Comments on: Skype – cross platform telephony http://www.darcynorman.net/2005/01/28/skype-cross-platform-telephony/ apparently much happier in person Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:35:07 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 hourly 1 By: Stephen Downes http://www.darcynorman.net/2005/01/28/skype-cross-platform-telephony/#comment-79439 Stephen Downes Wed, 31 Dec 1969 17:00:00 +0000 71179165#comment-79439 My Skype name: Downes <!-- X-spaminator-strike: whitelist, -3 --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: IP check --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: email check --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: author url --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: comment body --> My Skype name: Downes

]]> By: Tim Wang http://www.darcynorman.net/2005/01/28/skype-cross-platform-telephony/#comment-79440 Tim Wang Wed, 31 Dec 1969 17:00:00 +0000 71179165#comment-79440 It is interesting, I have had similar experience with Skype, and it seems the sound quality is not depending on the distance of the users. I have once talked to people in Vancouver all the way from Hong Kong, and the quality was better than regular phone calls. The friend in Vancouver was using ADSL, I was using another friend’s connection at the Hong Kong University of Technology. However, I have had some bad experience with someone using local networks… This is really strange. <!-- X-spaminator-passed: IP check --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: email check --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: author check --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: author url --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: comment body --> It is interesting, I have had similar experience with Skype, and it seems the sound quality is not depending on the distance of the users. I have once talked to people in Vancouver all the way from Hong Kong, and the quality was better than regular phone calls. The friend in Vancouver was using ADSL, I was using another friend’s connection at the Hong Kong University of Technology. However, I have had some bad experience with someone using local networks… This is really strange.

]]> By: D'Arcy Norman http://www.darcynorman.net/2005/01/28/skype-cross-platform-telephony/#comment-79441 D'Arcy Norman Wed, 31 Dec 1969 17:00:00 +0000 71179165#comment-79441 Tim, the weird thing is, Josh is way down in the Bay Area, much farther away from me than you are. But he was connecting from home (well, so was I), so there may have been more network issues at play. I wonder if he's checked the "echo cancellation" option in Skype? It's odd that it's off by default...<!-- X-spaminator-strike: whitelist, -3 --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: IP check --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: email check --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: author check --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: author url --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: comment body --> Tim, the weird thing is, Josh is way down in the Bay Area, much farther away from me than you are. But he was connecting from home (well, so was I), so there may have been more network issues at play.

I wonder if he’s checked the “echo cancellation” option in Skype? It’s odd that it’s off by default…

]]> By: Tim Wang http://www.darcynorman.net/2005/01/28/skype-cross-platform-telephony/#comment-79442 Tim Wang Wed, 31 Dec 1969 17:00:00 +0000 71179165#comment-79442 But I have tried from HK to Van, and one end is ADSL at home. So... think we should survey more people out there who used Skype before... Gonna check with people on my list.<!-- X-spaminator-strike: whitelist, -3 --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: IP check --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: email check --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: author url --><!-- X-spaminator-passed: comment body --> But I have tried from HK to Van, and one end is ADSL at home. So… think we should survey more people out there who used Skype before… Gonna check with people on my list.

]]> By: Bernie Dodge http://www.darcynorman.net/2005/01/28/skype-cross-platform-telephony/#comment-79443 Bernie Dodge Wed, 31 Dec 1969 17:00:00 +0000 71179165#comment-79443 Skype gets better all the time. I had an hour long conversation with my wife a few months ago over Skype. Cable modems at both ends. She was in San Diego and I was in Singapore , both of us just using the built in mike and speakers on our PowerBooks and the sound quality was better than when I call home from campus a half mile away. To me, Skype is on that short list of paradigm busters like PageMaker, HyperCard and VisiCalc. It makes it easy to do things you wouldn't have done otherwise. Schools, for example, make it hard to run up a long distance bill and pipe a conversation into a classroom. With Skype its trivial to set up an audioconference and bring outside experts into the class. Great stuff! Skype gets better all the time. I had an hour long conversation with my wife a few months ago over Skype. Cable modems at both ends. She was in San Diego and I was in Singapore , both of us just using the built in mike and speakers on our PowerBooks and the sound quality was better than when I call home from campus a half mile away.

To me, Skype is on that short list of paradigm busters like PageMaker, HyperCard and VisiCalc. It makes it easy to do things you wouldn’t have done otherwise. Schools, for example, make it hard to run up a long distance bill and pipe a conversation into a classroom. With Skype its trivial to set up an audioconference and bring outside experts into the class. Great stuff!

]]> By: D'Arcy http://www.darcynorman.net/2005/01/28/skype-cross-platform-telephony/#comment-79444 D'Arcy Wed, 31 Dec 1969 17:00:00 +0000 71179165#comment-79444 Bernie, it gets even more paradigm-shifting once you try Skype Out to call a regular old telephone from your computer via the 'net... For about 2 cents per minute, almost anywhere on the globe. It costs me the same to check my campus voicemail as it does to call Josh in California via Skype :-) I'll never be gouged by insanely expensive hotel long distance charges (I was once charged over $200 for approximately 25 minutes of calling at the Argent in San Francisco!). I can just fire up Skype and call home. My wife can talk on our cordless phone and still be able to chase Evan around while talking :-) Bernie, it gets even more paradigm-shifting once you try Skype Out to call a regular old telephone from your computer via the ‘net… For about 2 cents per minute, almost anywhere on the globe. It costs me the same to check my campus voicemail as it does to call Josh in California via Skype :-)

I’ll never be gouged by insanely expensive hotel long distance charges (I was once charged over $200 for approximately 25 minutes of calling at the Argent in San Francisco!). I can just fire up Skype and call home. My wife can talk on our cordless phone and still be able to chase Evan around while talking :-)

]]>