To get started with Skylook, do the following:

1. Check that you have these Skylook prerequisites.

2. Download Skylook and install it, or if you have a copy of the Skylook setup file, open the folder containing it and double-click it.

3. Follow the instructions in the wizard. (If you have problems installing, click here).

4. After the installation wizard has completed, start Outlook. (Skylook does not have a separate start menu – it starts automatically when you run Outlook).

5. The Skylook licensing and startup wizards will be displayed. Follow the prompts to configure Skylook.

6. NOTE: When Skylook connects to Skype for the first time, the following dialog will appear:

This is a standard security dialog that Skype shows for all third party applications that use Skype. It is designed to protect you from unauthorised software accessing your Skype application. You must click one of the “Allow…” options in order for Skylook to operate. If you accidentally click OK before setting the option correctly, you can follow these instructions to allow Skylook to access Skype.

7. On completion of the wizard, you will notice the Skylook toolbar underneath the standard Outlook toolbars.

Click on a topic for Help:

Getting Started

Troubleshooting

Uninstalling

Purchasing

Communicate with Outlook contacts using Skype:

• Call Outlook contacts’ phones or PCs using Skype.
• Send SMS messages to Outlook contacts.
• Send instant messages to Outlook contacts.
• Answer incoming calls directly from Outlook.
• Reply to instant messages with email and vice-versa.
• Reply to voice mails with a call, email, instant message or SMS.
• Click an email message then click a button to call or IM the email sender.
• Click an appointment then click a button to call or IM an attendee.

Record Skype Calls:

• Record Skype calls to MP3 or other audio formats.
• Record incoming and outgoing calls.
• Record Skype-to-Skype, SkypeOut, SkypeIn and conference calls.
• Record SkypeCasts (both when hosting and listening).
• Choose to record just your side or both sides of the call.
• Configurable bitrate to trade off quality for file size.
• Optionally record calls to high quality 48kHz PCM, with each side of the call in a separate WAV file for professional podcasting.
• Automatically record all calls, or choose to manually record individual calls.
• Choose to store recordings in any Outlook folder, or store them in a directory on your hard disk.
• Stop or Pause recording mid-call.

Alerts:

• Receive alerts via SMS or phone when important appointments are due.
• Receive an SMS alert when any Outlook reminder pops up while you are away from your PC.
• Receive alerts via SMS or phone when important contacts come on-line.

Forwarding:

• Get Skype IMs forwarded to SMS or your phone when you are away from your PC.
• Have important emails read to you over your phone when you are away from your PC.
• Get important emails forwarded to SMS when you are away from your desk.
• Get Skype voice mail messages or Skylook Answering Machine messages forwarded to your phone when you are away from your desk.
• Optionally press “1″ on your phone to call the sender of any forwarded message, via Skype.

Answering Machine / Voice Mail:

• Answer calls automatically with a Skype Answering Machine built into Outlook.
• Screen/Monitor Skype calls from your PC or from your phone.
• Convert incoming Skype voice mail messages to MP3 or other formats.
• Permanently archive voice mail messages.
• Forward Skype voice mail messages to others.
• Automatically forward voice mail messages to other email addresses.

Extended inbox:

• Receive Skype voice mail messages in the Outlook inbox.
• Get missed Skype text chat messages in the Outlook inbox.
• Get missed calls in the Outlook inbox.

Follow-up Management:

• Mark Skype voice mail, instant messages and calls as “unread”.
• Flag voice mail, instant messages and calls.
• Add reminders to particular voice mail messages and instant messages
• Categorize voice mail, instant messages and calls.
• Move voice mails, instant messages and calls to folders.

Annotate Skype Calls:

• Take notes about each Skype call during and/or after the call.

Archive all communications:

• Archive all communications including Skype calls, Skype voice mail, IMs and SMS.
• Archive and backup audio recordings of all calls.
• Archive all instant messages to a special Outlook folder, just like email.

Contact Management:

• Synchronize your Outlook contacts with your Skype contacts.
• Review all communications with a contact in one place, including Skype calls, IMs and email.
• See who is on-line without leaving Outlook.
• Review contact details for incoming callers.

Here is how you can send SMS messages to your Outlook contacts, directly from the Outlook application. (These steps assume you have Outlook installed – see Skylook prerequisites for details).

1. Download Skype if you don’t already have it, or if you are running a Skype version earlier than 2.5. If you only plan to do SMS, the installation is very straightforward. (It’s a little more involved if you intend to do voice calls. Follow these instructions to set up Skype if you plan to use it for more than SMS).

