Tom Keating : VoIP & Gadgets Blog
Tom Keating
CTO
| VoIP & Gadgets blog - Latest news in VoIP & gadgets, wireless, mobile phones, reviews, & opinions

Skype

Skype P2P VoIP

Skip2PBX, SIP-to-Skype Gateway, is here!

August 31, 2007

Today, Skip2PBX, an Italian-based company announced it is ready to launch its SIP-to-Skype gateway running on a PC running Linux. Mind you, this isn't the first claim of a SIP-to-Skype breakthrough, however, they claim to be the only Skype to PBX Gateway to directly support a variety of telephony hardware including Digium, Eicon, or a USB box. Unlike Actiontec's VoSKY Exchange Skype gateway products which maxes out at 8 ports where as the Skip2PBX claims up to 30 concurrent Skype PBX lines on a single serving PC. Impressive!

It features the ability to automatically finds a free line/port for the incoming or outgoing Skype call.

Skype Explains the Perfect Storm

August 21, 2007


So we now know that Windows Update (as I accurately theorized) was the culprit behind the Skype outage. So many people has been asking me why this latest Microsoft Update and series of patches was any different than previous Microsoft patches to cause the Skype meltdown. The answer in short was that it was a "Perfect Storm" of events that happened in combination that brought the Skype network to its knees.

The Skype Heartbeat explained it very well as follows:

2. What was different about this set of Microsoft update patches?

In short – there was nothing different about this set of Microsoft patches.






Skype Outage - Lessons Learned

August 20, 2007

Skype Outage caused by Windows Update

August 20, 2007

I'm never one to say I told you so, but it appears I was right about Windows Update (Patch Tuesday) causing the massive Skype outage. Many users were skeptical of this theory, as seen in the comments of my blog post. This from Skype Heartbeat:
On Thursday, 16th August 2007, the Skype peer-to-peer network became unstable and suffered a critical disruption. The disruption was triggered by a massive restart of our users’ computers across the globe within a very short timeframe as they re-booted after receiving a routine set of patches through Windows Update.

The high number of restarts affected Skype’s network resources.


Saturday Update on Skype Outage

August 18, 2007

Just received this email from Skype PR representative. Thought I'd share an excerpt of it. The gist is that Skype is now back to normal and on Monday they will finally provide a more detailed explanation. I'm kind of rooting for the tin hats'  theory about the CIA and FBI bringing down the Skype network.

Skype Offline Latest Update

August 17, 2007

Last night I read on Skype's website the following: "Our engineering team has determined that it's a software issue. We expect this to be resolved within 12 to 24 hours." The glitch has affected every copy of the Skype software that had been downloaded since the service's started in 2003."

Really now? 4 years this bug has existed in every single copy of Skype and now it crops up? This is mighty fishy.

Latest on the Skype Outage

August 16, 2007

Skype's Villu Arak responded to all the rumors as to why the Skype network went down.


It's not due to any Microsoft patch(es) or any hacker attacks. Just some boring reason about an algorithm deficiency. Still pretty vague if you ask me, especially considering the hooplah surrounding this outage. In any event, here's what he said:

Hello everyone,

Apologies for the delay, but we can now update you on the Skype sign-on issue.




Skype 2.7 for Mac Beta released

August 15, 2007

Today, Skype released Skype 2.7 for Mac Beta. According to Skype, "With “beta” on the label, there may be some wrinkles, kinks and unsprayed bugs which we’ll remove in time for a public release. With that in mind, feel free to download and play with it."

Here’s what’s new:

*    Group contacts – organize your contacts into as many groups as you need. While there are some pre-defined groups (like Online, Waiting Authorization, Recently Contacted), you’re free to add new ones that suit your life. This should be a godsend to those whose contact list has ballooned to hundreds of Skype users.



Dailymotion and Skype Launch Mood Channels

August 7, 2007

Today, Dailymotion and Skype have launched Mood Channels using MotionMaker Creative Content. Essentially, If I understand the release correctly, Dailymotion is a YouTube-like video website that has "hooked" into Skype to allow you to set your favorite video as your Skype mood. Then your Skype mood can be shared with your Skype buddies. Sounds like the video is played directly within the Skype window, but I'm not sure.

Talkety on iPhone

July 9, 2007

Since I just blogged about Skype on the iPhone using SoonR Talk in my previous post, I would be remiss if I didn't mention another VoIP solution for the Apple iPhone - namely Talkety.

With Talkety, you can have conference calls with up to 50 people, make long distance calls and sync your iPhone’s address book with your Talkety account. Technically, it isn't VoIP to the iPhone. Rather, just like the SoonR Skype workaround, it forwards calls to your iPhone, but leverage's Talkety's voice termination network (VoIP) for inexpensive calls.

Also, unlike SoonR Talk, Talkety doesn't require a PC to be turned on all the time with a special application installed. It simply uses your mobile phone's web browser and PSTN connection.



Featured Events