Skype – Safe, Secure and Legal Tony Brett Deputy Head of Information and Support Group Head of IT Support Staff Services Oxford University Computing Services

We’ll talk about these things Why use Skype? Installing and Configuring Doing it on a mobile device Getting the environment right Prepare, Test and Practise Doing a presentation with slides Working with a partner organisation Backup plans Working with the PSTN Demo Final tips

People use Skype because... Skype to Skype calls are free Skype is cheaper than airline tickets Some friends/family are a long way away It’s good to see someone as well as hear them Video gives a much better sense of communication Sound quality can be better than a regular phone It’s pretty easy to install and set up It can be used for interviews

People dislike Skype because... Voice delay can be difficult It can invade privacy It can be a barrier to doing work Not a whole lot else!

IT Staff are your friends... If you expect support for using Skype... Or if the machine is college/dept owned... Then as your IT Support Staff first. It makes their life easier and yours!

Don’t start it unless you need it At login, need to untick “Start Skype when the computer starts”

Doing it on a mobile device Now available for Android, iOS tablets and phones Can use front facing camera Use WiFi rather than 3G if possible Can be extremely useful Make sure battery is well-charged

Equipment Camera should be reasonable quality but you don’t need to spend a fortune Echo-cancelling Microphones are useful for group situations Headset good for echo-cancelling for just one user Consider a data projector for a bigger interview panel Don’t rely on computer speaker and microphone Don’t run laptops on batteries!

Your computer needs to have the resources free to do it Use wired rather than WiFi network connection if you can 100kbits/s each way Not much these days Shut down other applications Other apps can have a huge impact on quality Avoid Relays, Supernodes, TCP You can see this stuff in technical call info Make sure you are using a current or at least recent version of Skype Encoding is better and requires less bandwidth

Environment is important Avoid distractions in the background If you are wondering what is going on out of frame then ask! Use appropriate lighting and do it yourself too Be careful with bright sun as cameras are not as contrast-sensitive as human eyes Back-lighting creates silhouettes, too much light gives washed-out appearance Make sure cameras are at correct height so you can both look directly into them

Not at 3am in Pyjamas Think about times of calls, sensitive to their timezone and yours Best if both parties are alone Shared spaces are bad for this Dress appropriately for anything even semi-formal Don’t do anything on a skype call you wouldn’t do in person They may have another screen or be recording!

Beware of being recorded... Can use two channels One for interviewer, one for interviewee Pamela is a Skype add-on that you can use You should get permission to record (as part of the recording) It’s OK to ask if you are being recorded

Nobody likes 3am... Do you work better in the morning or evening? When do they work better? Can you agree a time that works for both of you? Don’t be afraid to ask

Test & Practice Do a test call with someone you know who is nearby so you can meet them face to face afterwards and compare notes Do test calls the day before the main call to test quality and agree time Important to do at same time of day as the real call to check bandwidth etc. Do another test 10 mins before if you wish This depends on how important the call is

Doing a presentation with slides You could have colleague send you a presentation for you to advance when they say Can put it on a projector and colleague on computer screen Make sure you are both on same slide Use numbers! More recent versions of Skype enable screen sharing But this consumes more bandwidth so use with care

Partner organisations can help You may have a good relationship with your old school or University They may be willing to set up a Skype Room Have better AV equipment Maybe a graphics tablet for showing working of problems Technical support to hand

Have a backup plan Things can go wrong! Get a phone number you can call the other person on, in advance Be sure to ring other party if Skype fails and you can’t reconnect They will need reassuring! You may be able to email

You can have a phone number and call phones This costs money Can be much cheaper than using normal phones Quality not as good as skype-skype calls SMS also possible Can be useful for a function-specific phone number requirement

Demo

Remember... It’s OK to give this a go Don’t let the odd problem put you off If it goes wrong you can try again Digital natives are more comfortable with this stuff than you might think This isn’t the best way to speak and I would always prefer face-to-face But it is better than none at all and better even than just phone

Questions? Thank you for attending today