2. If you don’t already have Skylook, download and install it from here.

NOTE: Skype is free for PC to PC voice calls and text messages, but to send SMS messages there is a fee per message. You can buy Skype Credit here to get started with sending SMS messages. If you’re doing this for the first time, just buy the minimum amount so you can give it a try without too much of an outlay.

3. Start Outlook. If you are running Skylook for the first time, you will see the Skylook licensing wizard and the Skylook Welcome wizard. Follow the prompts to ensure you have Skylook set up the way you want.

4. You will notice that Outlook contains an additional toolbar:

This toolbar allows you to do a number of different things, including sending SMS messages to your Outlook contacts.

5. Go to your contacts folder and select the contact you wish to send an SMS to.

6. Click the “SMS” button in the Skylook toolbar.

7. If the Outlook contact has a mobile (cell) phone configured, Skylook will display that number and ask you to confirm it (you also have the option to change it if it is incorrect). If there is no number configured, Skylook will prompt you to enter one (this number will be saved in the Outlook contact’s details for next time). Click OK after confirming or entering the number.

8. The Skype SMS window will be displayed, to allow you to enter your message. Type your message then click the “Send SMS” button.

If you have any problems or questions, contact us for assistance.

Once you have set up Skype you can start to make calls.

There are two types of calls you can make: PC to PC (these are free) and PC to Phone (these require Skype Credit.

PC to PC

Everyone on Skype has a “Skype Name”. This is like an ID. It is a single string of letters and/or digits – e.g. jsmith436, fredflintstone.

If you know the Skype Name of the person you want to call, you can just type it straight into the box at the bottom of the Skype window, then press the green “Call” button to call that person.

If you don’t know the Skype Name of the person you want to call, you will need to search the global Skype network for it. To do this, choose “Contacts > Search for Skype users…” from the main Skype menu. A search window will appear. Enter the full name of the person then click the “Search” button. Keep in mind that there are millions of registered Skype users, so there may be a number of people with the same name as the person you want to contact. If this is the case you will need to narrow your search by entering other criteria, such as Country, State etc. Another option is to enter an email address instead of the name. (All of these additional criteria require that your contact has filled in all the relevant details in their Skype profile).

Once you locate the person, you will probably want to add them as a contact before you call them. To do this, click the contact then click the “Add Selected Contact” button. If you don’t want to add them as a contact, just write down or remember their Skype Name, close the search window, then type the Skype Name straight into the box at the bottom of the Skype window and press the green “Call” button to start a call.

If you added the person as a contact, simply select the contact from the list of Skype contacts in the main Skype window, then press the green “Call” button to call the contact.

PC to Phone

Jargon alert: This is known as “SkypeOut”. To learn how to make calls to normal phones from your PC, click this SkypeOut link.

Calling from Outlook

If you have Microsoft Outlook, you can simplify the process of making Skype Calls. Click a link below to see how to do this:

Calling an Outlook contact on their phone

Calling an Outlook contact on their PC

Skype installs on your Windows or Mac PC. It’s available as a free download.

Skype lets you talk to anyone else in the world for free, as long as they have Skype too and you both have:

• A broadband internet connection.
• A headset or Skype phone each.

A headset is simply headphones with a microphone attached. For information on Skype headsets, phones and other gear, visit our store.

(Note: if you are using a laptop, you may have a microphone built in, in which case you can try Skype with your built in microphone and speakers. Be warned however, this may lead to a distracting and probably unacceptable echo on your calls. This may not be audible to you but will be audible to the person you are calling. The echo is due to sound feeding back from the speakers to the microphone – a headset avoids this problem).

In addition to allowing you to talk to other Skype users for free, Skype lets you call normal phones too. This is not free though – you pay for the time you use. The rate is quite cheap – comparable to calling card rates. The people at Skype call this facility “SkypeOut”. You can buy Skype Credit here if you want to use SkypeOut to call normal phones.

Skype is quite easy to set up and use. The trickiest part for most people is purchasing a headset and getting it working. If you follow the steps below you should avoid most of the common hurdles.

Help with your headset

Most headsets have two plugs: one that goes into the headphone socket and one that goes into the microphone socket. Usually these sockets are at the back of the PC. Unfortunately both plugs are exactly the same shape and so it’s easy to plug them in the wrong socket. To make matters worse, many PCs have more than two of these same-shaped sockets. To help with this, some manufacturers color-code the plugs and the sockets.

So, if your plugs and sockets are color-coded you are in luck. Just plug the green plug into the green socket and the pink plug into the pink socket and you’re away. (If your plugs and/or sockets are other colors, read on…).

