Skype Messaging Sync Goes Live

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skype

Skype audio seems to blow away voice quality on any similar VOIP solution yet I’ve been a big Skype user. It mostly seems like a relic of the past which is largely used for communication between users in different companies. Skype users have long complained that in the era of multiple devices that Skype is far behind because it doesn’t synchronize alerts between all devices.

I rarely, if ever, use Skype instant messaging, primarily because I live inside Gmail, and Google Hangouts present a more convenient desktop and mobile experience. I have on occasion turned on Skype and been hounded with countless incoming alerts for missed instant messages.

Starting today Microsoft says the problem of multiple alerts should begin to go away – though they probably won’t achieve the nirvana of active device synchronization (so that only one device will ring an alert) until some unspecified future date.

There’s no update to load. Apparently this is all done in the background on Microsoft’s servers.

We know that as users have started using Skype on multiple devices, they’ve had difficulty keeping conversations in sync, or they’ve missed messages and seen “read” messages on one device that are still marked as “unread” on another. We’ve been working hard to solve these issues while adding other experiences to make an improved Skype chat.

Now, push notifications make sure you know when you have a new message in chat, and Skype chats are synced across all of your Skype-enabled devices.

 

You can scroll back on your mobile phone to see the conversation you had on your laptop just as easily as the chat you had with your best friend on your smartphone about a recipe.

 

We also understand the importance of knowing that messages you send have been delivered and that you receive all of the messages sent to you. Now you can have peace of mind that your friends will receive messages even if they’re not on Skype at the time you hit “send,” and, if you’ve read a Skype message on your phone, it’ll show as “read” when you check your messages on your laptop later in the evening.

 

To accompany these changes, we’ve continued to optimize our overall mobile performance, so you’ll also see improvements to battery life, startup times, and resume times. We’ve improved load times for the app and for recent conversations; in addition, it’s now faster to return to the app when it’s not running in the foreground as well as faster to start up, allowing you to chat all day every day without the fear of unwanted battery drain.

And, in the coming months, we’ll continue to enhance your chat experience such that you’ll only receive notifications on the device you’re actively using. For example, if you’re on your tablet, then you’ll only see the notification there and additional notifications won’t double (or triple) up on your other devices. Also, your Favorites contact list will “roam” and sync across all of your Skype-enabled devices.

via: Microsoft

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About the Author

Wayne Schulz
Wayne is a diehard Android user and consultant specializing in Sage 100 ERP Accounting Software. He lives in Glastonbury CT with his two children. When not helping them with their homework or pushing the latest school fundraiser off on his co-workers, he is active hiking and investigating all manner of technology.