WebRTC is a widespread term in the world of online communications. Any web developer should know a thing or two about this service with vast, exciting uses in internet devices, peer-to-peer video, messaging, content sharing, and onion-routed communications. But what really is WebRTC, and how can you implement it to make your products even more powerful? Luckily for you, this question will be answered right here as basically as possible. This article will guide you on the journey to understanding the various use cases of WebRTC data channels and how you can use them in your own projects.
What Is WebRTC?
WebRTC is an abbreviated form for Web Real-Time Communications. This is an open-source project created by Google to enable peer-to-peer communication in web browsers and mobile applications through application programming interfaces. Being open-source, this service is constantly improving and expanding. With WebRTC, audio, video, and data transfers are carried out seamlessly. WebRTC is a perfect replacement for the old plugins or native app installations systems, and this service aims to make peer-to-peer communication user-friendly. WebRTC lets developers create high-quality Real-time communication programs that can be implemented directly into browsers like Chrome, Firefox, and Opera and natively on iOS and Android.
WebRTC came out back in 2011 and has become more prevalent over the past years. Big companies like Facebook, Google, Amazon, and others now use WebRTC in their applications to provide fast, reliable, and secure communication. This has opened up potential uses for the service. Many other companies will soon implement WebRTC like Netflix, whose users consume 1 billion hours of content per week as of 2017.
Important Parts Of WebRTC
WebRTC is a JavaScript program, and as such, it has various key JavaScript API elements to help you build impressive P2P applications. Some of these elements include:
- getUserMedia()
This command accesses the audio and video available on your device by accessing your device camera and microphone.
- MediaRecorder
This Command records audio and video available from your device.
- RTCPeerConnection
This command enables peer-to-peer audio and video communication. This includes the initial connection, monitoring the connection, and closing the connection.
- RTCDataChannel
This one enables bidirectional transfers of data between two peers.
WebRTC also uses getStats. This is a real-time statistics API built to ensure WebRTC calls are offered at the best possible quality.
Is WebRTC Secure?
While WebRTC is quite handy and offers an exciting value proposition, namely in-browser audio, video, and data communication without plugins, it raises important security questions. It directly handles communication, so you have to ask, is it secure to use, and what must developers implement to ensure this security?
There is one major security concern among developers when implementing WebRTC resides in using proper, secure protocols. Well, All components of WebRTC have mandatory encryption, and all JavaScript APIs require secure origins via HTTPS or localhost. Luckily, the Signaling methods, or the methods used to exchange metadata, are not specified in WebRTC and are left to you to execute. This allows you to create your app flexibly in a way that best fits your use case.
Why should you use WebRTC for real-time communications?
WebRTC is your best bet for Real-time communications, not just because it’s the most popular. Here are some reasons why
Let’s start with this, WebRTC is an open-source project. This means that that it’s available to the public for optimization and debugging. WebRTC is entirely free for commercial or private use, so why not use it? Due to the open-source nature of the program, it’s always evolving and improving, so you are banking on a technology that will serve you for years to come.
WebRTC has already created a vibrant ecosystem around its different vendors and companies to assist you with your application. It is also prevalent and available in most modern browsers. This widespread nature has encouraged the creation of new use cases and business models for the program.
Web RTC can be used for various functions, from taking a Guitar or a Yoga lesson – to medical clowns or group therapy – to hosting large-scale professional Webinars. It isn’t limited to 5o browsers as it has a solid user base in mobile applications. WebRTC’s source code is portable and has been used already in a lot of mobile apps. The fact that SDKs are available for both mobile and embedded environments make it easier for you to make WebRTC run anywhere
The idea around WebRTC and what you can use it for are limitless. So go on – start building whatever you need and use WebRTC for that.