iChat and Skype Compatibility

[dpett006]

Hello all! I just recently purchased a Late 2008 MBP, my first mac. I absolutely love this thing and couldn't be happier with my purchase.

Onto my question. Are iChat and Skype compatible? Some of my family uses Skype, and I have yet to set up my iChat. If I use iChat with AIM, is there a way to connect with someone using skype? As I said, this is my first Mac, so I am still learning. Any input will be appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[Celeron]

iChat can't connect to Skype. Skype can't connect to AIM. There is a version of Skype for OS X though that works well. You'll have to use both iChat and Skype.

 

[hazoomeh]

Can somebody like Apple or Google buy Skype already and turn it into a working, cross-platform, bug-free application? holy balls. If I knew anything about programming I would have done this years ago and sold it for millions.

 

[CSVoltage]

they cant because Microsoft owns Skype. They invented it and it's bad business to make their stuff compatible with their largest competitor. Unfortunate, but true. The only chance for full compatibility is to use a third party program that works with both. Trillian is not bad, but the mac client is still in beta

 

[McGiord]

they cant because Microsoft owns Skype. They invented it and it's bad business to make their stuff compatible with their largest competitor. Unfortunate, but true. The only chance for full compatibility is to use a third party program that works with both. Trillian is not bad, but the mac client is still in beta

are you serious? skype is part of microsoft? since when? I thought it was from some independent european developers and then it was bought by eBay.

 

[chuckhughes]

I had no idea that Skype was part of Microsoft! How is it that Skype is going to join with Apple if Skype is with Microsoft! This doesnt make any sense.

 

[gorjan]

they cant because Microsoft owns Skype. They invented it and it's bad business to make their stuff compatible with their largest competitor. Unfortunate, but true. The only chance for full compatibility is to use a third party program that works with both. Trillian is not bad, but the mac client is still in beta

Hehe, you don't know what you're talking about. Skype was made by the same guys that wrote Kazaa, and later it was sold to eBay.

Skype is already compatible with all the largest platforms: OSX, linux and Windows. What are you talking about?

 

[dusk007]

Skype was bought by Microsoft not too long ago for an insane price tag (which it is never ever worth). It is Microsofts property only for some months now and so far nothing has changed at all.

The problem with skype ist that their GUI is just bad and worse. The current Mac Version is unusable. People started petitions in hope of some change. It would be nice to have some client that handles all IM including skype but as skype is really the only one most people still use today beside facebook, iChat is a lost cause imo.
I use the 2.8 Skype version on mac because that one was still fairly good without all the clutter and doesn't need too much space. Skype 5 in windows has at least the options to shrink somewhat into proportions on Mac it is a complete fail even on high res screens.

 

[bishopdante]

Yes, I have to say the newer skype versions for OSX are not good. I would use the 2.8 version, but it has now taken to crashing a lot.

Skype surely is owned by M$ now.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-...ng-payouts-after-microsoft-buyout-closes.html

Sadly, the contemporary business model with consumer network services is "give them out for free, and then datamine them for money", so skype is part of M$'s surveillance portfolio.

Most unhappy that there isn't an open standard for realtime streaming communications that most people can comfortably use, skype unfortunately created a closed protocol, a walled garden. Very few apps are skype compatible.