Skype Journal

Home - Contact Us - Policies - Advertise - About News feed Independently covering the Talk Revolution since 2003

Monday, January 25, 2010

Vivu plugs multiparty video into Skype for Windows

Vivu and VuRoom for Skype - cropped

$10 a month gets you multiparty video conferencing, screen/application sharing, browser and phone access for your guests, and video broadcasting. Vivu's VuRoom for Skype plugs-in to your Windows and Mac Skype clients. VuRoom launches your session using the Skype client. Vivu notifies your invitees to your call through a Skype chat. They can launch into the room through their own copy of VuRoom or click on a link to the browser version. Your meeting uses Skype's encrypted, high quality audio channel.  Here's a flash demo, an offer for a 15 day trial account, and details on subscribing to VuRoom.

Vivu isn't the first company to offer multiparty video for Skype, but their timing is excellent. Hundreds of millions of Skype users now appreciate video calling, paving the way in customer appreciation and behavior. This plug-in helps Vivu extend its market reach to Skype's large user base and builds on the love and trust people have for the Skype brand.

Vivu's core business is hosting webcasts, some with ten thousand attendees, and virtual meeting rooms. It's a highly competitive space: Apple iChat, iVisit, MeBeam, Paltalk, PeerMe, SightSpeed, ooVoo, ekko, TokBox, Dimdim, and WebEx are prominent in supporting multiple parties in video chat as part of the meetings.

Skype could easily target this market segment as it turns to business markets. Will Skype compete with partners like Vivu for customer attention, as they have with one-to-one video calling software partners and with desktop sharing software partners?

Labels: , , , , ,

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Gifts for the Skype crowd

Gear: The Better to Hear and See All Year Long

Cute 3-D Webcam from Minoru. For the friend who wants even more than Skype's High Quality and considers 3D glasses the height of fashion. Cheerful, stereoscopic, and works wonderfully with Skype. Minoru videos on YouTube (and wear your 3D specs). Review. Amazon. $89/£50/€80.

Point 2 View (P2V) USB camera. Skype in-focus close-ups in your video call. You show the grandkids your stamp collection, they show you the bugs they found in the back yard. Armature stand included. Review, Overview, Gallery, FAQ, Tech specs, Downloads. Ipevo Store. Amazon.

Touch Screen Videophone from ASUS. The ASUS SV1TS gets the PC out of the way of Skype video. You drop it in the kitchen or living room, plug in the power cord, connect the Wi-Fi, touch the screen, and talk. Large, clear picture. Amazon. $230.

MXL AC-405 USB personal computer speakerphone. Absolutely the best audio quality anywhere near this price from Maxell, world experts in microphone engineering. The AC-405 shares technology with their high-end music and television studio microphones. Amazon. $55.

Freetalk Wireless Stereo Headset. Still one of the best for looks, quality, comfort and ruggedness. More than five hours of talk time and even then it works while recharging. I use it daily without tripping over cables. Review. Amazon. Skype store. $80.

Software: To Record and Share

Vodburner records Skype video calls on Windows. The Vodburner Beta includes easy editing software (see screenshot below) that automatically switches the shot between the two of you depending on who is speaking. Publish meetings, interviews, and training sessions on the web. A subscription runs $9.95 (USD) monthly.

Pamela Professional Edition, pam-pro-box-lthe Skype Assistant. Proven software with built in voice mail, birthday reminders, and in-call sound effects. Like Vodburner, it records calls but without an audio or video editor. An all around utility kit for Windows Skype users. I've been using Pamela for many years. PamSoft. €19,95.

Skype Journal Video Grooming Kit:

Teeth: Rembrandt 2-Hour Whitening Kit. Whiter teeth take years off. Feel free to smile.

Hair: Kent White Bristle Hair Brush for those stray hairs. (Ah, I remember the days when I had hair on the top of my head worth brushing.)

Inspection: Jerdon First Class Mirror so you know you look good and bounce a little light your way. See yourself the way others see you.

Skin: Avon mark Cheat Sheet Shine-Blotters to remove oils from your face that shine in the light. (I always thought it was a reflection off my eyeglasses that blinded viewers, but it was the glare from my forehead. )

Wardrobe: Everyone looks better on camera in a clean, dark blue shirt: Soffe Men's Base Layer Long Sleeve Crew Tee. White clothing creates glare and throws off your camera's sensors. Keep a clean, dark and solid top by your desk for the unexpected Skype call.

Lights: Natural light makes you look marvelous. I use the Verilux Original Natural Spectrum Deluxe Desk Lamp, so the camera can see my face. (Despite requests to turn it off.)

Lens: Keep your webcam lens clear with the Nikon Complete Lens Cleaner Kit or the LensPEN Lens Cleaning System. (This doesn't seem to help me: I always turn out smudged no matter how clean the webcam.)

