How to Customize the Jitsi Meet Interface

Jitsi Meet is kind of a big deal in the open-source video conferencing world, offering flexibility and nifty features for virtual gatherings. Whether you’re knee-deep in coding as a developer, a business owner looking for some branded flair in video solutions, or an agency peddling white-label video tools, tweaking the Jitsi Meet interface can really spruce things up for your crowd. This guide walks you through customizing Jitsi Meet using the jitsimeetjs library—covering API wizardry, UI elements, branding, real-life examples, and killer resources.

API Overview

The magic of Jitsi Meet customization lies in its handy API. The Jitsi Meet External API lets you embed and control Jitsi Meet with your web app, allowing you to tweak the visual interface, manage meetings, and customize how users interact.

At the core, we’re talking about a JavaScript library you pop into your project to slap video calls right onto your website or app. It helps you kickstart conferences, set up configurations, and keep an ear out for events like folks joining or muting themselves.

Some neat API tricks include:

• Get a Meeting Going: Create a Jitsi Meet iframe with a room name, user info, and whatever configurations you need.
• Control the UI: Switch features on or off, like chat or the microphone toggle.
• Tune into Events: Stay in the loop when people pop in or the meeting wraps up.
• Send Commands: Do cool stuff like locking a room or hitting the record button.

Here’s what getting Jitsi Meet rolling looks like with the API:

const domain = 'meet.jit.si';
const options = {
    roomName: 'MyCustomRoom',
    width: 800,
    height: 600,
    parentNode: document.querySelector('#jitsi-container'),
    configOverwrite: { startWithAudioMuted: true },
    interfaceConfigOverwrite: { TOOLBAR_BUTTONS: ['microphone', 'camera', 'hangup'] },
};
const api = new JitsiMeetExternalAPI(domain, options);

This bit of code sets up a meeting room with your chosen room name, button setup, and a muffled start.

Using the API, especially with the jitsimeetjs package, gives developers total control over the meeting look and feel, perfect for creating stripped-down or full-featured interfaces.

Why Use jitsimeetjs?

The jitsimeetjs library is basically a JavaScript envelope around Jitsi’s External API. It streamlines integration, makes method calls, and event handling a breeze, and is less prone to hiccups. Automating tweaks and setup programmatically, it’s your go-to when building a white-label service or a bespoke video solution.

UI Elements

Grasping the ins and outs of the Jitsi Meet interface’s UI elements is crucial before diving into customization. The interface is made up of several key components:

• Toolbar: It’s home to buttons for mic, camera, chats, participants, screen sharing, recording—basically, all the essentials.
• Video Grid: Feeds are displayed in a grid, tile, or focused on the speaker.
• Side Panels: Some views come with participant lists or chat windows.
• Welcome Page: The meeting entry page, where users type their name and meeting options.
• Notifications and Alerts: These keep users updated about connections or permissions.

Tinkering with these elements may involve turning features on or off, relocating buttons, or stylistic adjustments.

Toolbar Customization

The toolbar stands as the most eye-catching and interactive element users handle. Via interface settings, you decide which buttons appear and how they line up.

Let’s say you’re after a simple toolbar featuring “microphone,” “camera,” and “hangup” buttons. Jitsi’s interfaceConfigOverwrite opens that door:

interfaceConfigOverwrite: {
    TOOLBAR_BUTTONS: [
        'microphone',
        'camera',
        'hangup'
    ]
}

You can also switch off entire sections like chat or tile view if you want to keep things sleek.

Video Grid and Layouts

Normally, Jitsi Meet adjusts the video grid to suit the headcount. You can use configuration settings to lock in tile layouts or have a focused view.

Even beyond the grid, jitsimeetjs allows you to react to people joining or leaving so you can tweak the interface or throw in custom overlays.

Custom CSS and JS Tweaks

For those ready to dig deeper, adding your own CSS styles or JavaScript is an option. This lets you refine colors, fonts, spacing, or even place new buttons that engage with backend functions.

For instance, injecting this CSS snippet can revamp button colors:

toolbar-button {
    background-color: #0052cc !important;
    border-radius: 4px !important;
}

This is a fuss-free way to change up appearances without a full UI overhaul.

Branding Options

Branding is key for agencies and companies looking to provide a consistent vibe syncing with their identity. Jitsi Meet offers several branding avenues:

Swap the Logo

Swap out the Jitsi logo on the welcome page and toolbar for yours by tweaking the logo URL settings.

interfaceConfigOverwrite: {
    APP_NAME: 'My Video App',
    DEFAULT_REMOTE_DISPLAY_NAME: 'Guest',
    SHOW_JITSI_WATERMARK: false,
    SHOW_POWERED_BY: false,
    JITSI_WATERMARK_LINK: 'https://mycompany.com',
    BRAND_WATERMARK_LINK: 'https://mycompany.com',
    BRAND_WATERMARK: 'https://mycompany.com/logo.png'
}

Setting SHOW_JITSI_WATERMARK and SHOW_POWERED_BY to false banishes Jitsi’s default widgets, huddling the focus onto your brand.

