Windows Developer Power Tools

13.6 Talking to Colleagues with Skype

Collaboration means, among other things, communication, especially if you work remotely or apart from the rest of your team. Instant messaging and email go a long way, but sometimes it’s quicker and more efficient to have a voice conversation with a member (or members) of your team.

Skype is a free Voice-over-IP client that allows you to do just that from your Windows, Macintosh, Linux, or Pocket PC. Skype comes in handy when you don’t have access to a landline or don’t want to burn up your cellular minutes. With Skype, you can communicate by voice with other Skype users for free over the Internet. As of Skype 2.0, two-way videoconferencing between Skype users is also available.

Skype at a Glance
Tool	Skype
Version covered	2.0.0.1054.7
Home page	http://www.skype.com
Power Tools page	http://www.windevpowertools.com/tools/125
Summary	VOIP client offering voice- and videoconferencing capabilities; free version can be used for conference calls for up to five participants
License type	Freeware
Online resources	Knowledge base, forums, FAQ
Related tools in this book	GAIM

Getting Started

To get started with Skype, you’ll need the following minimum configuration:

• PC running Windows 2000 or XP

• 400 MHz processor

• 128 MB RAM

• 15 MB free space on your hard drive

• Sound card, speakers, and microphone

• Internet connection—either dial-up (minimum 33.6 Kbps modem) or broadband (cable, DSL, ...