Labels: , , , , , , , ,

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Free Speech Activists Use Skype Data Channel To Bypass Government Censorship

Skype and GTunnel

Skype Journal is blocked by China's government. Millions work around censorship and monitoring with networking tools like GTunnel. The GTunnel proxy on your PC connects to GTunnel servers. The client connects directly, through the TOR network, or through the Skype network. Connecting through Skype assures your packets are encrypted from beginning to end. This hides your IP address from servers. This also circumvents blockades of target servers like mine.

GTunnel is run by Garden Networks for Freedom of Information, a member of the Global Information Freedom Consortium. When you combine GTunnel with UltraSurf, FreeGate, FirePhoenix, GPass, and Ranking you get a complete suite for surviving online censorship and monitoring.

Caution for Chinese users: Skype cannot assure what you download from TOM-Skype does not include spyware. So download the international version from the Skype.com site or another independent source.

Labels: , , , , , , ,

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Download: Skype for Symbian S60 3rd Edition Beta

Skype and Nokia announced at the February 2009 GSM World Congress that Nokia would pre-install Skype on its S60 smart phones by 2009q3. skype-for-symbian-logosIt won't happen this year but the limited release of Skype for Symbian shows progress.

This is a real client, not a Skype Lite thin client. It works over 3G and Wi-Fi You won't get the full Skype experience. You do get chat and calling. You don't get public chats or the ability to initiate a conference call. No video calling. No Wi-Fi via the Boingo-provided Skype Access service. No call transfer.

A few cautions. First, don't try this Beta on your phone unless it's on the list. Second, install it in memory; it's too slow if you run it off your SIM card. Third, Nokia's PC Suite backup won't backup Skype. So upgrades to Symbian or your firmware delete your Skype chat history. Fourth, you cannot forbid Skype from using 3G. If your data plan is capped or expensive, Skype may use it even when Wi-Fi is available. Skype doesn't ask or give you the choice. Last, it's an early beta, still with bugs or design defects that drop calls, give you confusing messages, make loud noises. Caveat downloader.

Cautions aside, go get it. Symbian S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 1 devices (Nokia E71, E63, E66, N82, E51, N95, N95 8GB, N81, N81 8GB, E90). Symbian S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2 devices (Nokia N96, N85, 5320, 6210 Navigator, 6210 Classic, N78, N79).

Your Nokia isn't on the list? Check out Skype-compatible IM+ for Skype, Nimbuzz, fring or minifring.

Full text below of the Skype for Symbian User Guide (pdf).


User Guide

Skype for Symbian 3rd Edition Feature pack 1 and 2

Introduction

Skype for Symbian S60 enables you to use Skype on smart phones running the Symbian S60 3rd edition, Feature Pack 1 and 2.

This guide describes how to:

  • Install Skype for Symbian S60 smart phone
  • Configure Skype for Symbian S60
  • Use Skype for Symbian S60

Installation

Environment requirements

Skype for Symbian can be installed on any S60 Feature Pack 1 or Feature Pack 2 phone.

However, currently it has been verified to be functioning optimally on following phone models and phone firmware releases;

  • E 71 S60 3d Ed. FP 1 210.21.006 RM- 346
  • N 96 S60 3d Ed. FP 2 12.043 RM-247
  • N 85 S60 3d Ed. FP 2 10.045
  • 5320 S60 3d Ed. FP 2 04.13 ( 01-12-2008) RM-409
  • 6210 Navigator S60 3d Ed. FP 2 4.13 RM - 367
  • 6220 Classic S60 3d Ed. FP 2 4.13 RM- 328
  • N 78 S60 3d Ed. FP 2 20.149
  • N 79 S60 3d Ed. FP 2 20.175(06-04-09) RM-348
  • E 63 S60 3d Ed. FP 1 100.21.110 (14-11-2008) RM-437
  • E 66 S60 3d Ed. FP 1 210.21.007 ( 27-02-2009) RM-343
  • N 82 S60 3d Ed. FP 1 31.0.16
  • E 51 S60 3d Ed. FP 1 300.34.56 RM - 244
  • N 95 S60 3d Ed. FP 1 31.0.017
  • N 95 8 Gb S60 3d Ed. FP 1 20.0.016
  • N 81 S60 3d Ed. FP 1 11.0.045
  • N 81 8 Gb S60 3d Ed. FP 1 11.0.045
  • E 90 S 60 3d FP 1 300.34.84

It is recommended to update phone’s firmware to the latest one.

Installation on phone models not listed is not recommended.

Skype for Symbian requires at least 6 Mb of free storage space on your phone to install.

To function effectively, Skype for Symbian requires a high speed wireless Internet connection over a wireless (Wi-Fi) or 3G networks. The procedures to configure Wi-Fi and 3G features are beyond the scope of this document, but are typically performed by selecting ‘Applications->Tools->Settings->Connection->Access points’.

Recommended installation method

Skype for Symbian can be installed via various means, installation methods include;

  • OTA (Over the air)
  • Via Nokia PC suite
  • Via sending application sis file to phone via Bluetooth.

Supported installation locations

Skype for Symbian should be installed to phone main memory.

Installation to removable memory card is not recommended and can result in application performance degradations or launch failures.

