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Skype Forcing Mac Users To Upgrade Client

mijkal writes "Nevermind a huge outcry over the iTunes-like behemoth of Skype v5 for Mac. Users with v2.8 are being pushed an update to v5 regardless of update preferences. I even restored v2.8 from TimeMachine only to have it update itself again within minutes, offering only an option to relaunch the app."

250 comments

  1. One word - alternatives? by h00manist · · Score: 1

    I think SIP, XMPP, and Asterisk are about to get a huge boost.

    --
    Build your own energy sources from scratch. http://otherpower.com/
    1. Re:One word - alternatives? by tepples · · Score: 1

      What use are SIP and XMPP if all your contacts are on Skype?

    2. Re:One word - alternatives? by h00manist · · Score: 2

      What use are SIP and XMPP if all your contacts are on Skype?

      What use is having all your contacts in Skype, if Microsoft doesn't let you access it anymore?

      --
      Build your own energy sources from scratch. http://otherpower.com/
    3. Re:One word - alternatives? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Seriously? You really think so? Computer nerd much?

      People use skype because it's easy, it works, there's little configuration that needs to be done, it breaks through firewalls and nat automatically, and their friends are there. SIP? It is a standard, not a product.

    4. Re:One word - alternatives? by Hylandr · · Score: 1

      I have already removed Skype from all family computers, and will be performing a complete re-install on all affected machines. I took the time, to copy off important contacts, and will be moving to asterisk. I suggest you do the same.

      - Dan.

      --
      ~ People that think they are better than anyone else for any reason are the cause of all the strife in the world.
    5. Re:One word - alternatives? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      look into skypekiller . it was an ap made by a french (iirc) university in response to skype hogging pc/bandwidth resources and other such nonsense that said school had to purge it. aparrently the more resources you had, the more it took. obviously the new skype would tout now with less shenaningans TM than before, but hard to believe.
      fwiw some pissed off people having a hard time uninstalling it decided to do a detailed analysis and found that it still acted as a hidden voip server when uninstalled, hence app named skypekiller became popularized. dumped that thing ages ago with a similar suspicion, so not sure what the current scenario is

      interesting how this is on the heels of microsoft takeover. hard to say, but cant shake the feeling that this will result in an unprecedented spree of skype villany

    6. Re:One word - alternatives? by torstenvl · · Score: 2

      What use is a phone call... if you're unable to speak?

    7. Re:One word - alternatives? by Infernal+Device · · Score: 1

      Microsoft doesn't own it yet. This is all Skype.

      --
      "My God...it's full of trolls!"
    8. Re:One word - alternatives? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So much the better! Who wants to talk to a prick like you? Anti-Microsoft faggots like you don't have many friends outside your Usenet and IRC circles. Best stick to those.

    9. Re:One word - alternatives? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      [q]Microsoft doesn't own it yet. This is all Skype.[/q]

      And between this and the rumor they have quietly fired important execs right before the deal with Microsoft is finalized... makes you wonder if they're purposefuly trying to sabotage it.

      For those unaware of "what the big deal is", this new Skype version is widely regarded as a piece of crap. It was somewhat fine as long as users could keep their previous version, but this forced upgrade is likely to push away many people.

    10. Re:One word - alternatives? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I think SIP, XMPP, and Asterisk are about to get a huge boost.

      I think 2011 will be the year of Linux on the desktop.

    11. Re:One word - alternatives? by TheSHAD0W · · Score: 1

      Mmmph! *gasp*

    12. Re:One word - alternatives? by anyGould · · Score: 1

      [q]Microsoft doesn't own it yet. This is all Skype.[/q]

      And between this and the rumor they have quietly fired important execs right before the deal with Microsoft is finalized... makes you wonder if they're purposefuly trying to sabotage it.

      As the article says, the presumption is that they're getting rid of execs to prep the company for buyout (less execs means less expensive payouts, or at least less payouts on MS's dime). And if you've ditched all the talent, don't be surprised if the remaining suckers start making poor decisions.

  2. 5.0 is much better by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    5.0 is much better than 2.8 on resource usage and such ... doesn't make the machine so hot or chew the cpu or have as poor performance.

    1. Re:5.0 is much better by bucky0 · · Score: 1

      Have you seen the interface? No thanks, I'll stay with 2.8.x

      --

      -Bucky
    2. Re:5.0 is much better by heypete · · Score: 3, Informative

      Have you seen the interface? No thanks, I'll stay with 2.8.x

      Yes. I changed it to "Compact View" (which has conversations individually windowed and not part of the same window as the contact list) and turned off the display of profile pictures in the contact list (which makes it more compact). It's not any more obtrusive than previous versions.

    3. Re:5.0 is much better by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Have you seen the interface? No thanks, I'll stay with 2.8.x

      No, you won't, apparently.

    4. Re:5.0 is much better by camperslo · · Score: 1

      5.0 is much better than 2.8 on resource usage and such ...

      At 43.5 mb instead of 2 mb for the download, it sure doesn't seem that way. And they removed some features too?

      Maybe someone will post hacks/patches to disable the auto-update?

      If there's a FOSS collective working on a ready-for-the-masses replacement, I bet many would be willing to chip in with donations or free room...

    5. Re:5.0 is much better by swebster · · Score: 3, Interesting

      The mac version does not have the compact view option for some lame reason. You also can't turn off display of profile pictures in the contact list.

    6. Re:5.0 is much better by hab136 · · Score: 1

      Dialing conference calls and punching in numbers via touch tone is 3000% more annoying in the new version. They disable the numbers on your keyboard unless you have the "dial pad" window open *and focused*. Completely dumb.

    7. Re:5.0 is much better by v1 · · Score: 2

      it shows up here, under View. Though it's not very compact. You can then drag the vertical divider all the way to the left to completely hide the sidebar. But you can only make what's left of the window so narrow, and each entry still takes up 3/4" of vertical screen space. Gotta love apps that insist on hogging the screen. So close that window and hit apple-3 to view online contacts only. Not ideal but at least makes Skype less of an elephant on the screen.

      In addition to things taking up way more space than they need to, the new v5 interface isn't as intuitive as the previous one. Viewing a profile doesn't open a profile window, it CHANGES the current list INTO a profile window, and then you have to click Back. Besides muddying what the window is for, there's no way to for example, have more than one profile open at a time. (ok not that common, but no way to have a profile open while still being able to see the contact list) It's like on one hand they pointlessly waste screen space, and then right after that they're trying to save screen space in a way that damages usability. Makes you wonder if MS had a hand in the design of v5 before they bought skype out? "Hey this has much more of a Windows feel to it now, lets buy it!" :(

      --
      I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
    8. Re:5.0 is much better by bucky0 · · Score: 1

      This is literally as small as I can make the window horizontally and vertically.

      screenshot

      There's the "contacts monitor", but it's always on top, and is still really wide (I can't see where to make it remove the profile pictures)

      --

      -Bucky
  3. Re:I have no sympathy. by voodoosteve · · Score: 3, Informative

    It's not Apple pushing the update...

  4. Re:I have no sympathy. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And when did Apple buy skype again?

  5. Re:I have no sympathy. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What does Skype forcing an auto update have to do with supposed "mono culture" of Apple ?

  6. Re:I have no sympathy. by bmo · · Score: 1, Troll

    You mean like the Windows monoculture?

    --
    BMO

  7. Re:I have no sympathy. by mr100percent · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Monoculture? In OS X, I can edit and recompile their open-sourced Kernel or use a variety of Finder replacements. The same for their web browser etc. Go troll Windows users.

  8. Re:I have no sympathy. by JustNiz · · Score: 0

    exactly. Its why I only use Linux.

  9. Re:anti macroshaft rant... by mattcsn · · Score: 4, Funny

    It's a surprise because mac users are usually happy when someone else decides what's best for them.

  10. Re:anti macroshaft rant... by mr100percent · · Score: 3, Informative

    Because it started before MS took over. Skype jumped from a good 2.8 client on the Mac to a 5.0 Mac client that brought in the awful Windows UI.

  11. Not Mac-specific annoyance by blind+biker · · Score: 1

    I've had this happen to me with a version of Skype for Windows. I know I set it to not autoupdate, but that was worth fuck-all, apparently. The old Skype was tons more configurable and worked better - for me - than any of the newer versions.

    --
    "The agriculture ministry is not in charge of Gundam" - Japanese ministry official.
    1. Re:Not Mac-specific annoyance by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Perhaps this happens when a vulnerability is detected that affects not the individual computer running Skype (i.e. not something that allows arbitrary code execution) but allows someone to take advantage of the network (i.e. something that could allow users to connect without authentication and spam the living Jesus out of everyone online). There would be a strong incentive on Skype's part to push out an update in those cases, regardless of preferences, because an outdated client could compromise the network.

    2. Re:Not Mac-specific annoyance by Xenx · · Score: 1

      While the scenario makes perfect sense, and was what I thought might be a possible reason, this isn't the right solution. The correct solution would be to not allow the old versions to connect. The end result is similar, you need the new version to continue using Skype. The execution is different because you're not forcing the new version down their throat without a warning.

  12. Not for me by bucky0 · · Score: 4, Informative

    I quit, restarted and even did check for updates. It didn't force me to do upgrade. *shrug*

    --

    -Bucky
    1. Re:Not for me by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Not being forced to upgrade here either. 2.8 told me there was an upgrade available, I clicked "tell me later" and Skype added the upgrade notification to my "missed events".

    2. Re:Not for me by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah... there's no one forcing an update, and 2.8 is *still* available from a link on the very page linked in the summary. I knew not reading TFA was standard operating procedure for those commenting on Slashdot, but even for the submitters and editors?

      This is not a story: this is a lie wrapped around a link that disproves the lie. It's like a parody of Slashdot, yet it's not.

    3. Re:Not for me by cl191 · · Score: 2

      I did the same and no forced update either.

    4. Re:Not for me by stms · · Score: 1

      Tried the same thing and it didn't for me either.

    5. Re:Not for me by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Only those who gripe are getting forced updates on Skype.

