As previously mentioned in the article entitled "What is Skype?" an increasing popular way to make long distance telephone calls, especially out of country, is using a VOIP service like Skype. VOIP stands for "voice over IP," which means that yes, it's an acronym that holds another acronym. "IP" means "Internet Protocol," so to break down "Voice Over Internet Protocol" it simply means that you can talk over the Internet like it's a phone.
To understand why this is impressive, one must first understand the difference between "analog" and "digital." If something is analog, it travels along a continuum. Think of this as the way someone can count between 1 and 2, using a seemingly infinite number of decimals between them. If something is digital, it's more like counting between 1 and 2 (well, 0 and 1 actually), but there are no decimals. It's either one or two. Sound is something that is analog, we can make a wide range of sounds, but computers and other electronic devices only understand digital (click here if you don't know why) so the trick is getting something to sound analog when in fact it's digital. I'll spare you the long explanation as to how that happens.
Once the sound is converted into a digital signal, it can then be sent over the Internet to anywhere you want it to go. When you use a service like Skype, you can "call" people to direct where your digitized voice will be sent to. The nice thing about the Internet is that whether your voice is going across town or across the world hardly changes the delay in conversation so it can simulate a phone very well, and since most countries have a decent connection to the Internet, it can usually also save you money versus using an actual telephone.
Practical Tip of the Day:
If you're travelling abroad, using a VOIP service can save you money versus calling long-distance, but be careful if you're using an "Internet anywhere" card or a smartphone to access the Internet for that purpose as roaming fees for data are often much heftier than roaming fees for voice, and a conversation over VOIP can use a significant amount of data. When travelling abroad, I usually recommend turning off data roaming and using Wifi only if possible to save you from surprise several hundred dollar phone bills when you return.
Showing posts with label VOIP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label VOIP. Show all posts
Thursday, July 5, 2012
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
What is Skype?
It's hard being away from the people you love. Grandparents thousands of miles away from grandchildren, a spouse travelling for work, or even just friends scattered to the wind after college. Yes, there's mail, phone, email and a list of other options available, but when you really just want to SEE the person, Skype is often the first program that comes to mind.
Now, mind you, Skype is not just for video chatting (talking to someone over video a la The Jetsons), but also does normal instant messaging, voice calling and is coming out with new and improved features every day. Its bread and butter though, what it's most known for, is video chatting. Both people need to have a Skype account, which is free and easy to set up, and when they're both using the Skype program, they can click a video camera button to start up the cameras on their respective machines and they'll be able to see each other in pretty-darn-close-to-real-time.
A good example of this is actually one of my own stories. When my husband and I were getting married, my mother couldn't come because she had knee surgery and couldn't travel. She had her computer connected to her TV, invited all the family and friends who couldn't make it over, popped popcorn and found comfy chairs. I simply logged into Skype on my smartphone, connected to her, said "Hi," and had one of my cousins hold the phone from the front row so my family thousands of miles away could watch the entire ceremony!
Practical Tip of the Day:
The next biggest thing Skype is known for is called VOIP, which stands for "voice over IP", which, in plain English means, using the Internet like a phone. This is popular because it means that you can make calls between computers instead of having to pay hefty international calling fees. VOIP calls aren't free, mind you, but they are usually significantly cheaper than through the phone companies. Check out Skype's webpage for more information about the costs associated with calling the various countries.
Now, mind you, Skype is not just for video chatting (talking to someone over video a la The Jetsons), but also does normal instant messaging, voice calling and is coming out with new and improved features every day. Its bread and butter though, what it's most known for, is video chatting. Both people need to have a Skype account, which is free and easy to set up, and when they're both using the Skype program, they can click a video camera button to start up the cameras on their respective machines and they'll be able to see each other in pretty-darn-close-to-real-time.
A good example of this is actually one of my own stories. When my husband and I were getting married, my mother couldn't come because she had knee surgery and couldn't travel. She had her computer connected to her TV, invited all the family and friends who couldn't make it over, popped popcorn and found comfy chairs. I simply logged into Skype on my smartphone, connected to her, said "Hi," and had one of my cousins hold the phone from the front row so my family thousands of miles away could watch the entire ceremony!
Practical Tip of the Day:
The next biggest thing Skype is known for is called VOIP, which stands for "voice over IP", which, in plain English means, using the Internet like a phone. This is popular because it means that you can make calls between computers instead of having to pay hefty international calling fees. VOIP calls aren't free, mind you, but they are usually significantly cheaper than through the phone companies. Check out Skype's webpage for more information about the costs associated with calling the various countries.
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