Skype install in the Heron
July 29, 2008 3:24 AM Subscribe
Very recently migrated to Ubuntu and want to install Skype... help!
I have an Acer Aspire 3620 (that's running three to four times faster now, thank you very much Mr. Torvald --- and MANY MANY OTHERS!) that's had new life breathed into it by a kindly heron. I used linux a bit while I was in college but have lost most of my knowledge of the OS. I really need to install skype to talk to my folks in the US (I live in Taiwan).
Anyone want to humor me?
I have an Acer Aspire 3620 (that's running three to four times faster now, thank you very much Mr. Torvald --- and MANY MANY OTHERS!) that's had new life breathed into it by a kindly heron. I used linux a bit while I was in college but have lost most of my knowledge of the OS. I really need to install skype to talk to my folks in the US (I live in Taiwan).
Anyone want to humor me?
I don't know if Skype is included in any Ubuntu repositories (I'm guessing no), but Skype have a .deb package for Ubunutu on their Linux download page.
posted by ghost of a past number at 3:38 AM on July 29, 2008
posted by ghost of a past number at 3:38 AM on July 29, 2008
Response by poster: There's no skype in the repositories - sadly - and trolling through forums has left me a bit confused about whether the .deb will work with my architecture (Centrino M).
posted by Dr.James.Orin.Incandenza at 3:43 AM on July 29, 2008
posted by Dr.James.Orin.Incandenza at 3:43 AM on July 29, 2008
Response by poster: errr... that shoulda read 'Celeron M'
posted by Dr.James.Orin.Incandenza at 3:43 AM on July 29, 2008
posted by Dr.James.Orin.Incandenza at 3:43 AM on July 29, 2008
I installed Skype through Automatix. Although the process to install Automatix wasn't that straightforward either, it makes it easy to install a lot of extras for Ubuntu that aren't available in the standard repositories.
posted by Gomez_in_the_South at 3:58 AM on July 29, 2008
posted by Gomez_in_the_South at 3:58 AM on July 29, 2008
Best answer: This will either be extremely easy, or an enormous pain in the ass. I had skype working in 7.10, upgraded to 8.04, and now I've spent countless hours futzing around with PulseAudio and sound libraries trying to get everthing working.
You don't mention which version you have, in 8.04 there is a repository, you just need to do
sudo apt-get install skype
from the command line and the basic installation is done.
Otherwise, you can download the .deb from skype.com, and use dpkg to install it.
My problem is that skype will not play nicely with pulseaudio. I can work around this issue by using esound by calling skype from the command line with:
esddsp skype
However, there is still horrible echo, and I can't get rid of it.
The best place to start troubleshooting is here.
posted by no1hatchling at 4:18 AM on July 29, 2008 [1 favorite]
You don't mention which version you have, in 8.04 there is a repository, you just need to do
sudo apt-get install skype
from the command line and the basic installation is done.
Otherwise, you can download the .deb from skype.com, and use dpkg to install it.
My problem is that skype will not play nicely with pulseaudio. I can work around this issue by using esound by calling skype from the command line with:
esddsp skype
However, there is still horrible echo, and I can't get rid of it.
The best place to start troubleshooting is here.
posted by no1hatchling at 4:18 AM on July 29, 2008 [1 favorite]
There's no skype in the repositories - sadly - and trolling through forums has left me a bit confused about whether the .deb will work with my architecture (Centrino M).