    6. Re:Not for me by Duradin · · Score: 1

      2.8.0.851 here. It asked if I wanted to download a new version. Hit later. Prompt went away as usual.

    7. Re:Not for me by Quadari · · Score: 1

      PowerPC to the rescue! Since v5 only supports Intel chips, I'm happy running v2.8 on my PowerPC machine, and no pushed upgrade for me. What I still don't understand is what the big hoopla with Skype is. Everything I can do on there it seems that I can do over Jabber with iChat. :-/

    8. Re:Not for me by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Same here. Not doing any forced upgrade.

    9. Re:Not for me by heathen_01 · · Score: 1

      Does Jabber and iChat have features comparable to skype in/out?

    10. Re:Not for me by Quadari · · Score: 1

      A good point. I don't use those features, so I hadn't thought about that, but as far as I know it currently does not. (Although you can make calls to real phones via Google Talk's web interface, so that sort of functionality may exist in the future.)

  13. No, they won't. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    They are a pain in the ass for average users to install, configure, and use. Skype isn't. That's why Skype succeeded in becoming wildly popular, and those half-assed alternatives haven't.

    Seriously, Jabber alone is one of the biggest OSS failures we've ever seen, behind maybe only Diaspora. It got a huge amount of hype and attention, but could never make anything of it. Sure, there are a small number of companies that use it internally, but it has never really progressed beyond that. It has never gone mainstream in any measurable way.

    1. Re:No, they won't. by h00manist · · Score: 1

      Hmm indeed. SIP is complex to get running. Accurate criticism. SIPbroker, even more complex. It's still mainly in the domain of techies and PBX admins.

      --
      Build your own energy sources from scratch. http://otherpower.com/
    2. Re:No, they won't. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      GTalk is a huge OSS failure?

    3. Re:No, they won't. by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 3, Informative

      Seriously, Jabber alone is one of the biggest OSS failures we've ever seen, behind maybe only Diaspora. It got a huge amount of hype and attention, but could never make anything of it. Sure, there are a small number of companies that use it internally, but it has never really progressed beyond that. It has never gone mainstream in any measurable way.

      Have you seen this little thing called "Facebook Chat"?

      I wouldn't call Google Talk a failure, either. Especially given that it is the default IM app on all Android phones (and, starting with 2.3.4, also the default voice/video chat app).

    4. Re:No, they won't. by Korin43 · · Score: 1

      Seriously, Jabber alone is one of the biggest OSS failures we've ever seen, behind maybe only Diaspora.

      Yeah seriously. Maybe it would do better if someone big like Google or Facebook got behind it..

    5. Re:No, they won't. by Hylandr · · Score: 2

      Which is why most serious gamers have taken the time and energy not only to install it for their use, but written and configured complex authentication mechanisms for it as well. Just because something doesn't swim past your armchair doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

      - Dan.

      --
      ~ People that think they are better than anyone else for any reason are the cause of all the strife in the world.
    6. Re:No, they won't. by avatar139 · · Score: 1

      Which is why most serious gamers have taken the time and energy not only to install it for their use, but written and configured complex authentication mechanisms for it as well. Just because something doesn't swim past your armchair doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

      - Dan.

      Just because it exists though, doesn't mean it will ever be remotely mainstream unless it's designed to be easy to use...

      --
      I'm honest enough to admit I lie to myself.
    7. Re:No, they won't. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Serious gamers? Well, I'll ignore we're talking about gaming on Mac, but honestly "serious gamers" playing "serious games" like COD, BF2, TF2, etc. are all using Skype, Vent, Steam, TS3... Sometimes xfire. Unless you meant "serious" as something else entirely, as it is rather subjective.

    8. Re:No, they won't. by Hylandr · · Score: 1

      And Thank God for that.

      - Dan.

      --
      ~ People that think they are better than anyone else for any reason are the cause of all the strife in the world.
    9. Re:No, they won't. by mikael_j · · Score: 1

      FIRST OF ALL: I'm not saying XMPP/Jabber is a failure. However...

      Google Talk? Really? Just because it's installed by default does not mean it is popular. When I look at everyone I know they running: MSN Messenger (most), Skype (a lot), Facebook chat (also most), IRC (a few), ICQ (just a few who refuse to let go). Google Talk? No one I know is using it.

      Now, this is of course anecdotal but I do have friends in other places than just where I live, across Europe, Canada, the US, Australia. And no one is using Google Talk (at least not to the extent that they've ever mentioned it). In my eyes that makes it a failure.

      --
      Greylisting is to SMTP as NAT is to IPv4
    10. Re:No, they won't. by avatar139 · · Score: 1

      And Thank God for that.

      - Dan.

      Not really; I actually sympathize heavily with the easy to use viewpoint seeing as how if I wanted to have to hack everything just to get it to work I'd be using Windows instead of *NIX as my OS of choice! ;)

      --
      I'm honest enough to admit I lie to myself.
    11. Re:No, they won't. by Hylandr · · Score: 1

      My Point is more towards not having the Sony / Sega mainstream mindset to support / administrate.

      - Dan.

      --
      ~ People that think they are better than anyone else for any reason are the cause of all the strife in the world.
    12. Re:No, they won't. by SerpentMage · · Score: 1

      Sorry, but Google and Facebook might be using the jabber protocol, but it still does not mean success. Gtalk or the facebook chat is nowhere near as sophisticated for near social networks communications. By near I mean near as in near friends not distance. There are many more things that I can do with SKYPE than either of those products. So yeah they are a failure because they are half-backed...

      --

      "You can't make a race horse of a pig"
      "No," said Samuel, "but you can make very fast pig"
    13. Re:No, they won't. by bucky0 · · Score: 1

      The plural of "anecdote" isn't "data". Pretty much my entire group of friends has moved from every other network to almost gchat exclusively.

      Without some actual numbers, we're just guessing.

      --

      -Bucky
    14. Re:No, they won't. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I wouldn't call Google Talk a failure, either. Especially given that it is the default IM app on all Android phones (and, starting with 2.3.4, also the default voice/video chat app).

      So, Google is using one system to push another of their products onto people? What would we say if Microsoft tried to do the same? ;-D

    15. Re:No, they won't. by beelsebob · · Score: 1

      The plural of "anecdote" isn't "data".

      Actually, it is, but it takes a lot more anecdotes than this.

    16. Re:No, they won't. by thehodapp · · Score: 1

      Jabber alone is one of the biggest OSS failures we've ever seen, behind maybe only Diaspora.

      You're an idiot. Bringing in Diaspora only makes you look like a kid who reads feeds and tries to generalize some crappy opinion out of it. Diaspora is open-alpha software. It's open-heart surgery and obviously not finished. Go check out their Github and you'll see an ever increasing amount of commits daily, and see that it's easily in the top-ten most viewed repositories. It's user-base is expanding quite rapidly as they plow through features and bugs. Do your homework you anonymous loser.

    17. Re:No, they won't. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or the immensely popular WhatsApp Messenger, Apple iChat, Apple iMessage among others...

      Jabber, or XMPP as it is known nowadays, is everywhere.

    18. Re:No, they won't. by paziek · · Score: 1

      Seriously, Jabber alone is one of the biggest OSS failures we've ever seen, behind maybe only Diaspora. It got a huge amount of hype and attention, but could never make anything of it. Sure, there are a small number of companies that use it internally, but it has never really progressed beyond that. It has never gone mainstream in any measurable way.

      Really? Maybe for public use, but where I work they use jabber only for internal IM, with our own server setup. Where I'm gonna (probably) work they use XMPP as well. To be honest, I can't imagine company/corp. to use anything else - with XMPP you can have your own server and control all internal traffic, anything else is a risk.

    19. Re:No, they won't. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I really don't see how it's more difficult than Skype.

      1. Create an account (jabber.org, gmail.com, ...).
      2. Install a client (psi-im.org, www.google.com/talk, ...).
      3. Enter your username and password.

      The biggest difficulty might be to convince your contacts to use it over skype and to try all the clients to find which one you prefer.

    20. Re:No, they won't. by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 1

      Depends on which Microsoft product. Being a monopoly with 90% of market share does introduce certain restrictions on the way the company operates. It's precisely why you have to download Live Messenger separately now (and if you recall XP, it was bundled there).

    21. Re:No, they won't. by The+O+Rly+Factor · · Score: 1

      Have you seen this little thing called "Facebook Chat"?

      Although Facebook chat uses what could roughly-be-described-on-a-foggy-day-during-the-hour-your-glasses-are-at-lenscrafters as XMPP, their implementation is convoluted and contains proprietary elements to the point where native XMPP clients are not able to properly use it, despite Facebook's claims on the contrary.

    22. Re:No, they won't. by FrozenFOXX · · Score: 1

      Seriously, Jabber alone is one of the biggest OSS failures we've ever seen, behind maybe only Diaspora. It got a huge amount of hype and attention, but could never make anything of it. Sure, there are a small number of companies that use it internally, but it has never really progressed beyond that. It has never gone mainstream in any measurable way.

      Have you seen this little thing called "Facebook Chat"?

      I wouldn't call Google Talk a failure, either. Especially given that it is the default IM app on all Android phones (and, starting with 2.3.4, also the default voice/video chat app).

      Quake Live uses XMPP for all network communication. It's quite a marvel, really, and that's just one rather-popular game. There's plenty of other uses of XMPP in the wild. Just because you close your eyes doesn't mean it's not there for you to see.

      --
      "Just a fox, a whisper."
    23. Re:No, they won't. by MurukeshM · · Score: 1

      Google Talk is OSS? Since when? Or is GTalk something else?

    24. Re:No, they won't. by bucky0 · · Score: 1

      fair enough :)

      --

      -Bucky
    25. Re:No, they won't. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No, but GTalk is an example of a successful Jabber network.

    26. Re:No, they won't. by lucian1900 · · Score: 1

      Circles vary. Most of my friends have yahoo accounts, and about as many have either facebook or gtalk. It turns out I can talk to almost all of them using just XMPP.

  14. Re:One word - alternatives? ... history repeating by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What use is MSN messenger and AOL when all my contacts are on ICQ

  15. Re:I have no sympathy. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You chose to buy an Apple product, Its no secret that they enforce an oppressive monoculture.

