So, what is Skype, anyway?

“So what is Skype Anyway?”

Skype is a suite with all the communications features that allows its users to participate in the text, voice and video chats, and send and receive files, send funds through a PayPal account, you have collaboration tools, and games – and most people do not need or use a ton of extras.

Skype, like many other things comes in many flavors. Let’s break the basic (free) service and what comes with it.

Skype calls to Skype: Once you set up an account with Skype, you can use it to make voice calls to anyone else on the network – regardless of what country they are in. You can also create a conference call with a maximum twenty-five people, or invite a contact to join an ongoing call. *

Transfer calls to people on Skype: With Skype, it’s fast and easy transfer calls to your Skype contacts – useful in a holiday atmosphere, when it comes to family member, or business you need to ship a call to a different partner.

Skype to Skype chat: you can use Skype as an Instant Messenger and chat via text with any contact, you can theoretically add up to one hundred fifty people in a single chat. . .

Skype to Skype Video calls: If you have a webcam connected to your computer, use Skype for video chats with other members of the network.

File transfer: as with most decent communication systems can also transfer files with a click of a button. Unlike many other systems, however, can also send a file to a group of people. Again, this is useful either in a family or business.

* (A point of clarification: it is unclear whether the free services that are 25 years or Callers 9. Documentation locales both numbers as a free feature.)

As you can see, even if you never use anything but the free service offered by Skype is an incredibly powerful tool. However, …

… Even if you do not want to use the subscription (fee required) Services that you can buy Skype Credit to access all the various features paid in a pay-as-you-go. I will cover these in another article. I mention this here only because say you want to occasionally use Skype to call someone who does not have the software.

An example might be that is in the U.S. and its long distance applies to calls from Canada. With Skype, you can call a friend in Ottawa for about three cents per minute! *

So what to do all this? Not much. Actually you can use Skype with a dial-up connection through a broadband speed is recommended, regardless of the connection, you must first download and install the software. It’s fast, easy and painless.

Next, you need to create an account takes only a second. You need a valid email address; not spam, I think I’ve only ever gotten four emails – two in response to a request for support that I made, a user name and password.

You start. To make a call to another Skype member name does not need Skype, a microphone and speakers. If you use Outlook, then during the installation of Skype can import addresses from your address book and see if they belong to Skypers registered. (Do not worry, nobody is going to get a no advertising by email. The software simply checks if the people who are known users, and then asks if you want to add them to your Skype contacts.)

The base microphone and speaker setup almost all computers and laptops have run pretty well, but if you’re going to be a Spyker serious I would say that is worth twenty dollars or less, you must pay for a decent helmet / micro combo Skype’s shop – or your local electronics joint. (This is my team in the picture FREETALK ® Gamers USB Stereo Headset Beginners Kit.)

For video chat, you obviously need a camera. A fresh note: you may be in a video chat with someone who only has a microphone, or vice versa. As with the towers of headphones you can buy a camera in the Skype shop with prices ranging from $ 40. 00 to 120 dollars. 00 (USD), or use almost all but the oldest around a PC. (As always, Mac users, I fear that you may have to do here.)

In any case, we drive to the races. Until next time …

* (Three cents per minute for a call from the U.S. to Canada is in effect at the time of writing this article.)

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