute mic button, not a key, on top of the keyboard.
Edd314159 5y ago
Ironically this is a good use case for a Touch Bar: a button on your keyboard that is only there _sometimes_ because it’s only needed in certain contexts (when you’re on a call)
- Gigachad 5y ago
  The touch bar is like an idea that works really well in your head. It has so many theoretical cool uses. But in reality I end up never using it for anything.. I would have been happy if the new one had the touch bar and the function keys, but that would have been extra cost for a feature people just aren't using.
  - month13 5y ago
    After using a stream deck for some odd automation, I think the real flaw was having the touch bar be so contextual, and replacing the existing function keys. Had both existed, and and allowed the user to extend their customisation; say buttons for common actions, siri suggestions, shortcuts it may have been perceived differently, and more of power user tool. Most of the actions just duplicated existing UI elements.
    - greyhair 5y ago
      I think one thing that makes an external stream deck work, is that it is a separate context sensitive device, that is mentally separated from the keyboard. So when you go to the deck to perform an action, you mentally context switch away from the keyboard, so your brain is looking for different clues. So even with a touch bar + function keys, the function keys stay in keyboard context, but the touch bar requires that switch in any case. Maybe taking your eyes to the touch bar is enough of a context switch, mentally.

rapnie 5y ago

> Zoom, for example, will tell you, when you are muted and you begin to speak. It's a very nice thing. Zoom was discussed 2 months ago in "Why is the Zoom app listening on my microphone when not in a meeting?" https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30266894 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30266894