Skype contacts are now integrated into Timbuktu. Thus in Timbuktu you can see all your Skype contacts and whether or not they have Timbuktu installed. More importantly Timbuktu Pro with Skype enables you to access your PC directly though a completely secure encrypted Skype connection. Thus much safer than over the open net or using TightVNC.

Thus this is one of the first Skype Ap2Ap solutions I’ve seen that is really using the benefits of connecting via Skype. Timbuktu connects via Skype API and then manages the data connection the same way that Skype manages File transfers. Thus all encrypted.

This is a key point for an IT manager is there is no man in the middle. I had just this query the other day when a reader who was looking at installing Skype was interested in Unyte as a potential remote management solution. From his perspective the screen sharing and remote control capability wasn’t secure enough. It might be okay to get someone up and running but they were interested in something much more secure.

With Skype and then Timbuktu installed it then immediately loaded my buddies and I right clicked on my new Timbuktu buddy Richard to start sharing. The screen loaded, not instantaneously, with a slight delay. He was on a Wi-Fi connection while mine is a cable modem. I watched him load presentation etc. .I also watched him remotely access his other PC which I got a look at too. 

 

Richard's desktop with blurring added to the screen capture.

 

Thus it passed the initial tests. I plan on testing it further with Bill and we may make some comparisons with some of the other sharing apps on synch speeds.

There is also a wonderful viral Marketing lesson in this too for Timbuktu sucks in all your contacts and identifies which one already have Timbuktu. Thus there is power in the network. Skype could learn from this in terms of developing their plug-in architecture. It is certainly important for programs that become more valuable as others install it. Plus if  you are designing a gaming Ap2Ap solution then you should pay some attention to this solution.

Summary, so what do I see? I see a great way to access my home PC from my laptop when on the road. I’m not the IT manager despite what my kids think. You must log in with different Skype accounts to make the connection. However then it is ready to go. That’s my next line of testing and it will give me the opportunity to see what it is like to work with over time.

While clearly a professional grade product which I’m sure many IT managers already use the addition of Skype provides increased functionality and a new option for securely managing a network.  I think it may also provide some IT managers with an incentive to rethink their policies on Skype. Certainly gives them a new way to test it out and add some remote management features.

Great work Timbuktu!

While this product is not Skype certified I don’t see that as a problem. In fact many products will emerge like this that simply aren’t presented for certification. Timbuktu certainly won’t want to start paying a royalty on all their products.

I’d also suggest this product could spur Netopia on to a range of products that till now were perhaps out of the question and not part of their market focus. These might include:

1) A Skype product that strips out some of the features, Just basic set for Skype only use.

2) What they’ve begun to master in the Skype contact list management and the secure Ap2Ap utilization could extent to other applications. Web conferencing would be but one example.

Thanks Netopia for adding to my list of Skype case studies and examples on why every company should be thinking about both their VoIP and Skype strategies.

 

 See the full PR Release