    I can smell the neckbeard from here.

    Did you even read the article? Hell, even the summary? It's not Apple doing this, it's Skype.

    Microsoft owned Skype, I'd point out. And this wouldn't be the first time they've crippled a Mac version of their products to drive people to Windows.

  16. Re:I have no sympathy. by JustNiz · · Score: 0, Troll

    no but Apple engineered and implemented the mechanism in their OS that allows software 'updates' to be forcibly pushed onto people that don't want it.

  17. Re:I have no sympathy. by bmo · · Score: 1, Funny

    You mean like the Linux fragmentation?

    *rings doorbell and runs away*

    --
    BMO

  18. Linux by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Been using some old version on Linux for a while knowing it's only a matter of time before the crappy Windows version makes its way over : (

  19. Walled garden by drb226 · · Score: 0, Troll

    Newsflash: walled-garden app forces users to do things their walled-garden way. Film at 11.

    1. Re:Walled garden by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You mean the App Microsoft now owns, and was downloaded by choice via Skypes website like any other App?

      Shouldn't feed the trolls..

    2. Re:Walled garden by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Update, the Mac is not a walled garden.

    3. Re:Walled garden by shatfield · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Who is moderating this troll up? His post is utter nonsense and completely incorrect.

      --
      "To make a mistake is only human; to persist in a mistake is idiotic." Cicero
    4. Re:Walled garden by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Update, Skype is a walled garden.

    5. Re:Walled garden by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, his post is nonsense. No-one uses film anymore.

    6. Re:Walled garden by initdeep · · Score: 1

      except MS does not yet own it.

      keep trying neckbeard

    7. Re:Walled garden by Meski · · Score: 1

      Upgrade, or we won't let you connect. Works for WOW.

    8. Re:Walled garden by intheshelter · · Score: 1

      Imagine what a wonderful world we'd live in if stupid people quit using the phrase "walled garden" in an attempt to sound intelligent.

    9. Re:Walled garden by drb226 · · Score: 1

      This is what I was getting at. (Proprietary Skype protocol and all that)

    10. Re:Walled garden by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So you are the new queen bee of the iAstroturf crowd, good to know.

    11. Re:Walled garden by drb226 · · Score: 1

      Works for tons of apps that require you to connect to their special service in their special way. Hence my sarcastic "newsflash".

    12. Re:Walled garden by drb226 · · Score: 1

      Apologies for the confusion. "walled-garden", which often applies to Apple platforms, was not used to refer to iThings in this case, but rather, to Skype.

    13. Re:Walled garden by Meski · · Score: 1

      I got the sarcasm :)

      I guess we'd have to include apps that are all server-side, then. Who knows when /. code changes? (apart from noticing things break, but that's a universal of code changing, andywhere)

  20. Re:I have no sympathy. by obarthelemy · · Score: 1

    you mean you don't know how to change shells and file managers in windows ?
    i'll give you the recompile thing for the kernel... what do you do with it ? MacOS is not open though, by far.

    --
    The Cloud - because you don't care if your apps and data are up in the air.
  21. Re:anti macroshaft rant... by obarthelemy · · Score: 1

    because it's not coming from ms ?

    --
    The Cloud - because you don't care if your apps and data are up in the air.
  22. Pre-Intel by HTH+NE1 · · Score: 1

    So does this mean PPC Mac users are now cut off?

    --
    Oh, say does that Star-Spangled Banner entwine / The myrtle of Venus with Bacchus's vine?
    1. Re:Pre-Intel by scubamage · · Score: 1

      I would think so. Kind of sad considering apple still officially supports both G4 and G5 systems.

    2. Re:Pre-Intel by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They might be later, but when I fired up Skype, I was not even asked if I wanted to upgrade, and it did not upgrade on it's own. Or maybe it just noticed, unlike Firefox, that I'm using a PPC system and it can't upgrade to a newer version?

  23. Re:I have no sympathy. by lennier1 · · Score: 1

    As opposed to application developers simply including such a forced upgrade feature on their own?

  24. Re:I have no sympathy. by FlashBIOS · · Score: 1

    Not even remotely true. This is a third-party product using its own update mechanism. Apple has never been involved in the updating of Skype, nor is Microsoft involved when Skype is run on Windows.

    People, and their ignorate hatred, truly amaze me.

  25. Re:I have no sympathy. by Dynedain · · Score: 1

    Wrong.... Apple doesn't have a software update mechanism for apps. There's a common in-app update system called Sparkle that most Mac apps use (like many Windows apps use SafeInstall), but it's entirely 3rd party, and I'm not sure that Skype even uses it.

    --
    I'm out of my mind right now, but feel free to leave a message.....
  26. Microsoft buys something, immediate forced upgrade by unity100 · · Score: 0, Troll

    One wonders, why. Why does a takeover/merger need in immediate abrupt disruption of release cycle.

    unless you are pushing some questionable crap into customers. like govt. mandated backdoors, cutting in front of competitors, wiretapping or other crap ?

  27. Lookout ruslter hackers. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Dars a new Shaarif in town. Hot dang, 'ell show'em by god e will. Spittoooeee, plink!

  28. So what? by Dynedain · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Plenty of Apps that require connectivity to online networks force updates from time to time. Guess what? Steam had a required update?!?!? Blizzard forced users to run updates to continue using World of Warcraft?!!! Oh noes!

    Seriously. I get that there is massive FUD now that Microsoft has bought out Skype, but that doesn't mean every single bit of normal behavior (like locking out and forcing updates on old versions of clients) is somehow a malicious news-worthy event in some grand conspiracy.

    --
    I'm out of my mind right now, but feel free to leave a message.....
    1. Re:So what? by Nimey · · Score: 1

      Yes, this. I get that the OP doesn't like the new interface or something, but this is quite prevalent.

      --
      Hail Eris, full of mischief...

      E pluribus sanguinem
    2. Re:So what? by yarnosh · · Score: 3, Insightful

      No conspiracy. Skype 5.x just blows.

    3. Re:So what? by dakameleon · · Score: 2

      The difference is that, not that long ago, the Skype execs responded to the outcry over the new version with a reinstating of the previous version and allowing it to run without any issues. Now with the Microsoft takeover announced, the position has been reversed, hence the consternation.

      --
      Man who leaps off cliff jumps to conclusion.
    4. Re:So what? by tgd · · Score: 2

      I get that there is massive FUD now that Microsoft has bought out Skype, but that doesn't mean every single bit of normal behavior (like locking out and forcing updates on old versions of clients) is somehow a malicious news-worthy event in some grand conspiracy.

      Slashdot
      Fox News for Nerds. Stuff that matters to advertisers.

    5. Re:So what? by flimflammer · · Score: 1

      Well they can just cry and moan about it and we can move on. I have absolutely no idea what skype is like these days (stopped using it so many years ago) but you can't expect to use an old version forever. Even if they did reinstate it, there will come a time where it has to go. It just didn't have to go yet. And even if the forced change isn't entirely necessary then so what? People will just have to learn to deal.

      I remember the older versions of uTorrent, and wish so much that I could use them. But since they're old, most trackers I use blacklist them. I cried, but got over it.

    6. Re:So what? by sl3xd · · Score: 2

      It's not so much about the policy of auto-updating. It's that Skype 5 for Mac is, to my knowledge, universally loathed compared to the previous release.

      Skype took a clean and coherent interface, tossed it out the window, and replaced it with an incoherent, messy, ugly, and user-hostile interface. The only thing that can make it worse is red flashing text. I may only be an engineer with the design taste of a manure pile, but the new Mac interface for Skype makes me gag.

      That's pretty much the entire reason for the outrage - a major update that everybody hates.

      --
      -- Sometimes you have to turn the lights off in order to see.
    7. Re:So what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >Well they can just cry and moan about it and we can move on. I have absolutely no idea what skype is like these days (stopped using it so many years ago) but you can't expect to use an old version forever

      Actually, you can, as long as the protocol didn't change, and it, most likely, won't change.

      I am using Skype 3.8 circa 2008, and it is much more usable than v4.x, or v5.x. Also, I don't remember which version of Winamp I have, but in any case, the slim version didn't change much from 2.8. Finally, look at how little things like MSPaint and Solitarie stayed unchanged for more than a decade.

      The point is, if it is not broken, there's no need to fix it. Software "aging" is often just a consequence of the need of the companies that make it to stay in business.

    8. Re:So what? by davesag · · Score: 2

      The upgrade from 2.8x to 5.x sucks because it's a dreadful update that take up vastly more screen space with its UI, disables some of the old skype's cooler features like being able to screen share only parts of your screen — we use this a lot at work — and a lot of the old drop-and -drag funtionality is no gone, making it much harder to do common things. It's one of the very very few times I have ever downgraded a piece of software (yay for time machine) and, while it does ask me about once per week (starting pre the MS takeover, alas for the conspiracy theorists out there) if I want to upgrade, it doesn't force me to, it lets me tell it to remind me again later.

      Skype started to jump the shark a long time ago imho, and I am keen to replace it, but what else does such cheap calls to land-lines internationally?

      --
      I used to have a better sig than this, but I got tired of it
    9. Re:So what? by mikael_j · · Score: 1

      Finally, look at how little things like MSPaint and [...]

      Of course, MS Paint may just have been one of the least useful pieces of graphics software seen this side of the year 2000. Considering the version that shipped with both XP and Vista was basically the same version that shipped with Windows 3.x (with a few minor tweaks to things like file format support) I'd put it this way: Back in the days of Windows being installed on top of DOS (that is, not Win9x-style combined install but one, then the other) it was somewhat useful for those who didn't have other graphics software on their computers. By the time XP and then Vista was released it was completely useless (yes, I've seen the videos of people creating some fairly amazing things using MS Paint but they're still using an incredibly blunt tool and a large part of the point of those videos is the "OMG! He did THAT in Paint?!").

