Skype Handset

[Gene Heskett]

Craig White wrote:
> On Tue, 2006-07-04 at 21:15 -0500, Gene Heskett wrote:
>> Dotan Cohen wrote:
>>> On 28/06/06, Fred Lackey <fred.lackey at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>> Does anyone have any feedback on a handset or headset that has had
>>>> success with Skype on more than just Windows (either Mac or Linux)?
>>>>
>>>> Here are the two I am trying to decide between...
>>>>
>>>>         NEXOTEK P-600S "Skype Smart Phone"
>>>>         http://www.nexotek.com/p600s.html
>>>>         - Claims to work well on Linux, Mac, and Windows
>>>>
>>>>         Simply Phone P1K-1
>>>>         
>>>> http://www.simplyphone.lu/index.php?t=prod_detail&pid=21&language=EN
>>>>         
>>>> http://us.accessories.skype.com/direct/skypeusa/itemdetl.jsp?prod=2853
>>>>
>>>> I generally travel with two laptops... a Mac PowerBook and a Toshiba
>>>> Linux (FC5 / Ubuntu 5 dual boot).  I'd like to use a USB handset
>>>> interchangeably between the two machines.  USR has one that I was
>>>> looking at but [of course] it only plays nice with Windows.
>>>>
>>>> Thanks, in advance.
>>>>
>>> I was going to stay out of this thread and jsut follow it, but seeing
>>> how nobody answered, have you contacted the companies that manufacure
>>> the headsets that you're looking at? Even if they don't have
>>> information on linux compatbility, the very fact that you write to
>>> them will alert them to the fact that they cannot afford to ignore
>>> linux users. If you have written to them, what were their responses?
>>>
>>> Dotan Cohen
>>> http://ie-only.com
>>>
>> Logitek makes a neat little headset (dual phones and a boom mic, 
>> overhead band) that works ok, but the mic boom has too much curve in it 
>> causing it to stick the mic against your face near the corner of your 
>> mouth.  Obviously that tells the other person how many hours its been 
>> since you shaved, not a desirable side effect.  I tried slowly bending 
>> it outward, but by the time I'd made it stay where I wanted it, which 
>> was about an inch from the corner of my mouth, it had started to buckle 
>> the plastic boom in a couple of places.  But its been that way for 2 
>> weeks now, and appears to be ready to do it for however long it takes to 
>> destroy the cordage, none of which is very 'heavy duty' on these generic 
>> headsets.  Typical $19 headset, got this one at the local radio shack 
>> after I'd broken the cord of my previous RCA branded version in my feet 
>> while getting up from this desk too many times.  I liked the RCA better, 
>> but this one has lasted longer.  There is no use of paying an extra 20 
>> bucks for one of these things just because its got a sign on the package 
>> saying its "Skype compatible".  Skype isn't that fussy..  Nor is ekiga 
>> or wengophone.  I have a hell of a lot more trouble getting a 
>> confirmation message back from either ekiga or wengophone because 
>> verizon is apparently filtering mail from the competition.  Bastards. 
>> I'd change providers, but they're the only $%^&*() game in town...
> ----
> hardly the only game in town
> 
> http://www.asterisk.org
> 
> real system administrators would handle their own systems and not rely
> on a packager like skype
> 
> Craig
> 
They own the last mile, and if you want whats euphamisticly called 
broadband in Weston WV, then you'll by God get it from them.  The local 
cable people want nearly 2x the money, and obviously have no customers.

I've signed up for several of the other VOIP systems, like ekiga and 
wengophone and never got the confirming email with the registration info 
from either, so I can only presume that once skype started to take off, 
they started to filter ALL such services.  Reminds me of the infamous 
quote re M$ that ends up as a 2 bit company that can't stand one bit of 
competition.  Just trade the M$ in on verizon, and nothing else changes.

-- 
Cheers, Gene