I'm thinking about trying to get as many members involved with Skype as we can. Are there any Skype users out there?
I know several people who use it to speak with family...and they do enjoy it. I've been using Ventrilo for when I "get my geek on" and do some gaming. My guess is that Skype is basically the same thing. Seems like a pretty good idea.
By the way...I am VERY new to this aspect of modelling. Paper/Card Modelling beat out Plastic a while back. Balsa and Tissue modelling has almost completely beat out Paper and Card. And now it seems that this will be the next great challenge for me. :)
I speak to my son in Korea often. I don't keep skype open as it interferes with my PC's processor and speed goes way down.
Lou
I used Skype many years ago. I have used Teamspeak but that requires purchasing of servers. I have also used MSN Messenger for group chat. Worked fine and was free. I had a conversation with a friend in Panama and Italy at the same time. I guess the rats got to chewing on lines in Panama and he dropped out, but my connection with Italy was clear as a bell and sounded like he was in the next room.
My stupid sound card, by a "reputable" vendor of the "Creative" type, would not allow me to use my microphone. I was really ticked off when I spent a lot of money to upgrade to a better sound card and my mic quit working. They know about it and won't fix it. I recently got a USB headset with a mic and tried it out with Teamspeak 3. Works like a charm. Since it was a Microsoft brand it works well with Messenger. Microsoft may raise the blood pressure of some people but I have found, for the most part, their products do actually work together, even as the OS progresses upward.
So, I submit a recommendation for Microsoft Messenger because it can be used both in text chat and voice over internet, worldwide, free. Just need to sign up for one of their email addresses. Of course, if you want to talk to a voice landline, that costs money, but I have Vonage for that.
Ken Pugh
Oh, yeah. For those of you with mics to use with voice over internet. Make sure you mute the mic or unplug the thing when you are done with chat, otherwise you could be transmitting over your group/server when you least expect it. I busted out laughing when I heard about someone on one of my online games getting chewed out by his mommy for being online too long. He didn't know to mute the mic when big, bad, mommy came in the room.
Ken Pugh
Well I have my Skype set up. :P
Let me know by Email or IM if you want my Call Sign.
The best thing is I can call Land-lines for free or really cheap. Even Australia, Canada and England!
I know someone who uses Skype to communicate from USA with a family member in Asia, and they were surprised at the sound quality considering the cost (very little, if any). The difference in time zones is the only problem.
This site pretty well clears that up;
http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/ (http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/)