Smileys Emoticons

Skype which was first launched in 2003, has attracted a lot of attention over the years and has a big world wide following.

One of the biggest reasons for its success is the facility to make free Skype-to-Skype telephone calls anywhere in the world! All you need is a microphone and speakers, or a simple headset. Of course, you can also chat via video using an ordinary webcam.

Rather than using emails, you can use instant messaging which allows you to chat in a text-based format online. What’s more, you can enable chat history which will make it easy to keep a record of every chat you have had. The history tab shows the past several chats, calls, and file transfers you have made.

You can also chat in groups where everyone can see what everyone else is typing. There is also a handy feature if you need to chat privately with a group member. Simply click on their name and others won’t see the message.

Additionally, the history feature ensures that you do not  miss any of the conversation when you’re away from the computer. The next time you log in to group chat you can see all of the messages you missed. Just make sure that you do not click on the “leave chat” button as this will remove you from the group chat.

A cool business feature is the Skype conference call. You can make a conference call on Skype and you can even combine regular phone lines with Skype users in the same conference call. Needless to say, regular rates will apply for the regular phone call.

On the lighter side of things, there is a nice variety of smileys emoticons on Skype. In addition to the basic smiley and angry faces, there is also cake, coffee, a dancing figure and more to help express how you feel. You can change your background color or design if you don’t like the default color of your Skype and there is a possibility of further customization through the options menu.

With almost all instant messaging clients, there is a size limit on the files you can send. With Skype, however, files of any size can be sent via their service once both parties have been added to each other’s contacts list.

A lesser-known, but useful, Skype feature is the ability to easily send funds to your contacts via PayPal.

One of the most important features of Skype is that they offer their own mobile service. You can use Skype on several different mobile devices. The full version works on the iPhone and Windows phones. For other cell phones you will need Skype Lite.