Having paid money to Skype in order to call normal telephone lines using the Skype Out service, it was pretty annoying when suddenly the service stopped allowing me to dial into teleconferences. The problem – dialing the number works fine, but then its impossible to enter the numbers (seems like every number entered registers twice, a kind of echo effect). Turns out its pretty much a hardware error. I came across one person that recommended using an alternative dial tone generator turned up real loud into the mic…. After cursing for a bit I just used a different headset (one that had worked before). My Logitech USB headset works like a charm. An older mic/headset model on the other hand doesn’t. My recommendation- make sure you’re using a decent USB headset and then Skype Out.
James Governor's Monkchips
How To Dial Into Teleconferences Using Skype Out
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vinnie mirchandani says:
September 6, 2007 at 3:34 pm
unconfirmed – but I have heard some of the conference bridges and voice mail systems of some of the bigger telcos do not recognize the tones generated on VoIP lines like Sykpe’s…I say unconfirmed because most now offer their own VoIP solutions not just to be mean to Skype
It is a fact that some of telcos were blocking calls to 800 services from Iowa… see comment from FreeConference below
http://dealarchitect.typepad.com/deal_architect/2007/05/telecom_for_the.html
The Logitech USB headset is fanstatic – but needs a clam shell. I have had 3 of them (usually the left side) pop out from their casing in my computer bag over last few years
Finally getting to Skype when you travel is so dependent on WIFI..and in many airports and hotels you get soaked…
Dennis Howlett says:
September 6, 2007 at 5:18 pm
Those Logitech headsets are the mutts nuts – recorded sound quality is excellent.
Vinnie’s right about number blocking which is plain anti-competitive and he’s also right about the design weakness of the cushioned ear pieces. Mine fell to pieces last week but I sorted it out with a bit of judicious jiggling. No apparent ill effects but worrying nonetheless.
Mikeyp says:
September 6, 2007 at 6:40 pm
In many cases, the Skype keypad will successfully send touch tones , if you put the call on hold for a moment after dialing, and before trying the touch tones.
jgovernor says:
September 7, 2007 at 12:23 pm
thanks for the feedback guys.
yes Vinnie- I know IBM’s service provider blocks Skype somehow… which is a drag.
Dennis – I agree about Logitech, the quality is awesome.
mikeyp – that sounds like a really useful tip. will try that for sure.