Starting Skype for the first time

Notifications

On first start user is notified of details of client usage.

Application access

User asked to allow the application access to wireless connectivity and mobile network.

No emergency calls

User is informed that Skype for Symbian is not a substitute for an ordinary phone and cannot be used to make emergency calls.

Choose a connection

Please choose an access point that Skype will use to establish internet connection. In a while, you will be signed in to your account and will see Skype Contact list screen.

Creating new account

Accept terms of service.

To create a new account, please fill in all fields.

When you finished filling in ‘Create Account’ form, press ‘Done’– if the Skype name that you have entered has not been already taken; the new account will be created for you.

Signing in to existing account

If you already have an account you can choose ‘Sign In to Skype’. Fill in ‘Skype Name’ and ‘Password’ fields, then press ‘Sign In’.

Using Skype for Symbian

Main menu

Main menu provides quick access to all client features.

Contact list displays user contacts.

IMs contain chats and their history.

History contains a log of sent and received calls, files, voice mails ,SMS-es and authorization requests.

Contacts screen

The Contact list screen displays Skype users and phone numbers (for SkypeOut calls) you have added to your contacts list. It displays the current online status of each user, and allows you to manage your contacts.

Setting own Presence status

To set own online status, press ‘Options’ and select ‘Change online status’ from menu.

List of available Presence statuses:

  • Offline – you are not currently signed in to Skype.
  • Online – you are ready to make and receive calls or chat messages.Your status will be set to Online automatically when you sign in.
  • Away – indicates that you are online but away from your Pocket PC.
  • Do not Disturb –indicates that you are busy. Skype will not notify you of incoming calls or chat, although a Call tab is added to the tab bar when a call is received.
  • Invisible – allows you to remain online while others see you as offline.

Options menu

‘Options’ menu allows you to among other things;

  • Add a Contact to add known contacts.
  • Search for Skype Users to search for other Skype users based on selection criteria.
  • Change Skype Settings.
  • View ‘About Skype’ to provide information about the running version of Skype for Symbian.
  • View ‘Help’ screen.
  • Sign Out to end your Skype session.
  • Exit to close (as opposed to send to background) the Skype application.

IMs screen

This screen displays a list of active chats. You can open an active chat, set the chat topic, leave a chat and add or view chat participants.

History - Calls screen

This screen displays a history of received, dialed, and missed Skype and SkypeOut calls. It is possible to place a call directly from this screen by pressing ‘Green’ button.

History – Files screen

This screen displays a history of files sent and received to device. Individual files can be accessed from this screen.

History – Voice mails screen

This screen lists received voice mails. From this screen you can send, play and manage your voice mails.

History – SMS messages screen

SMS messages send by you are listed here. You can view and manage individual messages from this screen.

History – Contact requests

Unanswered authorization messages, contact details requests are displayed on this screen.

Settings – Call forwarding

Here you can manage the way Skype forwards incoming calls when you are offline, available options are;

  • Don’t forward – calls are not forwarded
  • Skype voice mail – calls are forwarded to your Skype voicemail (requires purchase of Skype voice mail service)
  • Other number – calls are forwarded to a specified number. (requires Skype credit and forwarding set up.)

Settings – Privacy

Here you can restrict which other Skype users can contact you. Privacy settings for chats and Calls are separate. Settings available for both types are following;

  • Anyone – any Skype user can contact you.
  • Only people in my Contact list – Skype users already in your contact list are allowed to contact you.
  • Only people with my details – Skype users with whom you have shared your details are allowed to contact you.

Settings - Connection

You can change different connection related settings here:

  • Default access point
  • 3G cost alert – if enabled, Skype will require explicit user permission to establish 3G connection.

Making a Call and Starting a Chat

  • To make a call, highlight one of your contacts, and press ‘Green’ button.
  • Alternatively, press Joystick Middle button – ‘Communication’ menu will be displayed. Select ‘Call’.
  • To start a Chat, press Joystick Middle button – ‘Communication’ menu will be displayed. Select ‘Start Chat’.

Incoming Skype Call

When you see an incoming call balloon, you have several options:

  • Answer the call by either pressing ‘Green’ button, or by selecting ‘Answer’ from ‘Options’ menu.
  • Reject the call by either pressing ‘Red’ button or by pressing ‘Reject’ soft button.

Note that during Incoming Call notification, ‘Red’ button does not dismiss Skype to background, but rather rejects incoming call.

Terminating ongoing Skype Call

  • To terminate active Skype call either press ‘Red’ button, or ‘End call’ soft button.

Dial a number

In order to make a call to any number, perform following actions:

  1. From Contacts screen, press ‘Options’.
  2. Select ‘Dial number’.
  3. Input correctly formatted phone number and either press Green button or select ‘Call’ from Options menu.

You can change your dialing prefix by pressing ‘Options’ ‘Country codes’ and selecting the country. Appropriate dialing prefix will be added automatically to phone number input screen.

Sending Voicemail

You can send a voicemail to other Skype users who have voice mail service enabled.