      Just saying, MS Paint isn't a good example of software that's remained unchanged because it hasn't needed changes, it's more an example of something that's just sort of kept existing even though no one has used it for anything useful in ages. Besides, didn't they finally overhaul it, a bit, for Windows 7?

      --
      Greylisting is to SMTP as NAT is to IPv4
    10. Re:So what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Loss of privacy settings are an even more notable feature change between 2.8x and 5x. In 2.8x, you can set a privacy setting controlling who can see if you have a web cam. 5x doesn't have that privacy setting anymore. Just one example among many.

    11. Re:So what? by aralin · · Score: 2

      I run skype v5 on Mac. And after few months I could not take it anymore and downgraded to v2.8. If they force me onto v5 in any way, I will stop using skype rather than suffer through that piece of crapware.

      --
      If programs would be read like poetry, most programmers would be Vogons.
    12. Re:So what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You're omitting the fact that Skype 5.x is terrible.

    13. Re:So what? by DutchUncle · · Score: 1

      ... take up vastly more screen space with its UI...

      This was my biggest problem on both an older laptop and a newer netbook. The nice simple narrow column with normal text became a window with icons and big text that didn't even fit on the old laptop's screen resolution.

  29. Re:anti macroshaft rant... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It's a surprise because mac users are usually happy when Apple decides what's best for them.

    FTFY.

    And for the record, nobody is happy when Microsoft decides what's best for them.

  30. Re:I have no sympathy. by Dunbal · · Score: 0

    in b4 BSD

    --
    Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
  31. Re:Microsoft buys something, immediate forced upgr by Dunbal · · Score: 1

    or perhaps it was already in the pipeline... you may now return to your favorite conspiracy theory.

    --
    Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
  32. Regarding the negative nancy's by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I get the frustration and being unwilling to accept changes that are being forced down your throats. Do you comprehend that there may be other motives for this update? A few weeks ago an exploit was released in which someone could gain root through skype. Microsoft would rather force an update than have Apple ban "Skype" outright.

    1. Re:Regarding the negative nancy's by BLKMGK · · Score: 1

      Citation needed - I've seen no such exploit. I call bullshit! What has been released is supposedly code to "talk" their protocol.

      --
      Build it, Drive it, Improve it! Hybridz.org
  33. ooVoo by shatfield · · Score: 1

    I've been using Skype video conferencing for the past 5 years to take an online Spanish class, and for the past several months it has been terrible. There have been many instances of dropped calls, degraded call quality, frozen video, etc. Throw in the v5 UI fiasco and it was time for a change.

    A few weeks ago we started trying alternatives (MSN Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, AIM, and a few others) and finally settled on ooVoo [http://www.oovoo.com], which is not a perfect replacement, but works much better than Skype in the areas that matter. The video is much more clear and we have not suffered a single dropped call.

    --
    "To make a mistake is only human; to persist in a mistake is idiotic." Cicero
    1. Re:ooVoo by DDLKermit007 · · Score: 1

      Eh, ooVoo is a shareware client that hides all the good features for paid users. Plus the annoying ads if you don't pay are unusually annoying.

    2. Re:ooVoo by shatfield · · Score: 1

      So what is better for video conferencing between Mac and Windows?

      --
      "To make a mistake is only human; to persist in a mistake is idiotic." Cicero
  34. Skip this version by cgraeff · · Score: 2

    There is "Skip this version" button for me? What's the matter?

    1. Re:Skip this version by Malc · · Score: 1

      Mountain: meet molehill (or, Slashdot: meet tabloid newspaper. This story to be filed with the recent .Net developer hyperbole)

      Skype 2.8 on my Mac is showing a dialog offering the choices of: Later/Skip Version/Update.

      It seems that it is in everybody's interest for Skype auto update, just because they can't write bug-free software. They were taken offline in December by a buggy version of the client on Windows.

      I'm going to be hitting the Update button on that dialog BTW.

  35. Anti-reverse engineering by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This is probably part of their desperate attempt to obfuscate themselves out of the open source reverse engineering efforts. They can't let the older version still be used because its protocol is what was cracked.

  36. Vulnerabilities perhaps? by WD · · Score: 1

    Did you consider that old versions of Skype contain vulnerabilities? So how is this much different than Google pushing out Chrome updates that fix vulnerabilities?

    1. Re:Vulnerabilities perhaps? by jimicus · · Score: 1

      Google Chrome generally does not assume that you love the application so much you want to see it covering as much of the screen as possible; Skype 5 does.

  37. More like by rsborg · · Score: 1

    It's a surprise because mac users are usually happy when someone else who's competent decides what's best for them.

    FTFY.

    If you haven't been paying attention, those folks at Skype who released 5.0 are *not* competent, at least design-wise.

    --
    Make sure everyone's vote counts: Verified Voting
    1. Re:More like by E+IS+mC(Square) · · Score: 0

      >> It's a surprise because mac users are usually happy when someone else who's _their daddy_ decides what's best for them.

      FTFY.

  38. Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by dindi · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I do not mind a new version to fix issues. My only pain with it is that some companies force new interfaces on you, sometimes completely ignoring their previous interface's logic. Skype did that to us and every single person I talk to hates the new interface with a passion. When a group of programmers keep wondering for minutes how to switch to chat, how to conference someone in, or why you have new little icons without/instead of text, I cannot imagine what your grandma/grandpa does when this happens. It took them significant time to figure the original out, now they have to re-learn it.

    Now with MS as the owner I fear worst. Why ? Well I am not a regular Word/Excel user. I used Openoffice (before it became a slow bloat), then switched to Apple's Pages/Numbers. Both work fine for my needs (I am not a DTP guy, at most I create technical documents for users/techs). Where I work we can get MS Office for free, and I bought a $10 copy for home too.... Then the horror came: EVERYTHING changed since the last time I used the product. Everything I learned/got used to suddenly was hidden inside menus, buttons, drop-downs and sometimes super simple tasks needed excessive clicking. MS does this kind of stuff regularly: with their OS and with their other products. I just simply hate it.

    The point here is not to bash MS and Skype for innovating, nor the upgrades (would be nice if I did not have to buy Office every 2 years to read the idiotic new format they invented to make me buy it again though). Companies should provide a way to use their software in a "minimal/simple" mode - IMO 99% of Word/Excel users - including techs/admins/engineers - would only need this mode. Also when you "innovate" keep an option to keep a function in the menu where it was. No one - I repeat: NO ONE - wants to keep re-mapping their brain to remember new locations in 10+ different software every single year.

    Impossible? With menus, you just need menu NEW and menu OLD, and just put the same crap in one where you had it and where you think it should be now. Maybe allow the user to publish which menu they use and make better decisions about changing stuff around in every release.

    But then again, maybe all the changes make people think that they have a new and enhanced product? I see the same crap in a new potty with new buttons on it year after year and maybe I am too old to put up with it...

    1. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 2

      would be nice if I did not have to buy Office every 2 years to read the idiotic new format they invented to make me buy it again though

      You don't have to. Any version of Office released in the last 8 years can be made to read (and write) files produced by any later version - you may need to download an add-on to do so in case of 2003, but it's free.

    2. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by dindi · · Score: 1

      OH :) OK. Good info. I honestly did not know this, as I was using other products (Pages, OO, textedit, vi :) )

    3. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      also, if you're a shortcut person, all the old alt shortcuts from 2003 menus (or at least all the ones I used) are still present in 2007. I.e. alt+f, v used to get you print preview... and still does, even though there's no file menu.

    4. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by n3r0.m4dski11z · · Score: 1

      "Everything I learned/got used to suddenly was hidden inside menus, buttons, drop-downs and sometimes super simple tasks needed excessive clicking. MS does this kind of stuff regularly: with their OS and with their other products. I just simply hate it."

      No offense, but this is not an excuse anymore. You have had almost 5 years to learn the 2007 interface redesign. If you worked in a moderately progressive office, you would have at least office 2007 for at least 1 to 2 years probably more.

      I am wondering how your transition from windows win 98 -> 2k/xp went for you. Sure eveything seems bad at the beginning of any change, but to go back is now harder for most users.
      I mean its been 4+ years. Were you still running windows 98 in 2002? Perhaps you are slow to change.

      But of course I agree that unnessecary changes or change for change's sake is a BAD idea. I hate firefox interface redesigns, etc... In my mind, microsoft is actually quite slow to change, compared to most software companies. Chrome went what, 7+ versions this year? adobe cs updates every single year. Perhaps the office thing is a bad example. Well certainly I am tired of hearing it at least.

      --
      -
    5. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by dindi · · Score: 1

      I worked at progressive places, everything from gaming, to multinationals (HP) to online retailers (large one), to startups. All of them had one requirement (how it should be) : provide the documents in a format that can be read by others on any platform. So I used OO and Pages most of the time. As I mentioned : I write some technical documents that need basic functions : insert image, insert table, styles, header, footer, TOC. I am a programmer who worked as a sysadmin at some of these places. I worked as a manager as well (now I am a manager/programmer = lead developer), and similarly : I needed/need to create simple looking documents that are readable by others inside/outside the organization. I create usually one larger (30-40) page docs with illustrations as user manuals/runbooks. Reports, communication/etc go through mail in text format.

      I do not NEED to learn Microsoft Word 2007, I need to use ANY word processor that can produce something like a .doc or .rtf at times, .pdf most of the time. So please don't force people to keep re-learning MS products, they have to know a product that does XY, not an MS product that does XY. It is like saying; it is a shame you cannot use a windows mobile phone, even though I just need a phone to make calls with. Can be an iPhone and Android or a Nokia brick from 1995, even a bigass black heavy desk-phone with a rotary dial (if the job is to make a call).

      The windows 98 - 2000 - XP went really well. I was using Linux at the time, occasionally using the mentioned ones for playing games and "just to keep up" and see where theye were going. So I wasn't left out/behind.. Thanks for asking. More seriously : I was running the old startup-menu in the "original mode" with the standard desktop/window controls.
      About change: sure, I am slow. I had Linux on my machines in 94 when it barely was out on a "Chip magazine" CD. At the time I was using OS/2 (went through 3 versions). Tried BEOS and Slakware, RedHat, Suse, and ended up with Debian for good. (for servers). 3 years ago (4?) Changed to OSX primarily from Linux (took too much time to keep several desktop machines sane with HW changes and driver issues) ...