The package you want is the Ubuntu 7.04+ link here.
posted by no1hatchling at 4:23 AM on July 29, 2008
The package you want is the Ubuntu 7.04+ link here.
posted by no1hatchling at 4:23 AM on July 29, 2008
Automatix has been purchased by a private company, development has been cancelled, and Hardy Heron isn't really supported (yes, it's possible), but a newer project called ultamatix is out there. Just to get Skype, there's no real need. The Ubuntu 7.04+ package should install just fine, I dropped it on an older Dell running 8.04 a couple of weeks ago without issue. As long as you meet the requirements (1Ghz, 256MB, and 20MB free space) I don't think the architecture is going to make a huge difference, it's an i386 package, not processor specific.
posted by pupdog at 4:29 AM on July 29, 2008
posted by pupdog at 4:29 AM on July 29, 2008
The OP mentioned "a kindly heron", so I'm guessing he's using 8.04. I couldn't find the repositories no1hatchlng speaks of, however.
posted by cgg at 7:41 AM on July 29, 2008
posted by cgg at 7:41 AM on July 29, 2008
Skype is in the Medibuntu repositories (I've checked it's there for Gutsy and Hardy.) Add their 'non-free' repository (it's still free as in at no cost to you) and you can just add it in Synaptic or with apt-get or the tool of your choice.
posted by Zed_Lopez at 7:56 AM on July 29, 2008
posted by Zed_Lopez at 7:56 AM on July 29, 2008
I was able to get Skype to run on my Ubuntu system, but, getting my Logitech camera to work was another story.
posted by trbrts at 8:22 AM on July 29, 2008
posted by trbrts at 8:22 AM on July 29, 2008
Ah, yes, I have added the medibuntu repositories.
Follow the instructions here to add them yourself, or just download from skype.com. It's the same package.
posted by no1hatchling at 9:00 AM on July 29, 2008
Follow the instructions here to add them yourself, or just download from skype.com. It's the same package.
posted by no1hatchling at 9:00 AM on July 29, 2008
Best answer: Just download this: http://www.skype.com/go/getskype-linux-deb
Then, open a terminal and run this:
posted by cdmwebs at 9:49 AM on July 29, 2008
Then, open a terminal and run this:
sudo dpkg -i skype-debian*.debIf you have any dependency issues, post them back here.
posted by cdmwebs at 9:49 AM on July 29, 2008
Installing is easy. The above will get you there.
Not so obvious: Get a USB mic+headset, not something you plug into the mic/headphone audio ports. Consign all sound access to the new USB sound device. The built-in will work, but never well.
Research Linux compatibility before you buy one, too. Most are straightforward, but if you buy a whiz-bang device pioneered a month ago, then it's not likely to work without a lot of effort.
posted by cmiller at 12:19 PM on July 29, 2008
Not so obvious: Get a USB mic+headset, not something you plug into the mic/headphone audio ports. Consign all sound access to the new USB sound device. The built-in will work, but never well.
Research Linux compatibility before you buy one, too. Most are straightforward, but if you buy a whiz-bang device pioneered a month ago, then it's not likely to work without a lot of effort.
posted by cmiller at 12:19 PM on July 29, 2008
I have a Hardy laptop.
The download page says that it's for an earlier Ubuntu version, but it works fine on Heron.
When you have downloaded it in Firefox, you should actually get a prompt asking you if you want to install the new .deb.
no1hatchling, what crazy repos do you have set up? Because Skype isn't in the default Ubuntu ones.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 2:49 PM on July 29, 2008
The download page says that it's for an earlier Ubuntu version, but it works fine on Heron.
When you have downloaded it in Firefox, you should actually get a prompt asking you if you want to install the new .deb.
no1hatchling, what crazy repos do you have set up? Because Skype isn't in the default Ubuntu ones.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 2:49 PM on July 29, 2008
I just did this last week, see the 15-second install guide from help.ubuntu.com here. It worked flawlessly.
posted by Cobalt at 3:51 PM on July 29, 2008
posted by Cobalt at 3:51 PM on July 29, 2008
Response by poster: I used dpdk to install the .deb and just got off the phone with my mother in California - worked GREAT! No snags, no probs, and many thanks to all of you!
posted by Dr.James.Orin.Incandenza at 11:38 PM on July 29, 2008
posted by Dr.James.Orin.Incandenza at 11:38 PM on July 29, 2008
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posted by pompomtom at 3:28 AM on July 29, 2008