  1. From Contact list, highlight a contact.
  2. Press ‘Options’ select ‘Send Voicemail ’
  3. After voice mail greeting is played, recording of your voice mail is started.

Managing contacts

A contact is any Skype user you allow to talk or chat with you, or a SkypeOut number. Use Skype’s privacy features to decide who can and cannot contact you.

Known contacts

If you know the Skype name of a contact to add, perform the following tasks:

  1. Select ‘New Contact’ from the Contacts ‘Options’ menu.
  2. Select the ‘Search Skype users’ option.
  3. Type the Skype name of the contact – Skype will search for it, and display the results.
  4. Highlight desired contact and then select ‘Options->Add to Contacts’.
  5. In the ‘Enter a reason’ window, type a message to introduce yourself.

The new contact will appear on the Contact list. If the user authorizes you to see online status, the Contact list displays the current status for the user.

Alternatively, to add a SkypeOut contact, perform the following tasks:

  1. Select ‘New Contact’ from the Contacts ‘Options’ menu.
  2. Select the ‘Add phone number’ option.
  3. Enter the phone number into window and then select ‘Yes’.

Unknown contacts

If you do not know the Skype name of a user you want to add to your contacts list, perform the

following actions:

  1. Select ‘Options->Search’ from the Contact list screen.
  2. Type a name in the ‘Name or e-mail address’ of the Search screen, optionally specify search criterion using the remaining fields and then select ‘Ok’ button.
  3. After a short delay, Skype for Symbian displays a list of Skype users that match your search details.

Authorizing contacts

When a user requests to add you to a contact list, Skype for Symbian displays an authorization request notification. Open the notification to respond to the request.

Existing contacts

To manage existing contacts, perform the following tasks:

Highlight a contact you want to manage, and then select ‘Options->Contact’ submenu.

From here you can perform following tasks:

  • View the contact’s profile.
  • Rename the contact.
  • Remove the contact.
  • Block the contact.
  • Request authorization (only if you are not authorized yet).

If your contacts list is large, you can use the quick search facility to find a contact quickly and easily. While on the Contact list screen, simply press a button on the keypad – respective letter will appear in the text box to view only those contacts whose names begin with that letter.

Backup/Restore

Skype for Symbian is not included in the Backup performed by Nokia PC Suite. This means that if you Backup and later restore your smart phone, your Skype installation will be lost together with all your Chat history.


tags: , , ,

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private technologist roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Labels: , , , , ,

Download: Skype for Windows 4.2.0.141 Beta

Skype Logo (hi-res)Download the Beta now (full install). A few new features and improvements, 35 bug fixes.

Skype Access. (Beta). Boingo brought over from the Mac version. "Pay by the minute for WiFi internet connection in public hotspots: Automatically detects accessible Wifi hotspots; Connect manually: Tools > Skype Access... Connect to the web and pay per minute with your Skype Credit. Only pay for what you use. Available at over 100,000 WiFi hotspots worldwide."

Call Quality Indicator. Answers the question What's wrong with my call? "Check microphone, speaker and webcam, as well as computer CPU and internet connection speed. Skype runs a diagnostic and gives an overall rating for how good your call quality’s going to be. Full five bars indicates optimal conditions and fewer than five bars indicates less than optimal conditions. Clicking on the indicator allows to check the individual elements and to troubleshoot."

First-time User Experience. "Allows an improved account creation experience. An enhanced experience for creating a new Skype account, updating the profile information and accessing the Getting Started Wizard."

Pop-up Alerts. Social peripheral awareness or interruptionware? "Alerts about new contact requests and delivers messages from Skype. Alerts when someone is requesting to become your contact.  Messages from Skype about your account, and other important notices."

Call Transfer. One more reason to have a Skype subscription plan. "Transfer calls to other Skype users and to landline’s or mobile’s. This feature was available in Skype 3.x version, and has returned by popular demand. Direct transfer: Call is transferred directly to the intended recipient. Screening transfer: Incoming call is placed on hold, intended recipient is called and informed of the intended transfer before transferring the call. In addition to the voice call, during an active Call Transfer call to another Skype client also File Transfer and Instant Messaging are available. Note that Video is not available."

Toolbars. Chrome! 7! "Skype browser toolbar improvements. Support for Google Chrome browser. Windows 7 support. Revised Windows taskbar functionality. Support for new taskbar behaviour. Support for jump list. Support for audio ducking. On Account creation users will be pre-filled using Windows Location API."

tags: , , , , , ,

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private technologist roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Labels: , , , ,

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Cool demo: Google Wave + Skype + Asterisk + Ibook

He's in a wave. Adds a gadget. Passes a Skype name to a gadget. Browser-to-Skype call starts.

They talk. As each person talks for a bit, their bit is encoded and linked-to.

So you have a play-by-play record of a call.

Inside a Google wave.