      So hey, do not judge before you ask. I am really-really open to change when it has a good reason (in any part of my life. E.g. went vegan 4 years ago (for animal rights), raw 6 months ago (health/experiment). I also got into electronics and just picked up 2 programming languages, even though I had good jobs with the old ones ....

      I am sooo open to change when it makes sense, but I am sooo closed to accept change when all the advantage I see is that now the window takes up more space with the same info and all the buttons are at different places ...

      Also I use a limited set of programs that change very little through the years and they are good for what they are made: terminal (bash utils) , mc (no critics please, it is useful for me), browser (ff/safari), mail (apple), Netbeans....

      Oh yeah, just changed my phone from iPhone to Android (since it is a useless POS it is going to be built into a robot I am working on to provide location and vision).

      I also own a (legal copy) of Windows 7, running on a once cutting edge "gaming" machine. I use it to upgrade/maintain hardware that only have Windows utilities/drivers. My heart rate monitor, my RC remote, my XBee radios, my stupid Xperia phone (what a waste and crap) and play a game once in a while when I am not overloaded with projects and family stuff.

      You still think I am a person who is against change or just USELESS rearranging of menus/interface without additional functionality or an option to keep the original?

      Cheers :)

    6. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by dindi · · Score: 1

      No, sorry, was mostly between Linux and OSX, lots of time in just a programmers' editor, so I really never memorized Word shortcuts.

    7. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by BLKMGK · · Score: 1

      No one I know who uses Word or Excel or PPT for business likes the new "ribbon interface" and we're forced to use it daily - and have for well over a year or two. Sorry but this was a BAD design decision that Microsoft is too damned stubborn to admit.

      --
      Build it, Drive it, Improve it! Hybridz.org
    8. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by Wattos · · Score: 1

      why dont you use a proper document system like LaTex? Once you get started, you will never look back at the Wysywyg world

    9. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sounds like Gnome 3

    10. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Problem is this update to 5.X of skype has already been there even before Microsoft acquisition... so I don't see why Microsoft has to be involved or mentioned in this topic at all... It's a skype versus users affair that Microsoft has no involvement in.

    11. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by aztracker1 · · Score: 1

      Also, the new formats are far better in terms of being able to convert/import/export

      --
      Michael J. Ryan - tracker1.info
    12. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      would be nice if I did not have to buy Office every 2 years to read the idiotic new format they invented to make me buy it again though

      You don't have to. Any version of Office released in the last 8 years can be made to read (and write) files produced by any later version - you may need to download an add-on to do so in case of 2003, but it's free.

      Keep you facts. People prefer to slam MS for any abuse they can dream up.

    13. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I work in IT, everyone I work with hates the ribbon, however everyone in the business areas absolutely love it, they can finally find all the features they used to constantly ring the help desk to find or simply thought didn't exist. For the average person the ribbon is a massive upgrade.

    14. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      Companies should provide a way to use their software in a "minimal/simple" mode

      That is actually what the Office ribbon interface is supposed to be. Everything is visual and most of the jargon has been cut out. Not need to go through Formatting menu -> Paragraph -> Line spacing to get at basic controls because they are now handily placed on the ribbon. Some people compare this to toolbars but the ribbon is like a hybrid with the organisation of menus but the visual immediacy and quick access of toolbars.

      IMHO it works well, except for the file and print screens which I hate. Once they get used to the ribbon most people I speak to think it is an improvement. We are all averse to change though.

      No one - I repeat: NO ONE - wants to keep re-mapping their brain to remember new locations in 10+ different software every single year.

      MS Office's interface was pretty much the same from 1995 to 2007. I don't remember what pre-95 versions were like. The 2007 interface is already four years old.

      Not that a new interface is always an improvement of course, e.g. Skype, Firefox or Unity. I'm just saying it isn't always bad, and people would probably be moaning just as much if MS was still maintaining 16 year old GUIs in its latest versions.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    15. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      My favourite part is that when I first started up the new Word with the ribbon (hochhhh spit), I spent like 10 minutes trying to figure out how to save or print (I forget which).
      Then the round glossy microsoft logo button started blinking.

      Yes, MS knew that people would have a hard time finding the new file menu, and added a timer to blink the button.
      In my imagination, this was the result of trials where every last person asked "How do I save my %$#@ document, ARGH!"

    16. Re:Problem: not the upgrade, the new version by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm going to disagree here.
      The windows office ribbon is actually a lot better than the old system. The more you use it the more the features you use show up on the ribbon. So automatic ui customization. Is it as elegant as apple iWork? nope. It is still detached complete though. The problem with office is that each program has way too many features designed to suit every market. Now that we have digital distribution we have infinite shelf space. I say turn office into 3 suites designed for the community that it addresses.

  39. Re:One word - lardasses? Yes, Lardasses! by Alimony+Pakhdan · · Score: 0

    How is it that this made so much more sense than any of the other comments here?

  40. A clear case of the slows. by westlake · · Score: 1

    An Update On Skype For Mac

    April 1

    77 replies, the last posted April 16.

    Download.com alone has logged over 400,000 downloads of Skype 5.1for the Mac since May 27. Skype for Mac

    FaceTime is a 13 MB download, Skype 20 MB.
    Close enough.

    Skype is a VoIP or the masses.The client will be shaped by their needs and not yours. That is the price you pay for being able to call out to 700 million users.

     

    1. Re:A clear case of the slows. by mb1 · · Score: 1

      Another clear case of the slows is the fucking beach-balling that Skype 5.1.0.935 for Mac does when you type more text into it than your chat window is sized for. 5-8 seconds of beachball to resize the text box, type a line beyond the size of the text box or delete a line back to the size of the existing text box... arrgghh!!

      I'd welcome an autoupdate if it fixed that.

  41. Is this a story? It's nothing new by poity · · Score: 1

    Skype has always auto-dated for me. It's been doing that for years. Never found a way to turn that off, either -- not that it really bothers me.

    --
    your thin skin doesn't make me a troll
    1. Re:Is this a story? It's nothing new by poity · · Score: 1

      Actually, I wasn't entirely correct there, sorry. I just run the old install file I have from 2007, and it gets the newest version. No now when I run the program, though. Ignore that post in any case. Sorry

      --
      your thin skin doesn't make me a troll
  42. Ekiga etc. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There are a few free SIP registrars available, and this is their chance to shine.
    For a start, Ekiga (https://www.ekiga.net/) offers a complete starter pack: Free SIP accounts on their server and a decent, easy-to-set-up client that offers excellent audio/video quality. Also, the same program can be used with any other SIP server (e.g. cheap phone gateways), thus it can be used by beginners as well as advanced users alike.
    They also offer a STUN server so it should be really easy to get started.
    And did I mention their client is Open Source?

  43. 5 wont work on ppc macs by lemur3 · · Score: 1

    Unless theyve changed something... forcing this upgrade (which doesnt seem to happen when i open my client) would cause all of the ppc mac users to lose skype access.

    5 doesnt have a universal binary release...

    i use skype for a lot of meetings and stuff.. losing it would seriously suck.

    1. Re:5 wont work on ppc macs by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Unless theyve changed something... forcing this upgrade (which doesnt seem to happen when i open my client) would cause all of the ppc mac users to lose skype access.

      5 doesnt have a universal binary release...

      i use skype for a lot of meetings and stuff.. losing it would seriously suck.

      ppc stays at version 2.8 for me....working fine.

    2. Re:5 wont work on ppc macs by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It happened to me. Skype asked me to upgrade, I clicked "Skip this upgrade" but it did it anyway and installed an Intel binary that wouldn't run on my Powerbook G4. I had to restore Skype from backup.

  44. Alternative chat rooms by freefrag · · Score: 1

    I've been using a skype text conference as an invite-only chat room for some of my online friends. Why not IRC? Because skype keeps track of all history and logs so you don't have to idle in the room 24/7 to see what people said when you were away. I have found nothing as convenient and suitable to our purposes. Now, I'm starting to worry about the future. Does anyone have a suggestion for a different system?

    1. Re:Alternative chat rooms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Some server where you can run screen and irssi 24/7. I'm using old laptop with openbsd.

  45. Re:anti macroshaft rant... by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 1, Insightful

    It's a surprise because mac users are usually happy when someone else decides what's best for them.

    Mac users are happy when Steve Jobs decides not best for them, and not just some random "someone".

  46. Re:Microsoft buys something, immediate forced upgr by retchdog · · Score: 1

    or since MS is pushing total restructuring, they're trying to streamline and minimize the effect of layoffs. step one: sync people to the same version of the software to allow a cut in support staff.

    corporations aren't as clever as you think. they're on the level of alligators, maybe hyenas.

    --
    "They were pure niggers." – Noam Chomsky
  47. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 1

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  48. Re:anti macroshaft rant... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    wow you are dumb and clueless

  49. Re:Microsoft buys something, immediate forced upgr by dave420 · · Score: 2

    I get used to you making massive leaps of faith when it comes to figuring out what's happening in reality, usually relying on your hubris to shape your perception of the world to one that suits your notions of conspiracy, but this one is refreshingly inane. The glaring inconsistency between your alleged scheme and reality is the update isn't being forced to all users. All you have to do is read some of the comments in this very thread, strangely which were posted before your accusations, and you'll see lots of people who have been offered the v5 upgrade, and simply declined to accept it, and continue to run their older versions.

    Until you can show that both the update is being forcibly pushed to people regardless of their intentions (both explicit and implicit), and that the v5 being pushed contains backdoors or other such shady, scary things that make you weep in the darkness, you don't have a fucking leg to stand on. Not that wobbly, nonsensical reasoning isn't your forte, so I'm sure you'll carry on, forever increasing the number of players in this dastardly plot you have apparently single-handedly exposed at such great personal risk, and forever twisting the assumed reasoning employed by said players behind said plot into some grotesque New-World-Order-meets-Alex-Jones-blowing-David-Icke-on-ice fandango, consistently trading sympathetic ears for cold shoulders as you go.

