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SkypeIn Reaches Beta Users

Posted by Hemos on from the skype-to-the-island-skye dept.

galdur writes "Skype quietly released a new 1.2 beta featuring SkypeIn (in US, UK, France, China & Hong Kong), central voicemail (for those not using the free 3rd party SAM or Pamela), and finally centralised contact list. SkypeIn is the opposite of the company's SkypeOut, allowing you now to receive normal telephone calls through Skype."

4 of 124 comments (clear)

  1. Nope by The+Cisco+Kid · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The missing piece for me would be the ability to use a standard telephone, with an ATA (eg like the SPA-2000) with their service. I have no interest in using a PC soundcard (however hi-fi it may be) as a telephone.

  2. Re:what about national regulations? by Bushcat · · Score: 4, Insightful

    They'll just sign termination agreements, like every other player on the planet.

  3. Why I prefer Skype to an Open(TM) solution by WhiteWolf666 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I'm a fairly big Linux person.

    I run nothing but Linux on my desktops, and I purchased a Powerbook about 6 months ago.

    I know my way around computers. I can take them apart, put them together.

    I've futzed with non-supported and almost supported hardware for a long time.

    I'll be damned if I can get a SIP solution that will work anywhere near as well as Skype.

    I want it on my Mac.
    I want it on Linux.
    I want it to traverse NATs with (at best) minimal setup that I can describe to someone over the phone.
    I want it on Windows. And I want the Windows version to talk to the other versions.
    I'd prefer an easy install (no mucking around with text config files), so that I can point other people at a download, and have them install.

    I've even tried to come up with some kind of similar solution myself, create a package my friends/family could download, but it just isn't possible to do with the current 'open' solution.

    So I point them at Skype. They can download it, and install it with no problem.

    The ONLY time they ever have problems is when they forget to plugin the microphone, or plug it in to the wrong port.

    These are not stupid people. These are well eductated, and generally economically succesful.

    But they only have a modicum of computer knowledge, and when push comes to shove, they can get Skype working.

    --
    WhiteWolf666 an exBush supporter. All you new-school,compassionate,save the children Republicans can rot in hell
  4. Re:OSS not only matches but betters Skype by dangermouse · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Let's review.

    On the one hand: Skype is easy to download, set up, and use; supports every major PC platform and is cross-platform compatible; offers free calls (with no recurring fee) to other Skype users; and offers extremely cheap calls to POTS phones.

    On the other: Firefly is single-platform and charges a minimum of twice what Skype does for POTS calls; you didn't mention a softphone that actually uses E164 or DUNDi, and there's no reason an end user should give a damn; ditto that last point for IAX; again for Speex; and I can't find any information about what free interconnects are available, if any, at vonage's website or at firefly's or at FWD's (and FWD doesn't even provide POTS service)-- and interconnects don't matter to me anyway, if my friends are all using Skype.

    So I could just grab Skype and have other people grab Skype and we can all use it. Or I can fret and worry about implementation details I don't have any real reason to care about, and pay more for the same service or try to cobble together some frankensolution on the cheap, which nobody else will be able to use with me.

    I think I know which one I'm gonna go with for the time being.