Under the covers: Jason Goecke said "it is a Google Wave Gadget with his PhoneFromHere.com IAX2 Java softphone as the client. Then, the IAX2 Java phone connects to Asterisk with Skype for Asterisk installed. Then, there is a server-side element, Ibook, that is breaking apart utterances into individual files. So that as each person speaks, it captures it into its own file. Then, as that happens, a text frame is sent from Asterisk to the softphone with the file details. The gadget then uses some Javascript to embed a link. IAX2 supports text frames."

This is cool (like I really had to tell you).

First, it shows what it's like to build Skype calls into other applications. Without a Skype client running. (Pardon my drooling.)

Second, it deconstructs a long talk into directly referenceable snippets. (Still needs permalinks in addition to the playable links). This means you can annotate live calls with transcripts, pictures, etc. So the call's Binary Large Object becomes binary tiny objects.

Third, because the snippets are referred to by a wave, other gadgets and bots can enhance the archive. Add or remove background noise. Translate and provide voiceovers in your language. Highlight statistically improbable phrases. Detect stress in a voice. Visualize the data in a timeline or a relationship scorecard (who talked more?). Add tags to help you find this wave again.

Fourth, no phone numbers were called in the making of this demo. Phone companies weren't bothered. Internet all the way.

Fifth, because this is within the context of a wave, it should be possible to use wave member data to lookup Skype names and bring people into an open conference room.

Am I overstating it?

Labels: , , , , , , ,

Friday, July 31, 2009

Skype races to replace Joltid's p2p by June 2010

From eBay's SEC filing of form 10Q: 

Skype licenses peer-to-peer communication technology from Joltid Limited pursuant to a license agreement between the parties.

That's the software that lets your Skype client find and talk with other Skype clients. Joltid Limited is a British Virgin Islands company.

The parties had been discussing a dispute over the license.

Skype's founders want a second payday. They flubbed their $2 billion dollar payout at eBay, missing targets, settling for a nine figure buyout.

In March 2009, Skype Technologies S.A. filed a claim in the English High Court of Justice (No. HC09C00756) against Joltid Limited.

Skype picked the venue.

Following the filing of the claim, Joltid purported to terminate the license agreement between the parties.

"We're ending your license." "You're just purporting to end our license."

In particular, Joltid has alleged that Skype should not possess, use or modify certain software source code

Presumably, someone at Joltid provided that source code to Skype. Their contract (not yet public) may have detailed how that code was to be used. Or not.

and that, by doing so, and by disclosing such code in certain U.S. patent cases pursuant to orders from U.S. courts, Skype has breached the license agreement.

Since this is about facts, discovery should be interesting.

From an earlier SEC filing:

In particular, Joltid has alleged that Skype should not possess, use or modify certain software code (the "Code") and that, by doing so, and by disclosing the Code in certain U.S. patent cases, pursuant to orders from U.S. courts, it has breached the license agreement.

On the basis of, among other things, the parties' mutual dealings since the execution of the licence agreement, Skype is asking the English High Court for declaratory relief, including findings that:

(i) Skype is lawfully accessing, in possession of, using and modifying the Code so that Skype is not in breach of the license agreement with Joltid and accordingly Joltid's notice of breach and subsequent notice of termination are invalid;

(ii) Skype lawfully disclosed the Code in the U.S. patent cases so that Skype is not in breach of the license agreement with Joltid and accordingly Joltid's notice of breach and subsequent notice of termination are invalid; and

(iii) Joltid has certain indemnity obligations in relation to the U.S. patent proceedings.

Skype sued first, to finalize Joltiid's claims. Skype is asking the court to rule Skype didn't breach the contract and the contract is still in effect.

So, of course, Joltid sues back...

Joltid has brought a counterclaim alleging that Skype has repudiated the license agreement, infringed Joltid’s copyright and misused confidential information.

If Joltid wins on copyright infringement, Skype users downloaded the software more than 1.5 billion times. Is Joltid the new RIAA? 

On the basis of, among other things, the parties’ mutual dealings since the execution of the license agreement, Skype asked the English High Court for declaratory relief, including findings that Skype is not in breach of the license agreement, that Joltid’s notice of breach and subsequent notice of termination are invalid, and that Joltid has certain indemnity obligations in relation to the U.S. patent proceedings.

"Dear Judge, shut up Joltid."

Trial is currently scheduled for June 2010.

A deadline!

Although Skype is confident of its legal position, as with any litigation, there is the possibility of an adverse result if the matter is not resolved through negotiation.

It's to Skype's advantage to strike a deal with Joltid as soon as possible. Joltid, however, may enjoy a better bargaining position the closer they get to the court date.

Skype has begun to develop alternative software to that licensed through Joltid.

When did this project begin? While the Joltid founders were still running Skype for eBay? Five minutes after the founders left? When Joltid claimed breach?

Skype can improve their bargaining position by replacing the Joltid p2p engine. They could buy the technology from Bluemoon.

This is an opportunity to improve on the original p2p engine. Skype could build a p2p engine that:

  • scales faster and more reliably,
  • crosses more residential and enterprise firewalls,
  • works at low power on wireless networks,
  • survives hostile conditions including blocking,
  • updates status and presence more quickly,
  • recovers more quickly from disruptions in the p2p fabric,
  • efficiently creates creates supernodes and relays.