    It's always fun to watch you effortlessly void your bowels of logic on Slashdot. Your trite, effete offerings regularly remind me of Carl Sagan's wonderful abridgement of the irrational discourse that followed the improved imagery of Venus, when the Venusian atmosphere was first clearly visible:

    Obervation: We can't see anything.
    Conclusion: Dinosaurs.

    Carry on, dear boy.

  50. Re:I have no sympathy. by abigor · · Score: 1

    No they didn't. What an idiotic, misinformed comment.

  51. Wait, I thought people were worried the updates by Sprouticus · · Score: 1

    would stop.....and now people are complaining that they are being forced to accept a change (like many such internet service based apps).

    I get being concerned about MS dropping support for smaller OS's (although it doesnt make a lot of business sense). But overreacting to everything that happens at Skype like we have seen in the last month is just silly.

  52. From the outside of the box... by Argile · · Score: 1

    Poor little mac users... Snif! Meanwhile, I'm sure no one has noticed Apple forcing their monopolistic business strategy upon e-ve-ry-one! At this point, you'd rather stop enjoying the bottom of hole and start evaluating how astronomic the contrast is between your petty considerations and what's actually going on! This blog seems poisoned by brain-dead sibling-less geeks and other brainwashed puppets. Drop the whining and focus on what really matters. P.S.: The number of pissed off replies to this post will be inversely proportional to the chance of improving the quality of Slashdot news.

  53. Re:I have no sympathy. by macs4all · · Score: 3, Informative

    no but Apple engineered and implemented the mechanism in their OS that allows software 'updates' to be forcibly pushed onto people that don't want it.

    Sorry. You're confusing Apple with Microsoft.

    You can completely turn off Software Updates. And even if you have them enabled, they do not actually install until, and unless, YOU give the go-ahead.

    There simply is no such thing as a "forced update" on OS X.

  54. Re:I have no sympathy. by jcr · · Score: 3, Informative

    What's your next guess?

    Apple's software never installs anything without user permission. It shows you what it wants to update, and you can accept it or reject it.

    -jcr

    --
    The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
  55. Re:I have no sympathy. by jcr · · Score: 1

    >Microsoft owned Skype, I'd point out.

    Not yet, actually. They've agreed to buy them, but the deal hasn't closed yet.

    -jcr

    --
    The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
  56. Re:Microsoft buys something, immediate forced upgr by frdmfghtr · · Score: 1

    Don't sugar-coat it, tell us how you really feel.

    --
    Government's idea of a balanced budget: take money from the right pocket to balance...oh who am I kidding?
  57. Re:I have no sympathy. by bmo · · Score: 0

    BSD is dying, Netcraft confirms it.

    --
    BMO

    (added for completeness)

  58. Re:Microsoft buys something, immediate forced upgr by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Even better: the 2.8 version is STILL available from the Skype corporate web page linked in the summary. This whole story was a troll.

  59. This is offtopic / FTFF by wintermute1974 · · Score: 1

    > In OS X, I can [...] use a variety of Finder replacements.
    The Finder still has horrid usability problems, but I guess that I'm the only Mac user who needs to manipulate files on his disk drives, so no one else notices.
    Care to list all the non-sucky Finder replacements out there? I've yet to find one.

    1. Re:This is offtopic / FTFF by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Still ages better than the total POS that is windows 7 search. I swear it's the worst search app I have ever seen in my life.

    2. Re:This is offtopic / FTFF by jo_ham · · Score: 1

      I haven't tried one since 10.2, so any info I personally have is way out of date (I'm not the OP). I too, struggle on with the idiosyncrasies of the Finder. I'd have been overjoyed if WWDC this year said "we totally rewrote Finder from scratch".

  60. Umm, they've been doing this to Windows users... by BLKMGK · · Score: 1

    They have been churning versions out for Windows quite a bit now. They are trying to get everyone on updated code it seems and I bet it has something to do with all of the folks publishing information on how to access their infrastructure. I won't be surprised if they turn a switch and block all of those folks here soon....

    --
    Build it, Drive it, Improve it! Hybridz.org
  61. Try IRC + znc by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    IRC with a proxy/bouncer, like znc. It stays connected 24/7 and does the logging for you, then replays the backlog when you connect to it.

    Hard part is deciding where to host it, but there are a lot of options. Most common and likely most convenient: if your router can run DD-WRT it's possible to install and run znc from it. If you can't, you can always run it from a VPS or spare PC you keep running anyway.

  62. Oh the horror! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This is worthy of Slashdot? You can't even use "Time Machine" to get the older version? Oh no!

    1. Re:Oh the horror! by Amarantine · · Score: 1

      You can use TM to get it back... And then what? Hope the mechanism that automatically updates the program doesn't kick in *this* time? Do you also rewind sports games, and hope that the goalie saves the ball this time?

  63. Re:I have no sympathy. by Altus · · Score: 1

    Your ignorance is staggering.

    --

    "In America, first you get the sugar, then you get the power, then you get the women..." -H. Simpson

  64. Re:anti macroshaft rant... by Amarantine · · Score: 1

    It's a surprise because mac users are usually happy when someone else decides what's best for them.

    The problem is that just about any non-Mac-user thinks he is that "someone".

  65. Re:I have no sympathy. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Wow. Steve Jobs released all his bitches right on time - past 10.30pm!

  66. 5.0 is garbage because of DTMF by otis+wildflower · · Score: 1

    I reverted from 5.0 to 2.8 because 5.0's DTMF implementation is horribly fucking broken and shitty. It fails consistently if somewhat randomly (that is, I can't predict _when_ in a call it will be broken, but I can predict that it _will_ be broken), and they fall back on some sort of dopey standards excuse. Alls I knows is, before the upgrade DTMF worked with any voicemail/conferencing/phonetree system I dialed with 2.8 but failed almost always at some point using 5.0. They need to digitize a PCM sample of all DTMF tones around the world and produce them for as long as you press the number key, with the appropriate tone for the appropriate country (if there's any local variations) given the phone #.

    Also, while 2.8 would choke on phone #s without leading country codes (it would say that my unlimited US/Canada plan was not eligible to dial a 10-digit US number, retardation) and 5.0 seemed to handle it better, the 5.0 interface is AWFUL, and it doesn't let you put phone #s in the 'contact' text entry bar, you have to call up the dialpad.

  67. sucks vs blows by AliasMarlowe · · Score: 1

    No conspiracy. Skype 5.x just blows.

    Is that good or bad? Or deliberately ambiguous?
    It sounds like the opposite of "Skype 5.x just sucks", so now I'm confused.

    --
    Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. - Voltaire
    1. Re:sucks vs blows by davesag · · Score: 1

      "blows" as in will get down on its knees and put the penises of strangers in its mouth, and not even ask for money. It's another way of saying "sucks", proving yet again the versatility of the English language

      --
      I used to have a better sig than this, but I got tired of it
  68. Re:anti macroshaft rant... by ktappe · · Score: 1

    It's a surprise because mac users are usually happy when someone else decides what's best for them.

    Mac users are happy when Steve Jobs decides not best for them, and not just some random "someone".

    True enough, but the thing is, Jobs is much more often right than wrong. He's hired teams of hundreds of people to ensure his user interfaces don't suck and therefore aren't despised, as Skype 5.0 is. Steve Jobs is quite possibly the only living example of a "benevolent despot."

    --
    "We can categorically state we have not released man-eating badgers into the area." - UK military spokesman, July 2007
  69. Getting cranky by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I used to love skype. I have paid money for
    Skype in and out. But these updates are getting
    to me. I wish they would stop making it
    hard to use.
    I am this close to saying I quit.

  70. Re:I have no sympathy. by Jesus_666 · · Score: 1

    Well, Apple allows application developers to include arbitrary code in their applications, including code that forces you to update, so it's clearly Apple being evil here.

    --
    USE HOT GRITS WITH STATUE OF NATALIE PORTMAN (NAKED AND PETRIFIED)
  71. Bogus story? by herojig · · Score: 1

    I get a choice when I log in: not now, skip, or upgrade - just like every other app I have. Not a problem here...

    --
    I think therefore I can't be ~TTNH
    1. Re:Bogus story? by Narcogen · · Score: 1

      Agreed. Story seems to not only be demonstrably false, but unsubstantiated-- there's no external source that verifies the author's claim, just a link to the separate (but related) furor about Skype 5's terrible interface (which is terrible).

      So one guy has his Skype glitch on him, and it makes the frontpage of Slashdot? What gives?

      The second this happens to my copy of Skype 2.8 I'll be screaming bloody blue murder, but I'd expect someone to verify the same is happening to others before calling it news, or something that matters.

  72. Re:One word - alternatives? ... history repeating by mikael_j · · Score: 1

    Well, if things played out anything like they did here in Sweden then all your contacts were on ICQ (the early adopters, the geeks, those with some basic computer skills), then MS started pushing MSN Messenger (or Live Messenger or whatever they've named it these days, most people just call it "MSN"), all the non-tech savvy people (including a lot of girls) went "OMG! Instant messages to my friends? over the internet? Wow! That's so cool and new and never done before!". Then suddenly those using ICQ who desperately tried to get their friends to use ICQ instead ("Come on, it's got offline messages!" (Yes, MSN finally got that a few years ago but for a very long time it did not have it)) found themselves using MSN Messenger as well.

    Luckily these days there are plenty of multi-protocol IM clients....

    --
    Greylisting is to SMTP as NAT is to IPv4
  73. What's the outcry? by Opportunist · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Ain't Apple users used to being forced to do what the maker of software wants to?

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    1. Re:What's the outcry? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah but stevejobs d!ck up their asses they are used to.. now for Balmers chair shapped d!ck....

    2. Re:What's the outcry? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Ain't Apple users used to being forced to do what the maker of software wants to?

      Ain't Apple drones used to being forced to do what Apple wants them to?

      I'd bet 70% IT majors have wet dreams about managing to get that sort of control on their "loyal customers".

      If that will extend from A. users to [any other software house] users through a MS product, I'd call it a very dangerous outbreak of an intelligence-eating virus.

