I use Skype to talk to my home (about three blocks from my office) and to talk to a friend in Hungary (more than a few blocks from Ashland). I would use it with more folks, but most of my friends are too primitive to download Skype into their computers; one just recently gave up his rotary phone. You Americans! The calls on the internet are free when the other person also has Skype (and if you click above, you can download it for free). So, I can talk for hours at no cost. And, by the way, the sound quality is much better than any phone I’ve ever used. Not a bad deal, huh? Skype was developed by a couple of guys in Estonia, and was recently bought by eBay. Well, it turns out that calls on Skype may be impossible to wiretap. So it might be me and four million terrorists on Skype at any one time! Too bad.
Dr. Schramm,
It is indeed refreshing to see your ever-expanding usage of 21st century technology. Do you still have the old manual typewriter??
Two things about Skype has hindered its widespread adotion:
1. Skype was certainly on the ground floor of the VOIP market that we’ve seen in the last few years. But, We Americans still like to talk on a phone! So, Vonage became the preferred integration for VOIP customers. Heck, even our local cable company has gotten into the act.
2. Skype was built by the same folks who brought us , the P2P file sharing service. Kazaa reputedly contains spyware and target="_blank">adware.
While the NSA may not be able to eavesdrop on your calls, one wonders if the software itself cannot do it.
Caveat Emptor!
I’m with Mr. Anderson. It is made by the same people who brought us Kazaa. That alone is enough to turn me away. It may be ’free’ but I’m wondering how much other information is being passed along from your PC with this program.