Skype's new CTO has one year to design, test, and deploy a new p2p engine assuming they started construction in 2009q2 (would eBay have reported it if they'd started sooner?). That's a tight deadline when p2p isn't at the center of your expertise.

However, such software development may not be successful, may result in loss of functionality or customers even if successful, and will in any event be expensive.

No pressure.

If Skype was to lose the right to use the Joltid software as the result of the litigation, and if alternative software was not available, Skype would be severely and adversely affected and the continued operation of Skype’s business as currently conducted would likely not be possible.

Where's that countdown clock? 305 days to go.

See also:

Hat tip to the Skype 5.x chat room.

tags: , , , , , ,

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Labels: , , , , , , , ,

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Skype for Windows 4.1.0.141 (hotfix)

Upgrade Skype Now - image

Download the latest bugfixes.

Open issue: "When upgrading Skype, and installing the Skype plugin for Firefox, users may experience a crash in Firefox if it is running during the upgrade. Close Firefox before attempting to install Skype."

correction: it's 141, not 136

tags: , , , ,

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Labels: , , ,

Monday, July 20, 2009

Skype store sells third-party software

Category > ExtrasFour companies now sell their software in the US and UK Skype stores. All are Skype Certified and three have been Skype partners for years. Skype operates stores for many markets. 13 Skype "Extras" are available in all thirty of Skype's English language stores (Australia, Belarus, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malaysia, New Zealand, Oman, PhilippinesQatar, Serbia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovenia, South Africa, UAE, United Kingdom, United States).

Many of these stores aren't localized beyond currency and payment, operating in English instead of Eesti, Chinese, and the other languages people use. For now, UK and US customers are shopping in Euros instead of Pounds or dollars. US customers also pay UK value added taxes.

This is a bare bones start, but an important one. Skype is preparing to build a platform for programmers. An "app store" helps partners make money from their investment in your platform.

The "extras" department isn't seeing much traffic yet according to publishers. When it does, this distribution channel could encourage hundreds of existing developers to invest in Skype certification.

The first products in the store:

Company Product Description Price
Cucku Cucku Backup Free remote backup to friends, family or a second PC. Freeware
Scendix Software Pamela Call Recorder Pamela Call Recorder, play cool sounds and auto Chat Reply. €17.79 incl. VAT
Scendix Software Pamela for Skype - Business Edition Includes easy integration with MS Outlook as well as call recording and other great features. €29.95 plus VAT
Scendix Software Pamela for Skype - Professional Edition Pamela Professional allows you to record Skype calls of any duration as well other great features. €19.95 plus VAT
Scendix Software Pamela for Skype - Standard Edition Pamela allows you to record Skype calls. €12.95 plus VAT
Scendix Software Pamela mcePhone for Skype mcePhone for Skype allows you to seamlessly integrate Skype and Pamela in Windows Media Center 2005 and Vista. €17.79 incl. VAT
Scendix Software Pamela Rich Mood Editor Create cool HTML formatted Skype Mood Messages Freeware
Scendix Software PamFax for Skype (Mac) Send faxes to any fax number in the world. FREE (pay per page)
PrettyMay Team PrettyMay Call Center for Skype - Standard version Skype PBX Phone System for Small Business. $200 incl. VAT
PrettyMay Team PrettyMay Call Recorder for Skype - Basic version Record Skype calls FREE within 15 minutes. Freeware
PrettyMay Team PrettyMay Call Recorder for Skype - Business version Record Skype Calls, Store voicemails, auto answering. $29.95 incl. VAT
PrettyMay Team PrettyMay Call Recorder for Skype - Pro version Record Skype Calls, Store voicemails, auto answering. $24.95 incl. VAT
Netralia Pty Ltd Skylook - make more of MS Outlook with Skype Recording contacts office outlook calling. €99.95 incl. VAT

CORRECTION: The Pamela and PamFax software products are from Scendix Software, not PamConsult, their professional service firm.

Labels: , , , , , , , ,

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Download Skype for Windows 4.1 Gold

Download Skype for Windows 4.1.0.136. File size 22 MB. Official release. Release date: June 30, 2009. File name: SkypeSetup.exe. No features added from the 4.1 beta, launched a month ago, but it fixes bugs.

Dan York takes aim at Skype's product staging:

Skype's continued belief in a fragmented, fractured, siloed platform-specific product strategy is still a path of monumental stupidity, in my opinion. I've ranted about this before. It's still the same.

In contrast, Mozilla comes out with Firefox 3.5 on the same day across all three operating systems. For any given Firefox release, there is tons of attention and interest because everyone can download, try it out, write about it, tweet about it and generally use it. There's a good buzz that can happen.

tags: , , ,

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Labels: , , ,

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

PamFax launches in Japan; lowers rates to China and 12 other countries

Send a fax for €0,09 per page (US$0.13) to PamFax logoSingapore, Israel, Aland Islands, Malaysia, Finland, Chile, China, Czech Republic, Hungary, Venezuela, Cyprus, Argentina, and Estonia. PamFax Pro subscribers pay €0,06. (Seems to be part of a larger trend. Skype cut rates to Turkey.)

