Skype 4.0 beta take 2: Full screen mode now optional

by Brad Linder Oct 1st 2008

Skype has released a second beta version of Skype 4.0 for Windows. When Skype released version 4.0 beta 1 back in June, the software was widely panned for its new user interface. Sure, the audio and video quality were excellent. But Skype's insistence on using a full-screen interface by default left many users scratching their heads.

After all, Skype is a chat and telephony program, and if you're a multitasker, you might want to have several windows open simultaneously. Skype 4.0 beta 1 made it difficult to do that. While you could reduce the size of the default view, it still takes up a lot of screen real estate.

Skype 4.0 beta 2 addresses this by offering a new Compact View option. In this view, Skype 4.0 looks a lot like Skype 3, with a contact list in one window and your chat, audio, or voice wndow showing up in a second screen.

The new beta also reintroduces contact groups, allowing you to arrange your contacts by category. And it does a better job of notifying you when you've missed a call or message. Notifications are now hard to miss because Skype will show alerts in the Windows taskbar, system tray, and in the program itself.

CNet reports that Skype plans to release at least one more beta version of Skype 4.0 before the final release. That version will include call history, public chats, birthday notifications, and a few other features.

[via Laptop Magazine]

Tags: skype, skype-4.0, skype-4.0-beta, skype-4.0-beta-2

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

chrisaroz said 11:31AM on 10-01-2008

I haven't used Skype in over year since switching to SightSpeed, and I don't want to install and find someone else running the beta just to test it out. But if anyone has used the beta, how's the video quality compare to SightSpeed now?

David said 12:30PM on 10-01-2008

Any chance of Skype giving Mac users some love? I mean I know 2.7 is the latest version and came out this year but still, no beta that's comparable to the windows' version.

Don't get me wrong I like using it, just wish they gave Mac Users just as many features and hopefully boost the video quality!

Peter Parkes (Skype Blogger) said 8:36AM on 10-07-2008

Our Mac team is hard at work – keep an eye on the Skype Mac blog for more details :)

Zoli Erdos said 9:11PM on 10-01-2008

Uninstalled it after an hour:
http://www.cloudave.com/link/They-Skype-Beta-Downgrade-%E2%80%93-First-Impressions

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