Skype for Apple iPhone OS4

David Ponsford demonstrated Skype as a background app at last week's Apple briefing on the iPhone OS 4, coming mid-2010. John Chang, Skype's lead iPhone developer, helped with the demo. David came to Skype from SpinVox Skype's voicemail-to-text partner.

Several features announced at the OS4 preview event affect Skype. Multitasking, location services, data encryption service, and a user alerting service. David answered a few questions by email.

Skype Journal: Now that two apps can be running at the same time, will OS4 let Skype expose its own APIs to third party Apple developers to build iPhone or iPad plug-ins? Are apps now allowed to talk with each other?

David Ponsford: Co-operation between 3rd party apps was not something that was discussed at the iPhone OS 4.0 preview by Apple.

Skype in the iPhone's background, shown on a second status bar, at the top.

SJ: What does Apple's encryption service add beyond what Skype for iPhone does now? Could there be efficiencies? Will OS4's encryption protocols be compatible with Skype's? Aside from encrypting Skype-to-Skype and Skype-to-Server communication, might they be used to increase the privacy of Skype data stored locally on an Apple mobile device?

DP: We are still evaluating Apple’s new enterprise features. All Skype-to-Skype communications are encrypted, as a matter of course. Our users’ privacy is of paramount importance to us.

SJ: Which of Skype's features will be turned off when running in the background? Will Skype's SILK codec be available during background calls?

DP: We are still evaluating all the new features available to us as part of the iPhone OS 4.0 developer preview that was released on Thursday. Early indications are that that Skype-to-Skype calls will still use the full capabilities of the SILK codec, even when they are in the background.

SJ: I haven't seen any Skype alerts on the iPhone so far. Does Skype use the existing alert service? For which notifications? Will you change the types of alerts Skype uses to communicate with a user? The frequency?

DP: Thursday’s technology demo of iPhone OS 4.0, in which Skype participated, used the new local notification system to show that an incoming Skype call was happening.

SJ: Apple is creating stronger technical and experience design differences between the 3GS and earlier iPhones, the iPod Touch family, and the iPad. Will Skype need to offer different software for the platforms or will you be able to offer one OS4 app that adjusts to each device?

DP: It is too early for Skype to give a definitive answer on this specific point; however, it will be our goal to make a single download available to all iPhone users that want Skype, making it super simple to get Skype for your iPhone, with all the features available for it.

SJ: Now that location services are available to Skype through APIs, what will you consider before making it easy or automatic for users to pipe their location into their Skype's presence?

DP: If Skype believes there is a significant benefit to our customers to offer location-based services, we will look at how these can be offered, while making sure that privacy and other customer experience issues are taken into account at the same time.

SJ: Skype on Verizon Android and Blackberry phones is promising betting integration with native address books. Do the OS4 APIs make it easier to offer similar sync, data population, and dialing features in Skype?

DP: Skype will be evaluating the new APIs available to all developers in order to understand what new features they offer us in order to create the best user experience possible for our users.

SJ: How did you wind up on stage in Cupertino?

DP: My dashing good looks, confusing accent and need to get Gold status on Virgin Atlantic...

SJ: What's Steve Jobs' Skype name?

DP: I don’t know this one. J

tags: skype, apple, iphone, mobile, ipod, os4

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
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Download Skype for Mac's Snow Leopard hotfix

Download Skype for Mac 2.8.0.722. 44 MB. Skype's announcement, release notes, and where you can report new bugs. Hotfix 1 improves stability across OS X. Skype reports this fixes issues: 

• Calling: Platform specific: OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard - Call Phones and Send SMS window “Type number” text field is too dark
• Chat: Chat window does not refresh properly when chatting with a user whose avatar file is corrupted
• Contacts: When creating a new contact request, the option to request to see the contact's status but not let them see yours is disabled
• Contacts: In a contact request, the option to add a new contact to your Contact list is disabled when the user chooses not to let the contact see when they are online
• Contacts: In a contact request, new contacts are added to a user's Contact list even when they uncheck the option to add them
• Screen sharing: When screen sharing in fullscreen mode, the user can't click on Skype menu items at the top of the screen
• Video: Platform specific: OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard – Layout issues in the video window when a video call is put on hold. The Hold button appears over the Call on Hold message
• Video: Skype sometimes crashes when plugging in or removing a webcam
• Miscellaneous: Skype sometimes crashes soon after launching when an auto-config (PAC) file was used to connect to the internet
• Miscellaneous: Skype sometimes crashes when shutting down
• Miscellaneous: Platform specific: OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard - Main window does not display properly

tags: skype, mac, apple, snowleopard, tiger, leopard, download

Call me at +1-510-316-9773, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Skype for Mac 2.8 is out of Beta

Download Skype for Mac 2.8 (OS X. 2.8.0.659). Release notes (pdf).Discuss in the Skype Mac OS X Forums or report bugs and other issues. No major changes from the beta releases.

New features since 2.7: screen sharing (treats your screen as a webcam for a Skype video call), the SILK codec (better sound quality, less bandwidth, more reliable). Mac-only features: "Skype Access - Beta" (Pay for Boingo Wi-Fi by the minute with Skype credits at $11/hour); Sort and prioritize chats in the drawer; Show buddy mood messages in chat; add notes to contacts.