And in today's news, PamConsult is now selling a localized release of PamFax for the Japanese market. You can fax to Japan at the same rates. Here's PamFax's page operated by PamConsult's distribution partner, Fusion Network Services Corporation

PamFax Japan home page

tags: , , , , , , , ,

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Labels: , , , ,

Monday, May 4, 2009

Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone 1.1 adds a landscape keyboard

Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone - landscape screenshot

Yahoo! announced an update to Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone. download on iTunes or update from the App Store. Some bug fixes, the landscape QWERTY keyboard, and a new feedback form.

There's still room to grow: no voice or video chat, no making or taking phone calls, no chat rooms or multichat, no gateway to Yahoo!'s IM partners (Windows Live Messenger, AIM, Lotus Sametime), no file transfer, no Yahoo! address book.

Yahoo!'s mobile messenger line also includes Y!IM for Sidekick, BlackBerry, and other phones.

screenshot credit: Yahoo!

tags: , , , , , ,

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Labels: , , , , , , ,

Friday, May 1, 2009

When Skype Goes Mobile: INQ1

Guest post by Martyn Davies, News Editor at VoIP User,  Principal Consultant at Dialogic, Podcaster at Blue Box: The VoIP Security Podcast, and contributor to the Voice of VOIPSA blog. @martyndavies on twitter.

The INQ¹ is the third generation of phones from the “3” network (Hutchison 3G) that has Skype integrated into it. The INQ1 is designed and made by a division of 3, so the handset is currently for 3 only, and more handset models are expected to follow this year. On 3, Skype calls are free, which means that INQ1 to Skype (on a PC/Mac) calls are free as well as INQ1 to INQ1. 3 also offer flat-rate data (even for prepay customers), and this gives a lot of freedom to use IM and social networking without the bill worries.

Brushed, Bright and Vibrant

The INQ1 comes beautifully packaged in a cuboid box with a Japanese painting design. inq-boxOpening the box you see the handset itself (in my case silver, there is also a matt-black version), with all the cables, power supply and so on underneath. The handset itself has a brushed metal case and feels strong and substantial; the screen is bright and vibrant, and the sound is good and loud. The handset is quite thick because it has a slider that reveals the keypad underneath. The slide action is strong, and tactile. The keylock is automatic when you shut the handset.

I won’t go in to the full specs, as they’re available on the 3 website [editor: inserted following this review], but it has an adequate camera for still/video (with comparable quality to my Nokia E71, although without flash).

A stereo headset is provided for hands-free and music listening, although unfortunately this has quite an ugly connector that goes into the side, making the phone less easy to put in a narrow pocket. signonThere’s one connector for everything, a mini-USB that accepts the power supply, data cable and the headphones. It has 3G data (HSDPA) and can be used as a PC modem (tether), via cable or Bluetooth.

It also has a micro-SD slot, so you can store quite a bit of music or photographs/videos.

Social Mobile Software

The key feature of this handset is obviously the integration of Skype and other social networking features. 3 have been pushing this hard with the Skype (S1, S2) phones, and the INQ1 is offered with the same free calling to Skype contacts. The Skype client in this phone works well, and offers presence, IM and calling as you would expect. The only niggle I had was in the implementation of Skype chats, which seemed to want to open a new chat window every time someone posted to the chat.

skypepresencecontactsOnce you have logged-in with your Skype credentials, the client offers to integrate the contacts into your address book. In fact it does this trick for Facebook (FB) too, and this turns out to be a very compelling feature of the INQ1. Once done, all of your contacts appear in the same contact directory, with an icon to show which social network each contact comes from. There is also a ‘favourites’ list; so it is possible to make a preferential list of your ‘real-life’ friends, so that you don’t get swamped by FB and Skype contacts if they number in the hundreds. When you receive a call, caller ID is used to match up with the FB list, so the handset can display the photo of your friend downloaded from FB.

callingskypecallA further integration feature is that all the messaging inboxes also appear in a single list. The Messages screen shows you inbox (= texts), FB inbox (also pokes and requests), Skype chats, Windows Messenger chats and email. It’s great to have that all in one place. The email is slightly schizophrenic, in that 3 offer an email aggregator (to pull emails out of existing accounts), but there is also the separate Gmail application.

pingfm via skype on the inq1

There are other useful applications too. In addition to Gmail, there is Google Search and Google Maps (a cut-down version with no location features). The music player is quite useable, and can log-on to your Last.fm account and ‘scrobble’, i.e. tell the world in real-time what music tracks you are listening to. The web browser works well, and I find that I use it a lot in ‘landscape’ mode, as turning the phone sideways does switch the display. This landscape trick also works in the music player.

Navigation between applications uses a side-button (the ‘switcher’) that controls a horizontal app ribbon at the bottom of the screen. navribbonYou can quite happily run multiple apps (e.g. browser, Skype, music player) and switch between them quickly and efficiently.