If your sockets are color coded but your plugs are not, you may be able to work out which is the microphone plug by looking at the outside of the plug – it may have a picture of a microphone on it. If you can work out which is the microphone plug, plug it into the pink socket. Then plug the other plug into the green socket and you are away.

If neither your sockets or plugs are color-coded, you may be able to determine which is which by looking at the symbols that some manufacturers position beside the sockets and on the outside of the plug. If not, you may have to fall back on trial and error – take a guess then follow the instructions below for testing that your equipment is working.

If your headset does not have two plugs, then it most likely has a little rectangular plug called a USB plug. This plug can be plugged into any socket of the same shape on the front, back or side of your PC. More expensive headsets, as well as Skype Phones, usually have this type of plug.

Testing that Skype is working correctly

Once you’ve got your headset or Skype phone set up, you can check that it’s working by typing echo123 in the Skype Name/Phone number box (the white box near the bottom of the Skype window), then clicking the green “call” button. If you hear nothing through your headset or phone, it is probably not configured correctly – try clicking here for more assistance.

If all is well, you should hear a recorded message giving you some instructions. The recorded message will ask you to speak into the microphone for ten seconds. Your voice is then played back to you. If your voice is not played back, try clicking here for more assistance.

If you hear your voice recording correctly, you are finished setting up Skype. Start calling your friends on Skype and, if you purchased Skype Credit above, on their normal phones. (Find out how to make Skype calls by clicking here). If you have Outlook, there’s a lot more you can do also, using Skylook – find out how to get the most out of Skype with Outlook by clicking here.

Skylook performs the following services:

Communicate with Outlook contacts on Skype:

• Call Outlook contacts’ phones or PCs using Skype.
• Send SMS messages to Outlook contacts.
• Send instant messages to Outlook contacts.
• Answer incoming calls directly from Outlook.
• Reply to instant messages with email and vice-versa.
• Reply to voice mails with a call, email, instant message or SMS.
• Click an email message then click a button to call or IM the email sender.
• Click an appointment then click a button to call or IM an attendee.

Record Skype Calls:

• Record Skype calls to MP3 or other audio formats.
• Record incoming and outgoing calls.
• Record Skype-to-Skype, SkypeOut, SkypeIn and conference calls.
• Record SkypeCasts (both when hosting and listening).
• Choose to record just your side or both sides of the call.
• Configurable bitrate to trade off quality for file size.
• Optionally record calls to high quality 48kHz PCM, with each side of the call in a separate WAV file for professional podcasting.
• Automatically record all calls, or choose to manually record individual calls.
• Choose to store recordings in any Outlook folder, or store them in a directory on your hard disk.
• Pause recording mid-call.

Alerts:

• Receive alerts via SMS or phone when important appointments are due.
• Receive an SMS alert when any Outlook reminder pops up while you are away from your PC.
• Receive alerts via SMS or phone when important contacts come on-line.

Forwarding:

• Get Skype IMs forwarded to SMS or your phone when you are away from your PC.
• Have important emails read to you over your phone when you are away from your PC.
• Get important emails forwarded to SMS when you are away from your desk.
• Get Skype voice mail messages or Skylook Answering Machine messages forwarded to your phone when you are away from your desk.
• Optionally press “1″ on your phone to call the sender of any forwarded message, via Skype.

Answering Machine / Voice Mail:

• Answer calls automatically with a Skype Answering Machine built into Outlook.
• Screen/Monitor Skype calls from your PC or from your phone.
• Convert incoming Skype voice mail messages to MP3 or other formats.
• Permanently archive voice mail messages.
• Forward Skype voice mail messages to others.
• Automatically forward voice mail messages to other email addresses.

Extended inbox:

• Receive Skype voice mail messages in the Outlook inbox.
• Get missed Skype text chat messages in the Outlook inbox.
• Get missed calls in the Outlook inbox.

Follow-up Management:

• Mark Skype voice mail, instant messages and calls as “unread”.
• Flag voice mail, instant messages and calls.
• Categorize voice mail, instant messages and calls.
• Move voice mails, instant messages and calls to folders.

Annotate and archive Skype Calls:

• Take notes about each Skype call during and/or after the call.

Archive all communications:

• Archive all communications including Skype calls, Skype voice mail, IMs and SMS.
• Archive and backup audio recordings of all calls.
• Archive all instant messages to a special Outlook folder, just like email.
• Keep a record of all communications in the Outlook Journal.

Contact Management:

• Synchronize your Outlook contacts with your Skype contacts.
• Review all communications with a contact in one place, including Skype calls, IMs and email.
• See who is on-line without leaving Outlook.
• Review contact details for incoming callers.