Skype

[corbasse]

Please, if you end up using this, post your experiences. There are most likely going to be bugs or something. For instance, if you dial a number you must dial a "+" and then the entire 1+ number or you will get sent to a page where you are asked to sign up for a paying version. AFAIK, as long as you use that plus sign you are good to go.

That's not a bug, that's simly the complete phone number. (= including the country prefix).
You have to do the same on your mobile phone if you want to use it anywhere else except in the US....


I've had Skype installed for a few years now, and am very happy with it. Don't wory about spyware or stuff like that, there isn't any.
I've only used it for computer-to-computer communication, so I've no experience with services like Skypeout.

The only trouble I've had in the past were sometimes bad connections (a $15 headphone with built in mic will do wonders to the sound quality) and the fact that our computer is tucked away in a room where we only come to work on it so it's no good for incoming calls.

[finnbogi]

I have also used Skype for computer-to-computer communication, mainly with friends in Europe and the USA, for some years and have had no problems whatsoever.

One of my friends (actually a tuba player) in Denmark has rung me a few times using SkypeOut and the communication usually lags less than mobile-to-mobile communication (perhaps just because he uses a cheap phone company).

[windshieldbug]

Don't wory about spyware or stuff like that, there isn't any

Unless you're in the US, and the US DoHS decides that they want to listen in, because it's been a slow lunch hour...

[corbasse]

Called someone's regular home phone and they experienced a bad (to them) digital echo. Is this normal/common? Anyone else have this problem?

I used to have this a lot in the past, but the last 6 months it's been much better. Getting a headset helped too.

[Rick Denney]

I have several issues with these:

1. When the power is out, the phone lines usually are not. But the computer would be (or would be real soon). I have called the power company to report outages several times in the last year alone.

2. I don't know what you have to do to have your phone number listed, including with information. I seem to recall hearing some news chatter about that, but don't remember the outcome.

3. I can't get high-speed Internet service where I live.

Rick "who has had real trouble trying to find numbers for Vonage users" Denney

[funkcicle]

I got vonage packaged with my cable internet about a year ago.. $79.95 a month covers unlimited calling to the U.S. and Canada and a 3.5mbit internet connection..this is what I was previously paying for a similar calling plan with Verizon, but internet was another $45 a month. Call quality is not noticeably better or worse than it was with the landline and service interruptions are no more frequent than they were with verizon(actually, far less frequent). The only 'quirk' i've noticed is that every now and then a call will fail on the first try(similar to what happens on cell phones) and I'll get a busy signal, though this has happened maybe a half dozen times since I've had the service, and has always worked on the second try.

As for Skype, the PDA version lets you use your Palm or PocketPC like a cell phone anywhere you've got a WiFi connection..not convenient for everybody everywhere <b>yet</b>, but it certainly sets an interesting stage for the future of mobile communications.

[Chuck(G)]

Not bad, but Skype seems to think that I'm in Canada.

[LoyalTubist]

Skype is great. I use it to call Vietnam all the time.

Once, a college professor in China read something about me on Internet, Skyped me, and I was the "guest speaker" of an English class in Shanghai. They had many questions about California and violence. I think I scared them.

[windshieldbug]

I think I scared them.

You are obviosly scaring that water buffalo...

[LoyalTubist]

That was in Indonesia and I paid his herder very well for that picture.

[Chuck(G)]

What kind of audio delay are folks experiencing with Skype? I hear maybe a half-second lag if I call the phone sitting on my desk here.

[corbasse]

It very much depends on circumstances. Sometimes the connections are as good or better than with a good telephone line, some other times we've had to disconnect and try another day because it was impossible to understand each other. The completely mangled and chopped to bits connections have gotten a lot less the last 1/2 year.
If you're in an area with a lot of broadband users on the same lines but almost no Skype users, connections will probably be hopeless at peak times.

[LoyalTubist]

The connection on Skype to Vietnam is much clearer than the landline. There is a terrible delay on that.

As far as the Javanese water buffalo herder, he was a little old Javanese man who spoke no English (and very little Bahasa Indonesia--he spoke Bahasa Jawa, that's Javanese). I paid about 20,000 rupiah, which was then about eight bucks. Today it's about $1.25.

[tubiker]

I use Skype all the time to keep in touch with one of my daughters who is away at University - she uses it all the time to chat away with her mates who are also all on Skype and, being skint most of the time its great for her because of the nil cost between Skype users.
My other daughter uses it to keep in contact with one of her mates who has moved back to the States - her family arn't online so she rings them on the landline phone - cost 0.017 Euro per minute - pretty good.
We are also using the beta video which is a bit hit and miss - when its working its fine, when its not we use Messenger for video and Skype for sound.

pip pip

Andrew Murray