Web skype on linux

Skype For Web in Linux (2019)

Despite being one of the most popular messaging and video calling applications out there, Skype is not appreciated by Linux user. In fact, many users including me avoid using Skype in Linux, but sometimes we need to communicate with certain people who use Skype. Skype for Web can be a good solution for that in Linux. In this post, I will share my experience of using Skype For Web in Linux.

Content

Normally when I need to use Skype, I do it on my Android phone. However, Skype for Web has started to work with Linux recently. So, I thought that it could be a good alternative for Skype desktop app for Linux. Indeed, I tested it for a few calls and some chat, and it works flawlessly.

Skype for Web works only with Google Chrome

Unfortunately, Skype For Web does not work with Firefox, my web browser of choice. When I tried opening the link to Skype for Web in Firefox, the following message appeared:

So, one has to use it with Google Chrome. Although installing Google Chrome is easy in most Linux distributions, most Linux users including me prefer Firefox. So, we are forced to use Google Chrome to make Skype For Web work in Linux. Luckily, it is the only disadvantages of Skype for Web in Linux.

Interface of Skype for Web

Once I have logged in to Skype at web.skype.com, I saw a fairly familiar interface. There is the contact list on the left side, and the chat or video call window on the right side:

Everything is clean and simple.

Testing sound

Before making calls, I always test my sound and video. The simplest test one can dos is to select the sound test wizard Echo/sound test service among the contacts and call it:

The test consists of recording an audio message. The application played my sound back, so my sound worked correctly out of the box.

Testing video

To check whether my web camera was recognized, I opened the Settings through the application menu (three-point icon):

In the options, I navigated to Audio & Video, and once the window was displayed, the camera was automatically activated and showed my face:

There is also an option to select between cameras and microphones if something is not recognized correctly. I also checked again my the sound with the Test Audio button in the same window.

Real-life calls and chat

Finally, I made a test video call and it worked well:

The video and sound were of acceptable quality. I also got a notification of incoming call in my Plasma 5 Arch Linux desktop:

Conclusion

When Skype for Web was in beta, the only thing you could do was to chat but now you can also make sound calls and video calls. So, Skype for Web became a great alternative for Skype desktop app if you do not use Skype often and do not want to install the desktop app. However, you have to use Google Chrome to make it work. For me, this is fine as I use Google Chrome any way to test how my website looks in this browser. So, I am happy to see there is Skype for Web.

I also believe the more apps become web-based, the better it is for Linux because there will be fewer programs that do not work in Linux.

Average Linux UserFollow I am the founder of the Average Linux User project, which is a hobby I work on at night. During the day I am a scientist who uses computers to analyze genetic data.

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Calm Down! Skype for Web HAS NOT Dropped Support for Linux

The other weeks rumors were rife that Ubuntu is replacing Apt with Snap. I busted that rumor with the clarification of Ubuntu’s team member.

While I cannot vouch for Chromebooks, I could certainly confirm that Skype for Web is working fine on Linux.

The first stable release of Skype for Web is a big news in the tech world. When I read the news, I was surprised on learning that Linux was not supported.

Why would Microsoft drop support for certain operating systems when the Skpe for Web is dependent on the web browser? It doesn’t make sense, does it?

So I went to Skype for Web website using Google Chrome on Ubuntu, logged into my account and got surprised to see that contrary to the reports, it works just fine.

I could send and receive chats, audio calls, video calls. I was also able to record Skype calls and send files via the web interface. In fact, I could see all the latest features of Skype for Web like Notification Panel, Conversation Search, Chat Media Gallery etc.

Skype for Web is supported on Linux via Chromium based web browsers only

I was also able to use Skype for Web on Brave on Ubuntu 18.04. Brave is a privacy focused web browser based on Chromium.

Skype for Web is certainly not supported on Mozilla Firefox though. If you try to access the website, you’ll see an error like this.

Why the confusion around Skype for Web on Linux?

Why did a number of reputed websites like ZDNet, Beta News reported that Skype for Web has dropped Linux support?

I am going to make a guess here. You see, in the official Skype for Web release announcement, Microsoft says:

You can now enjoy our latest features from any desktop (Windows 10 and Mac OSX10.12 or higher) with the latest versions of Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge.