Play with Colors and Themes

With CSS variables or overrides, you can shift color palettes to align with your brand, covering toolbar backgrounds, button accents, and modal windows.

The welcome page can channel your brand’s colors and fonts, presenting a seamless look before meetings kick off.

Custom Welcome Page Text

The opening screen’s text is yours to customize—whether it’s:

• Personalized greetings
• Joining directions
• Notices on privacy or disclaimers

These updates boost clarity and reinforce reliability by being upfront with users.

Your Domain and SSL

If security and brand optics matter, hosting Jitsi Meet under your domain with proper SSL is a must. It secures communication and instills confidence by showing your own domain during meetups.

Example Customizations

Let’s move from theory to practice with some applied customization cases for varied scenarios.

Case 1: Minimal Meeting Widget for Website

A marketing agency wanted a barebones Jitsi Meet widget with just mic, camera, and hangup buttons for embedding on client sites.

Here’s what they went with:

const api = new JitsiMeetExternalAPI('meet.jit.si', {
    roomName: 'AgencyMinimalDemo',
    parentNode: document.querySelector('#meet'),
    interfaceConfigOverwrite: {
        TOOLBAR_BUTTONS: ['microphone', 'camera', 'hangup'],
        SHOW_JITSI_WATERMARK: false,
        SHOW_POWERED_BY: false
    },
    configOverwrite: {
        startWithVideoMuted: true,
        enableWelcomePage: false
    }
});

In the end, the interface was sleek, fit the web layout, and aligned with brand standards.

Case 2: All-Out White-Label Custom Client for Businesses

One SaaS provider aimed to create a bespoke web client featuring branded Jitsi meetings, blending participant insights and custom login flows.

Using jitsimeetjs, they:

• Embedded Jitsi with the API in their dashboard.
• Tailored interface buttons to add a “Raise Hand” feature.
• Replaced all Jitsi branding with their logos and tones.
• Integrated an analytics backend firing off API events when meetings begin or end.

This helped their users experience a native video conferencing tool entirely under the provider’s brand umbrella.

Case 3: Adding Custom UI Components

A developer tacked on a custom sidebar with real-time synced text notes for participants. They pulled it off listening to API events and set up a separate React component outside the Jitsi iframe, matching video actions with the notes pane to step up meeting interaction.

Resources

Gaining confidence in customizing Jitsi Meet means having solid resources on hand. Here’s a must-have bookmark list for developers or businesses:

• Official Jitsi Meet API Docs: https://jitsi.github.io/handbook/docs/dev-guide/dev-guide-iframe
  Detailed info on API commands, events, and configurations.

• Jitsi Meet GitHub Repository: https://github.com/jitsi/jitsi-meet
  Direct access to the source code and a chance to get involved.

• jitsimeetjs SDK: https://github.com/jitsi/jitsi-meet/blob/master/doc/api.md
  All about the JavaScript wrapper for easier integration.

• Community Forums: https://community.jitsi.org/
  Vibrant space for developers and users to share questions and solutions.

• Tutorials and Blog Posts: Platforms like Medium and Dev.to are frequently packed with real-world guides on customizing Jitsi Meet.

For those dealing with sensitive info, remember that Jitsi Meet brings end-to-end encryption options for securing calls, bolstering user trust. Running your own Jitsi server adds another layer of data privacy and customization freedom.

Conclusion

Customizing the Jitsi Meet interface unlocks its full potential for developers, businesses, and agencies. By using the External API and the jitsimeetjs SDK, you gain control over crucial UI elements and can shape the user experience to reflect your brand. Start small by tweaking toolbar buttons and logos or go all out with a comprehensive white-label integration.

Practical examples illustrate how minimalist widgets or bespoke clients boost engagement and strengthen user confidence. With official documentation and community support by your side, you can build flexible, secure video conferencing tools that truly stand out.

If you’re ready to give your Jitsi Meet interface a makeover, dive into the External API and try out a few UI adjustments. Play around with branding options to create an experience that’s uniquely yours. Should you need expert guidance or hands-on assistance, just reach out or join the Jitsi community for steady support.

Craft a video conferencing experience that’s perfectly tailored to your needs and brand, without reinventing the wheel.