    3. Re:What's the outcry? by Anubis+IV · · Score: 1

      There's a difference between good changes and bad changes. Apple progressively adds new features and niceties, and rarely forces a feature on you that you don't want to use. With Skype, we're being forced to "upgrade" to a new interface that is less intuitive, takes longer to use even when you're used to it, and takes up far more space. And they did it after they even made the old version available again for download as a result of the initial outcry. Talk about mixed signals.

      I've already been dissatisfied with Skype's call quality recently and had started exploring some alternatives. This will just push me out the door faster.

    4. Re:What's the outcry? by dafing · · Score: 1

      Apple software generally gets *better*, seriously, this current version of Skype for Mac is a bloody nightmare...I cohost podcast shows, while sounding incredibly pompous, Skype is an essential part of our "workflow", how the Call Recorder recording plugin ties in with the Skype application, general setting up calls etc, its important stuff.

      And the latest versions of Skype have RUINED everything! :-) Simple things are now incredibly irritating, for example, when someone sends you a Skype message, instead of a new window popping up, you need to switch to Skype, see a little tab...and click it. Why not have multiple windows, a new window that would pop up? Sure, give people the option to "tab it" instead for limited screen space, thats reasonable, but DONT make reading messages a huge pain! The whole interface frigs up frequently, sometimes it loads "off" when the screen redraws, it will outright refuse to add people to a conference etc.

      Even the new "ringtone" is annoying! :-)

      One friend simply couldnt take it, he reinstalled his prior version of Skype, but get this, even THAT causes friggin problems for the rest of us, when he rings, it will inform us all "this version of Skype is incompatible with text chat..." or something, we are effectively locked out of text chat because the host has "The Old Skype" - which had bloody text chat working fine for YEARS...some weird change...we have to ask him to "start a text chat" while we're in the call, a new, SEEMINGLY IDENTICAL text chat "tab" pops up, and just works...we cant initiate the new text chat with him... I could name 5 annoying ass glitches/changes in this new version of Skype for Mac, any one of which is a huge frig up when you know and love using the software each and ever day. Basically, the UI moved everything into one place, dumbed it down, and made it annoying, everything works "fullscreen" rather than separate windows, the program constantly has glitches on top of these "simple design changes", core functions like adding people, text chat fail, its locked me out of Skype before with service outages... unreal that I couldnt so much as *load* the program before it would crash, you'd expect it to load, and then display a "sorry, I cant connect to the Skype servers, please try again later, or try skype.com/support for more information...", no, it wouldnt so much as bounce in my dock before literally crashing, asking to send a report to Apple. What the hell?!?

      I personally cannot remember an Apple UI change thats pissed me off to any extent, true, I preferred an older version of GarageBand to the latest, a few years ago iMovie "lost features", those are important tools for many Mac users, reasons to buy the machine in themselves, sure. For me, those are nothing compared to the constant irritation that is the current Skype for Mac.

      --
      --- ...or a new slashdot signature. Dear aunt, let's set so double the killer delete select all
    5. Re:What's the outcry? by ilsaloving · · Score: 1

      You don't get it. While we're forced to do new things, we have the advantage of Steve's Reality Distortion Field to keep us going during times of adversity, just like a soldier pulls out a picture of their family for comfort when their hunkered down in the trench while shells are flying above.

      By the time The Field wears off, we've gotten used to the new thing and it doesn't bother us anymore. By then we internalize the changes and think we've wanted them all along.

      Simple! :)

    6. Re:What's the outcry? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Ain't Apple users used to being forced to do what the maker of software wants to?

      Nope.

    7. Re:What's the outcry? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Ain't Apple users used to being forced to do what the maker of software wants to?

      Difference is that new Apple product versions are good, while the new Skype sucks.

    8. Re:What's the outcry? by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      I'd bet 70% BA majors have wet dreams about managing to get that sort of control on their "loyal customers".

      FTFY

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  74. How to screw over the updater.. by El+Jynx · · Score: 2

    You can do one of two things:
    - Find the temp folder where Skype downloads its new copy, find out what name it gives the file, and replace it with a 2.8 version, then remove wheel rights so it can't replace it
    - adjust your hosts file so that Skype can't auto-update. Unfortunately I don't know what the updater connects to.. time to dust off your favorite network scanning apps.

    On the side, I think we all would do well to keep bombing Skype support with mails that we see abolsutely no reason to switch to the bloated leviathan with the useless interface adustments and would greatly appreciate it if they would at least introduce a "classic" mode.

    --
    A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it well worth the effort.
  75. Re:One word - lardasses? Yes, Lardasses! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    no, we aren't that desperate yet to give you a fuck. nice try, however.

  76. I use paint.. and don't like the W7 upgrade at all by Hyperhaplo · · Score: 2

    I use MS Paint all of the time. When you need to take a screenshot, cut part of it out, and quickly cut that into a new JPG, PNG or into a document it is quite good.

    I don't have a graphics program on most of the PCs I use, work or home. I have gimp, but rarely use it.

    MS Paint is (was) easy to use, good to use (from a rat-race office documentation perspective) and serves its purpose well.

    In comparison, the new windos 7 MS Paint drives me nuts, mostly due to the 'ribbon'.

    Actually, while we are on topic, the whole MS Office suite drives me nuts due to the 'ribbon'.

    So, you are now forced to upgrade Skype? Well, MS would do the same for MS Office if it could... and appear to have tried very hard to do so.

    Meanwhile, this - amongst other serious annoyances (CD music - and nothing else - being disabled, serious issues with DVD software, serious sound issues, annoying system popups) are driving me to install XP over the top of my Laptop Windows 7. Yes, work will move to W7, and yes, I know it's Windows. So, back we go. It's Win98 all over again.

    Software upgrades may be a fact of life in IT.. but some of the software I use is over 10 years old now (GMUD is a good example) and works fine. I see no serious reason for the 'improvements' in the W7 MS Paint.. and I'd really like access to the XP version. If worst comes to worst, there is always GIMP.

    --
    You have a sick, twisted mind. Please subscribe me to your newsletter.
  77. Happened on Windows a year ago by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Add "127.0.0.1 ui.skype.com" to your hosts file and you are free to keep your version.

  78. OSX 10.4 (Tiger) PPC now broken by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I was affected by this update and now I can't run Skype because apparently the 5.0 release il Intel only (or requires OSX 10.5)

    Is there a way to get Skype working again on 10.4? Download the old package from trusted source then avoid the forced upgrade

    Thank you

  79. You don't have to; Why do you do it? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "would be nice if I did not have to buy Office every 2 years to read the idiotic new format they invented to make me buy it again though"

    You don't have to. If someone sends you a document in a format you cannot read send it back and tell them to provide the document in a format which you can read.

    If you are unwilling to do that you deserve everything you get.

  80. Re:I have no sympathy. by arisvega · · Score: 1

    It's not Apple pushing the update...

    Just this once it is not.

    Remember how iTunes and Quicktime swiftly tried to take over windows boxes, installing themselves all over and upgrading again and again and again? You seriously think Microsoft will now pass on such a unique opportunity to "gather user data"?

    --
    The three laws of thermodynamics:(1) You can't win. (2) You can't break even. (3) You can't even quit.
  81. FTF -- For The Fail by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You don't understand Microsoft's power! When Microsoft merely thinks about a company, it begins failing.

  82. And ? by arisvega · · Score: 0

    Skype Forcing Mac Users To Upgrade Client

    So fucking what?

    --
    The three laws of thermodynamics:(1) You can't win. (2) You can't break even. (3) You can't even quit.
  83. No consideration for users paying for /Mb internet by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The thing that annoys me about forced upgrades where the update is silently downloaded in the background, is that no consideration is given to users than need to use expensive per MB internet access... Imagine connecting your laptop to download and reply to a important email while using international data roaming @+-3 Euros /MB... Skype starts with your laptop and minimizes itself to your notification area where you do not take note of it... 3 minutes later while you are still typing your reply, it pops up a message that it is apply the 20MB update that just cost you 60 euros!!!

  84. Wow, lots of people here still haven't realised... by Tomsk70 · · Score: 1

    ....that the world doesn't revolve around them. In OS *and* app terms.

  85. hi by fastformation · · Score: 0

    I like this post http://tinyurl.com/4yn3fuq

  86. The Skype interface is confusing. by Timtimes · · Score: 1

    It's like trying to figure out where the flush handle is on some of the more esoteric new-age toilets out there. Enjoy.

    --
    This ain't no upwardly mobile freeway This is the road to hell
  87. They get updates? by shish · · Score: 1

    When Microsoft took over, people complained that non-MS platforms would stop getting updates. Now that updates are released (which is more than the original skype did in the last few years!), that's a problem too?

    Personally I'm hoping that this is a sign that Linux support is on the way too...

    --
    I mod down anyone who says "I will be modded down for this", regardless of the rest of their comment
    1. Re:They get updates? by mario_grgic · · Score: 1

      IT was not released now. It was released months ago, and most users make a huge outcry against the serious degradation in user experience and horrible performance of the application (that uses up to 60% CPU just idling with no user activity going on). Users downgraded to previous version and now they are forced to update. This is what is going on, and like is more often the case in recent years Microsoft is quite irrelevant to this story.

      --
      As the island of our knowledge grows, so does the shore of our ignorance.
  88. Re:anti macroshaft rant... by ch0knuti · · Score: 1

    Steve Jobs is quite possibly the only living example of a "benevolent despot."

    Unless you are into p0rn ;)

  89. Re:One word - lardasses? Yes, Lardasses! by Demena · · Score: 0

    It is bullshit actually. At 56 (years) I had a six-pack. At 58 I was fat. Endocrinological failure. I cannot metabolise the fat out of my own system. My blood sugar will drop to the (dangerous) point of unconsciousness but turn fat into sugar to live? No, body doesn't do that no more.

  90. Design by 80/20 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It's perhaps not coincidental that the same design company - 80/20 - responsible for Skype 5's UI was also behind Second Life's v2 viewer, which was *cough* even more warmly welcomed.

