Back in the pre-Internet era, people living far away would more often than not keep in touch via the mail, sending an occasional letter or package. In fact, many elementary schools took up pen-pal programs in order to communicate with cultures on the opposite ends of the world. Sure, the telephone was around and people could make long-distance and international calls, but prices were a bit expensive, not to mention that connections were usually choppy.
Once the Internet exploded on to the scene, people seemed to forget that the postal service even existed; emails replaced hand-written letters within no time. Actually, not many people can remember the last time they put a stamp on an envelope to send a message to a loved one.
When higher speeds and computer camera technology started to come out, video chat services like Skype became the next big thing, allowing people to connect from all over the world via a live Internet link. And with more and more people going abroad, either to study, intern or work, Skype is being utilized more and more as the primary means of communication since it is cheap and because people are able to see each other through a small video projector. There are, however, a few issues with Skype that most people tend to overlook.
To start, since many people use Skype to communicate internationally, the program tends to crash a lot. Because of the memory required to maintain a connection and run audio and video, Skype takes up a lot of bandwidth when making a call. For countries where the Internet infrastructure is not as developed as in the United States, this can cause delays in conversations, the video freezing suddenly or the entire call dropping. This is something that does not happen with most international calling plans or VoIP services.
The most important thing to understand about Skype, however, is that it is not a phone service; many people do not realize this. The system focuses primarily on computer-to-computer communication, using a high-speed Internet connection to link up a conversation. Granted, the service can call both landline and cell phones, but money has to be preloaded on to the program in order for that to work. Additionally, signing up for Skype does not mean receiving a phone number; members have to pay an extra fee to have and retain a personal Skype number.
But the biggest problem with Skype is the fact that many people rely on it as their primary phone without understanding that it is not possible to call 911 or other emergency services. Skype states this in their contract, but many tend to overlook it. Therefore, people who may use Skype for all of their phone and video chat communication cannot call the police if an emergency were to occur. This poses a serious problem to the many who blindly follow the popularity bandwagon of the program without seriously analyzing the rules and regulations.
Yet, the program still continues to grow and expand, incorporating itself on portable communication devices and smart phones. And because it is a phone company that is actually not a phone company, it seems that more problems could eventually arise in the future.
Guest author, Roger Collings runs his own telecoms consultancy from the UK and uses his knowledge to make sure that people get the right business telephone systems for their needs. With a wealth of knowledge on various technology and communications subjects, his expertise means that his articles are published around the Internet.