Elsewhere:

• Raul Liive, Skype Garage: Skype 2.8 Gold for Mac
• Peter Parkes, Share Skype: Skype 2.8 Gold for Mac out now
• Jim Courtney, Voice on the Web: Skype for Mac 2.8: Handy New Features Finally Go Gold
• Marshall Kirkpatrick, ReadWriteWeb: Skype for Mac 2.8: Screenshare, Status Pings, Wifi Purchasing & More
• Sang Tang, The Unofficial Apple Weblog: Screen sharing is caring: Skype 2.8 goes gold

tags: skype, apple, mac, skypeformac, osx, 659, 2.8, screensharing

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Skype Domination: Platform Agnostic Style

Guest post by Andy Yang, who blogs with The Mobile Experience team.

I never realized this but Skype is everywhere! Regardless if you are a PC, Mac or Linux user, you can grab a version at your convenience. In the smartphone world, Windows Mobile, iPhone/iPod Touch, and Android have their versions of Skype mobile; even non-officially supported phones has a solution. If you are still using your cordless home phone or going with dedicated Wi-Fi or Skype Phone, there is a solution to Skype for you. Lets not forget the Sony PSP and Nokia N800/810 integration.

Now that I've made my point and spent last 15 minutes hyper linking the references above, what I am trying to get at is how easy Skype has made itself to users of all walks. Being that this company has made its service completely platform agnostic, it has tremendous power to reach a wide range of users and become the de facto internet-based communications tool. I can't think of another IM or VOIP application with this broad reach across various hardware and software.

As for my family, Skype has been an indispensable tool when traveling abroad. Given all the available Skype options, we can easily keep in touch so long as internet is available never having to worry about having pre-paid SIM or phone cards.

Skype, in my opinion, may be the best mobile communication provider for a non telecom operator. Of course, with Gmail's Video and VOIP support over browser recently launched, it can pose a potential threat to Skype's territory as it would technically be platform agnostic. But until mobile browsers are powerful enough to take advantage, Skype is still much ahead of the game. Way to go Skype!

[Editor: See also: Skype Journal's product map]

tags: android, iphone, ipod touch, mobile apps, psp, skype, skype mobile, symbian, wifi, windows mobile, mobile

Call me at +1-510-455-4384, Skype me, follow @skypejournal and @Phil Wolff.
Visit our Skype Journal private roundtable, one of the longest running public Skype chats.

Skype for Mac 2.8 Beta Launches

At MacWorld's Showstoppers event this evening Skype announced Skype for Mac 2.8 beta, with two major new features as well as several minor ones.
Screen Sharing
The most impressive feature is a form of basic screen sharing. Either a segment of your screen or the full screen is converted into a virtual webcam such that the screen can be viewed in any Skype client via the Skype video channel. While only a Mac can currently be a source for this screen sharing it can be viewed on any Windows, Mac or Linux client as video.
Skype for Mac's screen sharing feature is sufficient to support discussion issues as a complement to a voice and/or chat conversation; it is NOT by any means a replacement for fully featured desktop or application sharing offerings such as Yugma, InnerPass or IBM's Lotus Sametime Unyte. It's "just" screen sharing. In fact, it is one of two options on the Skype for Mac's "Share" button, the other being file sharing/transfer.
Below is an example of a full screen image of a shared MacBook screen as seen in a detached Skype video window on my Windows laptop.

Skype Access
The second major feature, Skype Access, provides WiFi access for your MacBook or MacBook Pro via any Boingo access point. While I'm told it has been tested at many of the over 100,000 Boingo hotspots worldwide, I could not get it to work at a local Canadian Starbucks listed as a Boingo hotspot location. But then, this is still beta (and the problem may be with Boingo's interface with Bell Mobility).
More importantly is to look at the "use case" for Skype Access. Cost for using Skype Access over Boingo is US$0.22/€0.16/C$0.23 per minute using Skype credits.
Within a user's home country, Skype Access is probably more expensive than local alternatives; this is certainly the case in Canada. However, I can see the value if I am outside the home country and wanting to make Skype/SkypeOut calls, check email or do some web browsing at airports, restaurants, coffee shops and other Boingo hotspots as an alternative to much higher cost roaming wireless calls (for instance roaming U.S. to Canada on Rogers runs at $1.75 per minute) or $40 per day Internet access charges at some European hotels.
With unlimited use Boingo subscriptions at $21.95/month for North America or $59/month Global, Skype Access is more appropriate for the occasional traveler as opposed to the hardened road warrior.
It reminds me of the use case for PamFax where you can send faxes directly from, say, your hotel room for about $0.20 per page while avoiding a hotel's much higher $1.00/page charge for faxing. One other common feature between Skype Access and PamFax: both use Skype credits as the primary currency.
Other features in Skype for Mac 2.8 beta:

• Skype for Mac 2.8 continues the use of a "drawer" attached to a Skype chat window; from the list of active chat sessions shown in the drawer you can select which session you want to view. But now there are three levels of prioritization available for those chat sessions. In addition chats can be sorted by name or date/time.
• The process for adding contacts to a chat session now simply involves clicking the "Add a Contact" button and entering the added contact's name.
• Your Contacts' Mood Messages can be tracked via a "Mood Message" chat session. While this can currently only be initiated on Skype for Mac 2.8, your mood message chat session will show up as a chat session on, say, a Windows client logged into the same account. Neat for keeping up-to-date on mood message changes, especially when a mood message provides location or reference URL information; it provides a Twitter-like experience.
• Add notes to contacts: when you go into a Contact's profile there is a separate tab for entering personal notes about that contact.

Dan York, with a lot more Skype for Mac experience than I have had (I just acquired a MacBook ten days ago), has provided a much more detailed review of all the new features He has also produced an excellent You Tube video for his Emerging Tech Talk series:

Skype for Mac 2.8 beta can be downloaded here January 6. Full Release Notes

Skype Posts: Share Skype Blog, Skype Garage Blog

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