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may be going · Joined: 18 May 2004 Posts: 129 Location: australia

i assume you're saying i have put forth misinformation, but i don't know how you reached that conclusion.

why is it comparing apples and oranges to compare using the internet to call home and using a landline to call home? really, i don't get the difference.

to use a landline, you need a phone connection. to use the internet, you need a phone connection. to use the landline, you need a phone. to use the internet, you need a computer. once you have those, then you make the call on your respective machine and you talk. what's so different about that?

as for connections, i don't know what you're talking about in terms of connection speeds. i live in chiba, in a relatively remote area, my connection is great. i have friends in osaka, kitakyushu, sapporo, nagoya, ibaraki, kyoto, okinawa, saitama off the top of my head. some in rural areas. all have great connections and we all use skype.

as for saying 'for all people know, skype could be a brand of sports beverage!' what's with that? did you not see me put a link to the website and say check it out for yourself? it's not rocket science to click a link in 2006.

and what's heavy equipment? a computer and some headphones? in 2006?

maybe we'll agree to disagree. but the guy wanted info. on calling home. i said skype's easily the cheapest. i compared prices between a landline and skype. it was your decision to compare the two for logistics involved. i simply compared prices.

abufletcher · Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2006 11:23 am Post subject:

Not being afraid to try new things, I tried to download and install Skype and found a problem for some Mac users. Apparently you have to have at least OS X 10.3 installed for the newest version to work (and that appears to be the only version available from the website). Well since my computer at work (from where I'd really like to be using Skype) only has 10.2 so I'm out of luck without a system upgrade.

Oh well. I guess I can try it out on my laptop.

abufletcher · Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2006 11:25 am Post subject:

BTW, I love the idea of using a USB telephone handset with Skype -- it's a wonderful blend of old and new! I never did like the idea of using a headset to talk on the phone.

canuck · Joined: 11 May 2003 Posts: 1921 Location: Japan

You can get a Logitech web cam with a built in microphone. Video and hands free. Exclamation

abufletcher · Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2006 12:21 pm Post subject:

Actually I already have an iSight that I used with iChat AV (which totally blows away ANY other video chat hardware/software combo I've seen). Also my Mac laptop has a build in mic so I could just use that.

I've now downloaded Skype to my laptop and done the sound check and things sound very good. I'll do a bit more testing then get my tech savvy son to download Skype on his end in the US.

BTW, YahooBB phone does in fact work entirely without a computer (phone and ethernet cord both just plug into the router provided). And last time I checked the cost was about 3 yen per minute to the US. Is Skype to normal phone actually cheaper than that. Seems hard to imagine.

But Skype's going to be a big boon when I'm traveling and don't have access to YahooBB.

JimDunlop2 · Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Posts: 2286 Location: Japan

may be going · Joined: 18 May 2004 Posts: 129 Location: australia

yahoo bb's website currently has a call to mainland usa at 7.99 yen per minute. skype is currently listed at 2.737 yen per minute. more than a third cheaper. 30 minute call on yahoobb to mainland usa is 240 yen. same call on skype is 82 yen.

to australia is a bigger difference. it's 23 yen per minute to oz on yahoobb. 2.737 on skype. so 30 mins. on yahoobb is 690 yen. on skype is 82 yen. over the course of many calls over a year or more, that's massive savings.

as i said earlier, if you're after cheap rates, you can't beat skype that i'm aware of.

abufletcher · Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2006 2:32 pm Post subject:

David W · Joined: 17 Jan 2003 Posts: 457 Location: Japan

JimDunlop2 · Joined: 31 Jan 2003 Posts: 2286 Location: Japan

Abu: I realize the cost of a phone LINE is more than 20$, but the expense of a phone line is common to both VoIP and POTS.

As for the $1000 figure, that hasn't been true for several years now. It is possible to RENT a phone line instead of BUYING one like you had to do years ago. The per-month cost is only a few hundred yen.

Please see www.bricks.co.jp for some good, fairly clear information on phone lines in Japan.

True, you don't need to have your own computer for Skype, but it sure helps. Otherwise you may find yourself downloading software and hooking up and headset (or Skype handset) at work or an Internet Cafe... Also, I usually don't walk around with a headset for the purpose of calling home... It's just inconvenient.

As well, I don't know about anyone else, but I get a little uncomfortable with a bunch of people around me listening to my phone conversations... Smile

.

Skype is all well and good but I still have a few big complaints. Whenever I use it, it's a crapshoot whether the line I get will be good or laggy. I've found myself calling my party back a number of times before I got a decent line out. Also, computer lag has played a part in the matter too. Not always, but sometimes. I have both a headset AND a Skype handset (USB-plug telephone). It's really cool and I prefer it to the headset (which is awful) but still not quite the same as a regular phone. Finally, I wish Skype would finally get a Canadian Skype-in number pool. Then they'd really get my attention.

P.S. In regards to typing in a zillion numbers with Brastel, if you only use it from a single line (like from home) you can register the number with the Brastel card so you don't have to punch in any numbers except the 0091-2020 prefix, then country code and phone number.

abufletcher · Posted: Fri Mar 31, 2006 12:32 am Post subject:

Ah how times have changed! Back in 1983 when I was working in Kuwait, the only way to make a telephone call back home was to go into a room packed with Egyptians, sit down at a little desk, and then have your call with god and everyone listening in! For really important stuff you sent a telex!

Later to cut down on enormous phone bills we bought a fax machine and sent quickie letters back and forth like some prehistoric version of chat. BTW, I'm still using that SAME fax machine/phone here in Japan 23 years later!

From there we moved on to the KallBack system which got the local telephone companies all hot and bothered for all the revenue they were losing. Then in the mid 90's Net2Phone made it's appearance. This was a precursor to Skype -- actually it was (is?) exactly like Skype. But the quality of broadband, at least at the time, made it of questionable use. The lag was really noticeable. Enough so that it frequently became the topic of the talk.

Then textchat came into the picture, and then full internet phone services like YahooBB and Vonage. It's still amazing to me that I can be having an hour long call with family in the US for about $2.

And now of course, with iSight you have full screen face-to-face video chat. Oh where will it all end!!!

Gordon · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Posts: 5309 Location: Japan

abufletcher · Posted: Fri Mar 31, 2006 3:19 am Post subject:

I'd be happy with one of those devices they have on Star Trek in the mess hall that magically creates whatever speciality dish anyone wants. Desperate for a slice of Boysenberry pie? Zap yourself one!

may be going · Joined: 18 May 2004 Posts: 129 Location: australia

yes just a correction as someone else pointed out. yahoobb is 7.99 yen for 3 minutes to the USA. which is absolutely fantastic. however such a rate is exclusive to the US.

australia is 23 yen per minute as is uk. canada 12, nz 28. so pretty nice for the US indeed.