And this creates the confusion as many people have taken these words for ranted and presumed that Linux and Chromebooks are not supported because those are not mentioned in the release.

If you don’t use Google Chrome, don’t worry. You can always install Skype on Linux and use it via the desktop application.

Personally, I have almost stopped using Skype. Most of my contacts haven’t logged into Skype for months as well. It’s a ghost town for me. How about you?

I logged into Skype today just to verify the news and I am glad that it was worth the effort as it helped me bust the rumor of Skype for Web dropping support on Linux.

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How to Install Skype Web Client (Unofficial) in Ubuntu

Skype native client available in Ubuntu partner repository sucks? Try this unofficial client based on Skype Web version. .

Microsoft provides a web version of Skype allows users to chat and call friends using a web browser. For Linux, you can run the Skype Web as a desktop application (without browser) via an open source program called skype-unofficial-client.

The project is created two days ago. It’s built on top of node webkit and uses system’s notification.

This software works on all Ubuntu releases and other Linux. Just open terminal from the Dash, App Launcher, or via Ctrl+Alt+T shortcut keys.

When it opens, run below commands one by one:

git clone https://github.com/haskellcamargo/skype-unofficial-client.git

2. Navigate to the source folder in some terminal via:

3. Depends on your OS type, check out top-right corner shutdown menu -> About Computer, select run:

You can now launch it from main menu or via /opt/skype_unofficial_client/skype command. And remove the source folder in your home folder to clean up.

(Optional) To remove this unofficial client, just run below commands to remove the installation files:

sudo rm -R /opt/skype_unofficial_client/ sudo rm /usr/share/applications/Skype.desktop sudo rm /usr/bin/skype-desktop

Ji m

I’m a freelance blogger who started using Ubuntu in 2007 and wishes to share my experiences and some useful tips with Ubuntu beginners and lovers. Please comment to remind me outdated tutorial! And, notify me if you find any typo/grammar/language mistakes. English is not my native language. Contact me via [email protected] Buy me a coffee: https://ko-fi.com/ubuntuhandbook1

9 responses to How to Install Skype Web Client (Unofficial) in Ubuntu

It’s the microsoft web version, there is no “his” version.. Audio and Video aren’t supported on any Linux distro.. Which probably explains why I use Hangouts for all video calls.

Based on the web version?? It is the web version! You can do the exact same thing by creating an application short-cut in chrome browser!

Removed immediately after install.. Adds nothing simply creating an application short-cut in Chrome doesn’t already do.

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Хотите звонить по скайпу в браузере на Linux? Есть способ!

Вы, конечно же, не хотите ждать, пока Microsoft починит проблему на своей стороне, связанную с веб совместимостью; из-за чего пользователи Linux не могут пользоваться веб версией скайпа.

Но есть жутко простой способ обойти эту проблему.

Microsoft недавно смогли упразднить необходимость плагина для звонков через веб интерфейс, благодаря своему браузеру Microsoft Edge.

“Звонки через Edge — это первый шаг на пути к функциональным звонкам в Skype и Skype for Business, таким образом пользователи Skype на любой современной платформе смогут общаться без всяких плагинов и лишних загрузок,» — заявили в Microsoft.

Хотя Edge не доступен на Linux — есть надежный способ настроить голосовые звонки в Mozilla Firefox.

Благодаря стандартам веб совместимости Edge — теперь ничего не мешает запустить Skype и в других современных браузерах.

Нужно выполнить следующие шаги:

1. Установите аддон User Agent Overrider для Firefox
2. Настройте user agent на Windows / Edge
3. Перезапустите Firefox
4. Зайдите на web.skype.com
5. Разрешите доступ к микрофону и уведомлениям
6. Сделайте тестовый звонок в Skype и настройте уровень звука по вкусу

Ничего сверхъестественного делать не надо; на данный момент Видео звонки не поддерживаются . Если вы попробуете включить веб камеру во время звонка — он оборвется. Групповой звонок еще не тестировался.

Как вам такой маневр? Если вам быстро пообщаться и ваш приятель настаивает на Skype, то очень даже полезно. И если вы устали сдувать пыль с официального нативного приложения Skype для Linux (оно жутко «красивое»), то это тоже вполне себе решение.

Дайте знать, если сможете завести Skype (чатик работает на любой платформе) в Google Chrome, Vivaldi или любом другом браузере!

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