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Dear Skype/Microsoft: Problems with Linux client

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Re: Dear Skype/Microsoft: Problems with Linux client

#31

Post by nakedrobot2 »

Skype worked far, far better 10 years ago than it does today. From all indications I've seen, Skype is getting dramatically worse all the time. From a personal standpoint, it crashes for me multiple times a day and I can rarely get group calls working on the first try. Often Skype requires a force-quit and then it crashes twice more when it is being restarted. This is on Mac and Android.

Fun fact: I have a friend who worked for Skype in Prague. He said the codebase is a true horror, an extreme mess, and that soon it would "reach a singularity" :-) He also said that there are whole parts of the codebase that he was not allowed to see, all indications pointing to stuff related to routing the traffic through servers of "the man" ;-)

Re: Dear Skype/Microsoft: Problems with Linux client

#32

Post by lyncisnice »

Is this a surprise, really?

Lync (their custom, completely incompatibile VOIP solution sold to -- idiots, essentially) only works half-decently on windows. There's an OSX option, but it's just a factual checklist on the product spec, as in reality it's garbage.

The best part, is that "skype for business" actually lowers the quality of the product even more. I had my own set of issues with Lync, but it just doubled since we had to transition.

And that's for the "business" side.

Re: Dear Skype/Microsoft: Problems with Linux client

#33

Post by fenesiistvan »

oever wrote: post #10
thejosh wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cool, but the power of Skype isn't the VOIP part, it's that others use it want to call you.

No, that is not the point. The post here is about Skype not working on Linux. If Skype is the only way to reach a person, that would be a real issue. Luckily nearly everyone still has a normal telephone number on which they can be reached. There are many options to dial to normal telephone numbers all over the world at very low cost. For voice communication, people should use established, vendor-independent standards…

Actually I fully agree with you. Linux should be about open standards and freedom. Skype breaks both. I suggest to everyone to use some VoIP app based on open standards (SIP) and not the vendor locked Skype.

Re: Dear Skype/Microsoft: Problems with Linux client

#35

Post by i336_ »

lucaspiller wrote: post #27
i336_ wrote: post #15

While I'm unsure about the inability to join calls, I can at least agree that the Linux client is terrible. I finally caved a few months ago, got an account, and started using it ("oh wow it handles 's/woops/fixed/', that's awesome")... until the client began freezing, chewing 100% CPU for as long as I patiently left it running, and not getting itself sorted out. Removing ~/.Skype (XDG, anybody?) and re-signing in wo…

> until the client began freezing, chewing 100% CPU for as long as I patiently left it running, and not getting itself sorted out. The same happens for me on iOS and OS X quite often. I disabled mobile data and push notifcations on iOS as it sucked up tonnes of data (I've seen 30MB/day even when I haven't opened the app), and repeated or delayed notifications. Whenever I open a conversation I have to leave it 30s - 1…

ooh wow.

I have to admit, searching for "skype 100% cpu" or similar shows lots of people having this problem on Windows and OS X, so I wonder if I'm not just seeing disasterousness in a shared part of the codebase.

I never even touched the mobile app though; 30MB/day is insane. Wow...

Re: Dear Skype/Microsoft: Problems with Linux client

#36

Post by ex3ndr »

SunShiranui wrote: post #18

Skype has been getting worse and worse over the years. Personally I've switched to Telegram for chats, and I'll be looking for alternatives as far as voice calls are concerned.

Our project added calls in latest release: actor.im, works much better than skype

Re: Dear Skype/Microsoft: Problems with Linux client

#37

Post by ex3ndr »

lyncisnice wrote: post #32

Is this a surprise, really? Lync (their custom, completely incompatibile VOIP solution sold to -- idiots, essentially) only works half-decently on windows. There's an OSX option, but it's just a factual checklist on the product spec, as in reality it's garbage. The best part, is that "skype for business" actually lowers the quality of the product even more. I had my own set of issues with Lync, but it just doubled si…

Sad thing is that skype for business/lync is bundled with office products and when we came to some big enterprises they say "we have free lync!". Insane.

Re: Dear Skype/Microsoft: Problems with Linux client

#38

Post by gargravarr »

Not sure I understand the issue here, can someone summarise? Yes, Skype is an utter POS on Linux (90s UI, total incompatibility with any of the fancy things like picture sharing, inability to join group calls etc.) but the link implies the client can no longer participate in calls. I was chatting to a friend just yesterday via the Linux client - they called me and I accepted the call.

Re: Dear Skype/Microsoft: Problems with Linux client

#40

Post by haddr »

Skype on Linux is far inferior recently. Mostly due to the fact that the Linux version has been somehow abandoned. It haven't received updates since at least 1 year. For example, one recent change is that when someone sends a picture, on Linux you are sent a link to it, where you have to go to the Skype website and login in order to view it (and login each time you open a link). Sometimes it's a resized version of the picture which makes things worse. Another thing is the screen sharing. On Linux you can't share screen with more that 1 person, making it useless for telcos at work. And there is much more...
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