The following is a list of features that are available within Nearly There Sidekick grouped by categories. But, before these details, we would like to point out three overriding design considerations reflected in Sidekick:

• Easy to deploy. For a product as capable as Sidekick, it is extremely straight-forward to install. We provide quick start instructions as well as thorough documentation so that it will be up and running within hours. We have separated our advanced features from our basic setup, to let you decide what capabilities you want.
• No hassle operation. For a performer, our auto-download feature means that she only has to click on a link and her program will appear. For members, the applet system means no effort on the part of users -- no plug-ins, nothing. They just click and our interactive screen appears. For performers and members, we check with every launch for any updates, so you can be ensured that your performers and members are always running the latest software.
• Zero maintenance. On an ongoing basis, there is no maintenance required. We do provide administrative screens and logging support so that you can always review key events, but our expectation is that these will be, for the most part, ignored.

• A 100% Java-based system, built on the J2EE technology.
• A standards-based design allows us to recommend and integrate the best components available at the time.
• A high-performance, robust, scalable and fault-tolerant system.
• Object-oriented design and implementation.
• A web architecture that fully separates the front-end from the middle-ware and database layers. This abstraction allows you to easily implement your desired look-and-feel.
• Recommended deployment features Red Hat Linux, Apache and Jakarta Tomcat.

A service represents the video/audio/chat presentation. Each viewer that is part of a show with an associated service. For example, a service defines the frame rate that the viewer sees.

• Supports four kinds of services:
  • Public, used for prospects to display a video/chat session.
  • Preview, used for prospects to display a smaller, slower video stream only.
  • Private, used for members to display a video/chat session.
• Supports any number of individually-configured private services, each with unique characteristics and pricing.
• Supports four kinds of access restrictions for sessions:
  • Token, a magic string to identify authorized clients.
  • Referrer, to restrict to those entering from a known site.
  • Dialer, to restrict based on dialer conventions.
  • Timer, to restrict based on duration only.
• Internationalization so that performers and clients will see all messages in their local language. Supports Croatian, English, French, German, Hungarian, Japanese, Portuguese, Serbian and Vietnamese.
• Any number of referring sites can be specified. Supports two kinds of dialers, allowing Sidekick to manage paying clients using a dialer for access control.
• Extensive API to interface with your host site including:
  • Http-based requests to Sidekick to effect internal operation
  • Http-based requests from Sidekick when key events occur.
  • Computer-readable log files with key events.
  • Administrative section

• Performer client is easy to install and run.
• Web-based setup, meaning that the installation occurs from the site. There is no setup.exe to save to your hard disk, find and run. On startup, an automatic check is made for updates and if it finds any, download them.
• Performers can see a video of themselves, a list of viewers of their show, and a history of chat text messages. They can colorize their messages as well as send private messages.
• Performers see who is viewing their show including miscellaneous information such as their ip addresses, if desired; and why someone left their show.
• Performers have the capability to kick off or ban abusive users. Two ways are supported: First, when someone is kicked off, Sidekick can simply stops transmitting their chat messages, which is meant to frustrate his attempts to annoy others, all without hard feedback. Second, Sidekick can terminate their session.
• When a client joins or leaves a show, the performer hears an audible signal. Also, if a client is in a private service, whenever he sends a message, a beep is sounded. In this way, the performer can be aware of all communication. Also, notification sounds can be turned on or off individually.
• Upon a lost connection, the Performer Program can be configured to automatically and continually attempt to reconnect and launch a new show.
• Broad range of capture devices are supported, including almost all cams that have a Video For Windows driver driver.
• Chat area text can be resized to better suit performer's needs.
• Text watermarks can be added to each streamed video stream.
• Pan-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ) support allows a client to control the cam.
• Can lock a show to ensure a private show.
• Restores to last settings when loading.
• Distinguishes clients by an optional group parameter.

• Client applet is instantiated in the browser. This implementation is a plug-in free solution.
• Clients can see a video of the performer, a list of viewers of the show, and a history of chat text messages.
• Can display last twelve text messages initially.
• Retains screen name so doesn't have to be typed in each time.
• Clients can colorize their chat text messages as well as send private messages.
• According to the configuration of the system and what service is active, the client might see one of the following in the video pane:
  • Full-size, high-speed video streaming.
  • Smaller, slower video streaming.
  • A rotating series of images, each so many seconds apart.
  • A combination of video and images.
• If a non-member is viewing, he will be asked for a screen name. He can remain anonymous and still view the video.

• The Videochat Server resides on the server and manages the video streaming. Effectively, this is the traffic cop that manages multiple, simultaneous activities concurrently.
• Responsible for governing bandwidth usage, show launching and ending, and session launching and ending.
• Number of shows and sessions is limited only by the server's capacity and the terms of the license agreement.
• High-performance, robust and scalable implementation. Automatic, predicable recovery from any condition. In actual practice, the videochat server can have an uptime measured in months or more.
• Can filter all chat messages for sensitive information, such as an email address, IRQ number or web address, and suppress them.

