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Skype for Linux 1.4 out of beta
By: Lisa Hoover
Skype 1.4 for Linux after five months of testing. Now that it's officially out of beta -- along with a slew of bug fixes and new features -- developers are calling it a recommended release.
Skype for Linux is available for eight distributions, including Ubuntu, Fedora 6 and 7, Debian, and MEPIS. System requirements include 256MB RAM, 20MB free disk space, 400MHz processor, Qt 4.2.1, and D-Bus 1.0.0.
The release is codenamed Panacea because it "cures" a host of issues that plagued Skype for Linux 1.3, most notably in the area of sound quality. Other improvements include:
- Keyboard/keypad can now be used to enter DTMF numbers in call window
- Drag and drop functionality for file sharing, contacts, and chats
- Chat toolbar with Add People, Send File(s) to Chat, History, and Leave Chat buttons
- Option added to Sound Devices to enable and disable automatic mixer adjustment
- Command-line switches
- File transfer menu
Early reports indicate some issues with getting a microphone to work, but at least one solution has already been discovered.