Skype

[Will]

I've just ordered a couple of handsets for myself and my parents home Just wondering if anyone else has installed Skype and what their experience has been to date?

[Shizara]

I have Skype. I only use the PC external speakers and the standard microphone. It works rather well. Sometimes there is a little bit of delay with responses but I have become accustomed to it.

[optrex]

Very insecure and I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole. Beware leaving it in standby, awaiting calls - it uses your connection to route calls - bye bye bandwidth!

[Shizara]

I tend to not have it connected and on standby like I do with Trillian which houses ICQ, MSN, Yahoo, AIM and IRC all in one piece of software. But I still use Skype. The few contacts I have on it send a quick MSN and say they wish to use it.

[Will]

How insecure is it?

[optrex]

try a read through this

...oh its too big I need a 300kb attachment allowance

[optrex]

If I can upload the other document I will, but here is an extract from some seperate documentation I have.

The Skype system adapts dynamically to the network environment it finds. As with KaZaa, Skype may conclude that the most effective way to route a communication is not directly between the called and calling endpoints, but instead to send the traffic via another Skype client not otherwise involved in the call. An intermediary client used in this way is known as a super-node. Super-nodes are not pre-defined or configured, but are a dynamic feature of the Skype client software. Any Skype client that discovers it is well connected to the Internet is likely to offer itself as a super-node by advertising its connectivity to other Skype users. As a result, a PC that has access to significant bandwidth and runs the Skype client software may handle voice communications to and from clients all over the world, not just those originating or destined for the local user of the PC. Networks with super-nodes may experience large flows of inbound and outbound traffic that have no connection with any local user. A user who installs Skype with the default configuration permits his computer and his organisation’s bandwidth to be used by any other Skype user.

A feature of Skype that may be very welcome to its users is that all communications are encrypted end-to-end between the two communicating clients. Skype effectively provides an encrypted tunnel through the firewall that could be used for attacks against the client PC and any other networked devices it can connect to in turn.

Skype also provides a mechanism for third party software to be written and installed within the system: the history of the equivalent function in web browsers suggests that this will be used at least as often by insecure and unwelcome software as by useful applications.

[Will]

Is there a link?

[Will]

Ahh, I see the problem now. I think as long as it's switched off when not being used, and you don't make the mistake of installing third party software on it, you'll be pretty safe.

I'm sure such a popular technology provider will be working to fix these problems. Let's hope anyway.

[Will]

Just set it up, and it seems to run fine without any interuption to my bandwidth that I can notice. It's easy to disconnect too, which may be a new feature.

[optrex]

The idea is you have it running int eh background to accept incoming calls. Thats when it becomes a super node. Disconnecting (exiting the program) is good practise.

[Will]

I only really want it so I can ring people for free from my lap top and look like an idiot.

That and ringing friends from abroad for free, just need to arrange times via email.

[Madhatter]

Can you not ring people from msn and yahoo for free?