• Video streaming supports up to 30 frames per second.
• Automatically adjusts to current connection capacity.
• High-quality audio including silence detection to further reduce bandwidth.

• Sidekick will allow you to track and limit the amount of private time a member spends with a performer.
• At the end of a session, Sidekick will inform you of how much time was used by this member for your records.
• When a member runs out of time, he will be directed to a page of your choosing.
• Chat rooms can be open to paying and non-paying members. Non-paying members can have a different video and audio presentation. In fact, when a paying member enters a show, any non-paying members can have a different presentation, perhaps a slower and smaller video or none at all.
• Sidekick can be configured so that a performer can have only one paying member at a time. It can also be configured to allow a sense of exclusivity, restricting chat messages, audio and what is displayed in the audience list.
• Performers see a list of who has joined their room. Next to each client, will be the amount of time that they have purchased and have available. This allows performers to focus on the clients that are most likely to spent their money.
• Supports different rates by performer and by service.

• A moderator is a person that has been given special abilities by the administrator.
• Administrators can add any number of moderators.
• A moderator can enter shows at will.
• A moderator is designated uniquely to performers and clients.
• A moderator can kick off abusive users.

• A recent image from the show can be displayed. This image is scaled down on the server to reduce bandwidth usage.
• A smaller, slower video stream can be displayed (Preview service).
• A videochat applet can be shown, allowing the prospect to chat with the performer. Where the video goes, it could show the video, perhaps smaller and slower. Also, it could show a series of rotating images.

• Video and audio streaming from a performer only occurs if any viewers are part of the show.
• The viewer applet will suspend video streaming if there is no viewer activity over the last so many minutes.
• Dynamically governs streaming to each viewer according to their bandwidth capacity.
• Performer streaming is adjusted according to their bandwidth capacity as well as the desired size and frame rate.
• Sophisticated compression of the video and audio streams. Streaming option provides silence detection and suppression.
• Any display of recent frames from a show are images that have been resized on the server to minimize bandwidth usage..
• Records bandwidth usage of videochat system by the hour and by the day, categorized by performer or viewer.

• One-on-one sessions support:
  • A live video stream from the performer to a member at various dimensions, frame rates and image qualities.
  • A two-way chat technology of text-based messages, including colorizing and private messages.
  • A live audio stream from the performer to a member.
• A member can use any standard browser with Java applet support enabled. Our Java applet displays the video and chat windows, as well as a list of audience members.
• Includes mechanisms for controlling and restricting users. Also, a performer can kick off a user which will stop the transfer of their text chat messages. This is intended to slowly frustrate them.
• Can combine several cams into one show from a client's perspective.

• Performers are categorized by which language or languages they can communicate with.
• Performers that can communicate in two to four languages, will see corresponding chat areas, each will a text input area, text chat message history, and an audience list.
• Whos live pages are generated specific to languages, so that users from a particular locale will only be able to join shows that are appropriate.
• Clients will see messages that are in their chosen language. Messages in the other language are not shown.

• Sidekick tracks all incoming and outgoing bandwidth by website (or referrer)
• Bandwidth usage by website is saved on an hourly and daily basis.

• Easy first-time installation and setup. We have gone to great lengths to simplify this process into just a few steps.
• Your site's look-and-feel will be shown. Template-based pages files are designed to be easy-to-understand, implement and modify.
• Error screens are completely customizable.
• Thorough logging of all key events, eases maintenance and trouble-shooting.

• Administrative area for back-office activities. Can list live shows and a show history.
• Show archives can be viewed. The system can write out a complete history of each show, including or excluding video. This includes all text messages.
• A message can be sent to all live performers and/or clients in one or more shows at one time.
• Can configure with more than one administrator with different privileges.
• Able to monitor any live show without any indication to the performer or viewers. Optional text chatting is available if desired.

• Unified architectural design ensures a straightforward and consistent security policy.
• Restriction to members area by one of three methods:
  • Http referrer feature limits access to those that come from an authorized site. The authorized list can be updated via a web page or by an external program.
  • A token-based system allows you to issue to each user a token (generated by Sidekick) which will be recognized as valid.
  • A dialer system.
  Note: the public area can be restricted as well as the members area.
• Entry is based on a login name and password.
• User-level, using role and permission-based access control.
• Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Support is fully implemented and can be specified on a page-by-page basis. This is surfaced in the server to client communication as the secure http protocol (https). A trusted certificate is used on the server to establish its credentials.
• The performer module and the member applet are signed to ensure that they are unchanged from our server.
• Every request to the server is checked for authentication and authorization.

Click on one of the following links!

• An overview of Sidekick's features


• Sidekick datasheet


• Sidekick manual or as PDF
• Take the demo! See for yourself how Sidekick operates!


• Sidekick changes between versions