Most of my criticisms of the handset are really trivial: The FB font is incredibly tiny and (unlike the browser) couldn’t be changed using the +/- buttons; the landscape mode screen should work in all apps; the volume control wasn’t granular enough, and jumped to fast from quiet to “too loud”. Also, because I’ve been using Twitter a fair bit recently, it would have been nice to have a built-in app for that.

All in all, it’s a well-made phone with a lot of features of a smartphone for much less money (£80). I imagine this handset appealing most to people in their teens and twenties, and with these kind of features built-in to a prepay handset, I'm sure there will be a lot of interest.  3 is the smallest of the five UK mobile phone networks, but they’ve already seen that the Skypephones help retain the notoriously fickle prepay customers. What 3 are trying to do in this area of Skype/social software integration is still unique, and kudos to them for creating their own path among the mobile operators.

From 3's data sheet: INQ1 help card - Skype

Overview

The INQ¹ handset is the next device to feature in our internet category and is designed exclusively for 3. It takes the principle of easy-to-use internet to new levels and is the world’s first fully integrated social networking phone. Purpose built for 3 customers in the UK this handset is designed to get the best out of the biggest and best 3G network in the UK.

Highlights

Internet services such as Facebook, Skype, Windows Live Messenger and Last.fm are deeply integrated into the handset, transforming the mobile internet experience that consumers are used to.

But rather than constrain internet usage with artificial caps on downloads we’ve created a new tariff which, for only £15 a month, provides UNLIMITED mobile internet access, UNLIMITED texts, UNLIMITED 3 to 3 calls and 75 cross network minutes. Or for £20 a month you can get the same deal, but with 200 cross network minutes.

Pricing Info

  • £79.99 on PAYG
  • Free on Mix & Match tariffs
  • Free on the INQ¹ £15 and £20 tariffs

Key features:

  • Advanced integration of Skype, WLM, Facebook and Last.fm, plus home screen widgets
  • Integrated phonebook with Facebook status & profile picture, Skype and WLM presence
  • Switcher key and menu carousel for easy navigation to major internet sites
  • 3.2MP camera, 2.2” screen, and auto-landscape browser
  • HSDPA 3.6Mbps technical spec, and pre-loaded with modem drivers making it a plug and play dongle
  • Picture blogging; upload photos directly to Facebook

Full Specifications

  • Size: 97 x 47.6 x 14.4 mm
  • Weight: 110g
  • Battery: 329 hrs (standby) 324 mins (talktime) application dependent
  • Connectivity: Bluetooth A2DP, USB 2.0
  • Camera: 3.2 Megapixel
  • Network: HSDPA enabled
  • Games: Java compatible - xgames preloaded
  • Screen: 2.2”QVGA -262K colour TFT
  • Memory: internal 50MB - external to 4GB (Note 1GB card supplied in-box)
  • Music: MP3 player
  • Integrated Facebook
  • Integrated Skype
  • Integrated WLM
  • RSS support
  • Widget support

See also:

Labels: , , , , , , , ,

Monday, April 27, 2009

PamFax updates, adds FaxIn, distances from Skype

PamFax is keeping fax alive with its 2.0 update and release for Windows and Macintosh desktops. Big changes:

  • Two-way functionality: FaxIn numbers in 27 countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK and USA.
  • More platforms: Mac version!
  • Skype independence: You don't need to be a Skype user, have a Skype account, or use Skype credits any more.
  • Click-to-Fax: Extensions for facebook and Salesforce.com. 

Makes me wish I knew someone who used a fax.

tags: , , ,

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Labels: , , , , ,

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Ping.fm takes updates from Skype IM

Ping.fm is a synch service in the social stack, mostly in microblogging and rich presence. ping.fm logoSet up on Ping.fm:

Enable posting with Skype

    To enable posting through Skype, request to add the bot "pingdotfm" by searching for the username and add it as a contact. When the bot appears on your contacts list, send it an IM with your verification code.

    The ping.fm page will show your verification code once you log in to the site.

    Posting from Skype through Ping.fm by you.

    Ping.fm posts results in multiple places.

    I'm sending this tweet Twitter. (microblogging)

    I'm sending this tweet - vox Vox. (blogging)

    I'm sending this tweet - linkedin LinkedIn. (professional network updates)

    This is one of many ways to update your Ping.fm account so Ping.fm can update your many online lifestreams. Ping.fm's bots also talk with AIM, jabber (including Google Talk), Windows Live Messenger and Yahoo! Messenger.

    Hat tip to the Pacific IT chat.

    Labels: , , , , , ,

    Wednesday, April 8, 2009

    Skype for Mac 2.8 Beta 2 (2.8.0.324)

    apple logo black on transparent by you.Download the latest. 59 bugfixes. New: edit your account inside the Skype client, added a screen sharing spectator window.

    For programmers: "get skypeversion", "get chat x dialog_partner", and "ping" are now in the Mac's Skype API. via Peter Parkes.

    tags: , , , ,

    Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
    Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

    Labels: , , , ,