    Note that 80/20 proudly boast of their work on both projects on their site, even now..

  91. Re:One word - alternatives? ... history repeating by tepples · · Score: 1

    Then suddenly those using ICQ who desperately tried to get their friends to use ICQ instead ("Come on, it's got offline messages!" (Yes, MSN finally got that a few years ago but for a very long time it did not have it))

    MSN Messenger has always had offline messages. They were called "Hotmail".

  92. Re:I have no sympathy. by intheshelter · · Score: 1

    AC says something stupid! Film at 11!!

  93. Re:I have no sympathy. by intheshelter · · Score: 1

    No, I don't remember the scenario you outlined. Could it be because it's false?

  94. Re:anti macroshaft rant... by intheshelter · · Score: 1

    Follow that herd Matt! Don't put any critical thought into your post!

  95. Re:One word - alternatives? ... history repeating by mikael_j · · Score: 1

    That's a separate service (e-mail). ICQ allowed you to send messages that would be cached by the IM servers and delivered when the person you were talking to came online again.

    --
    Greylisting is to SMTP as NAT is to IPv4
  96. Not forced to upgrade by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Launched Skype... wasn't forced to upgrade. I was prompted with an option to, and chose the 'skip this update' option. The new interface *is* terrible... and I restored to the old out of Time Machine within minutes of unknowingly patching to it earlier in the year... but I was not forced to upgrade this time around.

    Misleading Slashdot post is misleading?

  97. Version 5 uses more CPU than flash by mario_grgic · · Score: 1

    I would have no issue updating to the current version if it were implemented right. I tried it as soon as it was released and guess what. Just opening the main application window with absolutely no activity going on, no chat in progress, no video call, no phone call nothing, it uses about 60% CPU!!!! This does not happen with the Windows version.

    Apart from that the UI is now hideously ugly, and over-sized. It's the God complex everyone in the software industry develops after a while. They start thinking they are indispensable and so important they have to take away all desktop real estate and be in user's face all the time, run as a system service etc. When in fact you are just a dumb chat application, so get the fuck out of the way in the minimal interface, like Google talk does.

    --
    As the island of our knowledge grows, so does the shore of our ignorance.
  98. Re:One word - alternatives? ... history repeating by tepples · · Score: 1

    That's a separate service (e-mail).

    And MSN Messenger at least tried to integrate the IM service and the e-mail service. For example, I seem to remember that MSN Messenger would alert the Hotmail user to new e-mail messages upon login. So instead of adding separate infrastructure (a clone of e-mail within an IM service), MSN Messenger used its existing infrastructure.

  99. IRC, actually by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    All it takes is somebody setting up an irssi session in screen on a server, setting it to log everything, and letting it idle in the channel. You could /nick ChanScribe or something so people know what it is.

  100. Re:One word - alternatives? ... history repeating by mikael_j · · Score: 1

    Ah, but the email integration only worked if you were using Hotmail/Live, any other email account and it didn't work. Eventually the buckled and added offline messaging though.

    And I don't really see it as a clone of email, it's still just IM messages except they are cached on the server so when the user that received an offline message logs on again the client fetches the messages and displays them to the user in a regular conversation window. IIRC ICQ also let those who had set their online status to invisible gets "offline" messages immediately but the person sending them would see it as an offline message.

    --
    Greylisting is to SMTP as NAT is to IPv4
  101. Re:I use paint.. and don't like the W7 upgrade at by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    IT pros in the PC world have long been used to the treadmill. We exist to feed the machine, now.

  102. Major Security Issue in older versions by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There is a Major Security Issue in older versions of Skype on OSX. If this were Apple doing it, there wouldn't be any outcry.

    If you are on a Mac, you REALLY NEED THIS UPGRADE.

    BTW, I'm still happily running the Linux version 2.0.0.72 here in a VM connected to my Skype-in/out and using a SIP connector.

    Come on over to Linux. The water is fine, unless you're stuck using Adobe crap.

  103. Re:I have no sympathy. by jo_ham · · Score: 1

    What are you smoking and where can I get it?

    This has *nothing* do do with Apple, or any update mechanism supplied by Apple. This is entirely down to Skype alone.

    Seriously, when you Anti-Apple trolls come out, you just barge things like "facts" right out of the way!

  104. A message is a message by tepples · · Score: 1

    And I don't really see it as a clone of email, it's still just IM messages

    To me, both e-mail and IM are messages; e-mail messages just tend to be longer.

    except they are cached on the server so when the user that received an offline message logs on again the client fetches the messages and displays them to the user

    This part perfectly describes e-mail.

    in a regular conversation window.

    Some e-mail clients have added a "conversation view" of recent messages sent to and from a given address.

    IIRC ICQ also let those who had set their online status to invisible gets "offline" messages immediately but the person sending them would see it as an offline message.

    Which isn't very different from having T-bird or Outlook Express open alongside your IM client.

    1. Re:A message is a message by mikael_j · · Score: 1

      Well, the main difference between IM and email for most people is that IM is more suitable to realtime conversations. Most people I meet don't check their (personal) email more than maybe once or twice per day but they do get keep their IM clients online whenever they're at their computer (and get instant alerts when they receive messages). Also, since realtime conversations take place in the client it can be good to follow them up in the same medium rather than send an email just because your friend happened to go offline for an hour or two.

      --
      Greylisting is to SMTP as NAT is to IPv4
    2. Re:A message is a message by tepples · · Score: 1

      Also, since realtime conversations take place in the client it can be good to follow them up in the same medium rather than send an email

      Offline instant messages aren't the same medium as regular instant messages because they're stored and forwarded. They're just e-mail with a different proprietary protocol. If a single client supported both e-mail and IM, there wouldn't be any user-visible difference between following up via offline IM and following up via e-mail, at least any more than a user-visible difference between following up via MSN and following up via ICQ in a multi-network IM client such as Epiphany or Pidgin. Perhaps the "messaging menu" under Ubuntu comes from a realization of this. As I see it, the root of the problem is that AOL long ago made a decision to offer AIM service at no charge but charge per month for e-mail. Otherwise, AIM would have integrated AOL e-mail.

    3. Re:A message is a message by mikael_j · · Score: 1

      IMHO you're sort of right and you're sort of wrong.

      You're right in the sense that from the point of view of the backend systems and the software client online IMs and offline IMs aren't identical (although with many protocols they do travel through the same server since the protocols themselves aren't p2p).

      You're wrong in the sense that from the user's point of view email and offline IMs in clients such as MSN Live are not the same. They are also unlikely to be the same from a technical point of view since the IMs exist in the IM system, they are merely stored server-side when the client they are intended for is offline, the client can then request them or have them included in some form of logon status message from the server. The emails on the other hand most likely exist on an email server that primarily communicates with the rest of the world through SMTP, IMAP, POP3, various SOAP web services or direct database access from the server-side bits of some web client.

      Now, could you quite easily build a platform for both IMs and emails where the "offline IM messages" are little more than emails with modified headers, perhaps even invisible to the user when accessing the "mail client" side of the platform or sorted as IMs when viewed in some unified UI. You could even build the whole IM system around a mail server backend. But that isn't how it works and it seems a lot more cumbersome than to use a protocol more suited for instant messaging.

      You also have to keep in mind that in just about every IM client offline messages are displayed as regular conversations (sometimes with a small note about them being offline messages). The implementation used by MS for hotmail/live mail in MSN Live simply alerted the user to the fact that there were new emails available. These days I'm pretty sure they've got proper offline messages (I don't know how they're implemented on the backend but from a user interface POV that doesn't matter because in that sense they differ from a note at the top of your contact list telling you that you have unread emails).

      --
      Greylisting is to SMTP as NAT is to IPv4
  105. I'm a Mac... by Kamiza+Ikioi · · Score: 1

    ... and I'm Skype.

    Mac: Is there an app for that?

    Skype: (Pulls out a gun.) Get on your knees pretty boy! You're taken my app... one way... or another...

    Mac: Noooooo! Jobs! Help!

    Jobs: (In dark corner chair, laughing. Softly...) Yes, you will take it. And more... so much more...

    --
    I8-D
    1. Re:I'm a Mac... by L-four · · Score: 1

      ohhh yeah......

  106. Re:I use paint.. and don't like the W7 upgrade at by Hyperhaplo · · Score: 1

    This.

    I've mod you +1 "Depressing and true" if I could.

    Now, I have to get back to this lovely situation where my old work PC had a registered (and working!) version of Visio 2003.. and I'm now told I need a new licence for Visio 2007 for this new office PC.. ... ... *sigh* ... ... ...

    Meanwhile, I have replaced Frontpage with NVU - for similar reasons.

    --
    You have a sick, twisted mind. Please subscribe me to your newsletter.
  107. Re:I have no sympathy. by JustNiz · · Score: 1

    well I guess my ignorance matches the level of your rudeness then

  108. Skype View's on Recommended Mac Update by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Hello: Just wanted to let you know that our post here (http://cot.ag/loBgoH) hopefully addresses your concerns that this release was not a forced upgrade. Jennifer Caukin (@jenatskype)

  109. 1st April 2011. Really ??? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I know I'm a bit late to the party in commenting on this 1, but no one noticed this links to a 1st April article? I though /. had editors that approved these submissions?!?

  110. 1st April? What? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Where did my comment go? do anonymous coward comments need approved by /. editors before they appear? Do I really have to sign to to post a comment? No one has seen this links to a 1st April 2011 article. Ah - I've got it. ./ editors don't even RTFA. Makes sense now.

    1. Re:1st April? What? by tepples · · Score: 1

      do anonymous coward comments need approved by /. editors before they appear?

      AC comments start at Score:0 and need to be moderated up by a randomly-chosen established user to show up at the default threshold of Score:1. Logged-in users' comments start with Score:1; established users' comments start at 2. Lower your viewing threshold to 0 to see other AC comments.

  111. Re:One word - alternatives? ... history repeating by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

    all the non-tech savvy people (including a lot of girls) went "OMG! Instant messages to my friends?

    What's an "instant message"?

    And perhaps as importantly, "should I care"?

    --
    Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"