Filed under: Software, Internet Tools
Skype updates to 2.7 (.0.257)
Skype, which has become my primary means of communicating with anyone not standing directly in front of me, has updated to version 2.7.0.257 with improvements, changes and a very, very long list of bugfixes.
I'm happy, possibly even thrilled, about an alleged improvement in video stability. If you've ever used the video features, you've probably noticed that, in numerous scenarios, Skype prefers to show up more in your crash logs than on your desktop. I haven't had a chance to fully test out the video portion of this update and the release notes simply refer to it as "improved stability", so I'm hoping for the best.
The 20+ bugfixes, by and large, deal mostly with errors I haven't run into and one grammatical correction to a dialog. Oh, and they fixed the language name for Belarusian, which could potentially appease 9,081,102* people.
Fewer crashes and proper grammar are tantalizing but, as is usually the case, I find the API additions to be the most exciting. The Skype API is AppleScript-able and fairly comprehensive. This update adds more interface access, new voicemail features, and a few intriguing looking options which I'll just have to play with to understand.
It would be nice if the updater built into Skype actually did what the name implies, but for now you'll have to head for the web page and get it yourself. Be sure to check out the release notes.

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Andrew A. said 7:04PM on 2-13-2008
Uhm....it's been 2.7 for a while. I've been using 2.7.0.152 for almost 4 months. The latest version, I just updated to is 2.7.0.257.
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Brett Terpstra said 7:18PM on 2-13-2008
Apologies, corrected.
Deepu Sudhakar said 7:19PM on 2-13-2008
I'm under the impression that the previous 2.7 releases were beta releases.
Tim said 7:20PM on 2-13-2008
No this is new, I only checked (and re-downloaded) Skype yesterday or the day before, and online was version 2.6.0.184 from December. Hopefully this fixes the numerous bugs, including an annoying one with the chat window not opening properly. fingers crossed.
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Shep said 1:25PM on 3-08-2008
Any word as to whether or not this update fixes spam issues?
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Simon said 7:37PM on 2-13-2008
It's got a new (less shiny and more hi-res) icon, that's for sure...
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Andrew said 8:43PM on 2-13-2008
The Skype updater works fine for me.
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KELLY said 11:45PM on 2-13-2008
This update just broke my skype
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tukan said 8:49PM on 2-13-2008
I certainly hope that I won't be plagued by constant crashes and "signal lost" messages now that it is out of beta.
Thanks for the update, Skype updater, obviously doesn't know about itself :P
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Cowper said 10:36PM on 2-13-2008
What happened to growl support????
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taoprophet420 said 10:45PM on 2-13-2008
Growl went missing when the last beta came out. I was just coming to ask if anyone had a clue why the option is not under notification anymore. i know growl notifications sill popped up with the beta. Not tried with new version yet.
Brett Terpstra said 10:49PM on 2-13-2008
Yep, the notifications still pop up in Growl, but the options are all gone from the preferences, which I hadn't noticed yet. Weird.
taoprophet420 said 10:56PM on 2-13-2008
i cant remeber the options it had under notifications, but I think u can change it still if u go to pref panel and go to growl then select skype from applications and configure it from there.
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Brett Terpstra said 11:04PM on 2-13-2008
Right on.
phytonix said 12:31AM on 2-14-2008
Skype is so expensive to use now after eBay bought it.
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Dina said 5:46AM on 2-14-2008
Skype has a new icon too, not as glossy..I like it.
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Blaktornado said 11:42PM on 2-15-2008
Don't like the new icon... less shiny... less fitting with the rest of Leopard. Thankfully, I know how to change application icons ;)
I like the new downloads manager. Mimics FireFox, Safari, Adium, etc... Now all we need is a Universal downloads manager to replace the need for all these various extra download windows we have open!... wait... good idea! Time to make millions off it!
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rcfa said 8:12AM on 2-16-2008
Skype: YUCK! Might as well be a Microsloth product: proprietary, closed. And did I mention it's proprietary and closed?
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Skype free download fan said 4:11PM on 2-17-2008
Very interesting. Thanks.
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KSB said 4:06PM on 2-21-2008
We are experiencing Kernal Panics after this last skype version, 2 machines have been hit hard and have crashed 4 times today. Voice works fine, but as soon as video conversation is turned on, bad things happen :(.... not good
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