Using Skype zone

To find an access point using a web browser, first go to www.skype. com. Click on the Skype Zones link, which can be found toward the bottom of the home page. On the Skype Zones web page that appears next, clicking on the link Find Skype Zones will display the web page shown in the figure above.
Suppose you’ll be in Madrid, Spain, some time during the next few days and you want to find out where you can access Skype Zones. Type “Madrid” in the city search criteria, and then click on Search. You will be given the list of Skype Zones available in Madrid, as shown in the figure.

Sign up for Skype Zones

To sign up for Skype Zones, complete the following steps:

1. Go to www.skype.com and click on the Skype Zones link, which can be found towards the bottom of the home page.
2. From the Skype Zones web page that is displayed, click on the link Sign up for Skype Zones now to get started.
3. Next choose the plan you want, Unlimited or AsYouGo, put an acceptance tick in the box underneath the service agreement, and click Next.
4. Enter your personal details (name, address, and so on) into the web form that appears and click Next.
5. Because the Skype Zones service is provided by Boingo, you must next create a Skype Zones user account (a user name and password, which need not be the same as your Skype user name and password) with Boingo. Enter your desired user name and password for Skype Zones, and then click Next.
6. Enter your credit card information for billing purposes, and click Next.
7. Finally, review all the information you have entered so far. If the information is correct, click Submit.

Phew! Now you are a Skype Zones subscriber. However, there is one more thing to do before you can actually use Skype Zones: you must download and install the Skype Zones software. After clicking on the Submit button on the final page of the signup process, you will be presented with a web page from which you can download the Skype Zones software. Just click on Download Skype Zones For Windows and in the popup window that appears, click on the Run button. Follow the instructions of the Skype Zones installation program, which will install and then run the Skype Zones program, which is shown in the figure above.

Chewcking if Wireless is Enabled

Before launching yourself into this chapter any farther, you should first understand that Skype Zones is a wireless network service, so your PC must be wireless enabled in order to make use of it. To check whether your PC has a wireless network adapter installed, go to Start: Control Panel and double-click on Network Connections. This should open a window that displays the available network connections for your PC. If, under the category LAN or High-Speed Internet, you have an entry named Wireless Network Connection (or something similar), you’re good to go for this chapter. If not, you’ll need to install and set up a wireless network adapter for your PC before you can use Skype Zones.

Using Call Forwarding

How quickly calls are forwarded depends on your online status. The following table indicates the how quickly calls are forwarded based on your online status.
Armed with the information in this table, you can decide how best to use call forwarding. You can set your online status (Online, Skype-Me, Away, Not available, or Invisible) so that if you are at your PC you have the option of taking the call then and there; and only if you don’t pick up will Skype forward the call. Or you can set your online status (to Skype not running or Offline) so that Skype always and immediately forwards all incoming calls to the destination (or destinations) of your choice.

Setting Up Call Forwarding

To set up call forwarding, go to Skype: Tools: Options …, and in the window that appears, click on Call Forwarding & Voicemail. This displays the option settings for both call forwarding and voicemail. To activate call forwarding, check the box opposite Forward calls when I’m not on Skype. The default setting, also called the basic setting for call forwarding, allows you to forward a call to one destination. Advanced call forwarding allows you to forward incoming calls to up to three different destinations. When a call is forwarded, it rings all forwarded destinations at the same time; whichever destination picks up first gets the call. You can switch between basic and advanced call forwarding settings by clicking on the links Basic Settings and Advanced Settings, respectively.

Setting Up and Using call forwarding

It allows you to reroute incoming calls to other phone numbers, including Skype numbers, regular numbers, and mobile numbers. To forward calls to regular and mobile phones, you must be a subscriber to SkypeOut, and forwarded calls will be billed just as though you had personally called the forwarding destination phone from your PC using Skype. Incoming calls to your Skype account from both other Skype users and from regular and mobile phones (if you’re a SkypeIn subscriber) are forwarded in the same way.

Listening to voicemails

Missed calls, like other Skype events, are flagged for your attention in the New Events tab (which is the second tab from the right) of the notification bar. Click on this tab to see recent missed events, including voicemail messages that have been left for you, as shown in the following figure.
Clicking on a voicemail event in the New Events tab of the notification bar takes you to the History tab, as shown in the next figure. Voicemails that you have not yet listened to are flagged by a red dot with a star. By clicking on the green round button with an arrow on it to the right of the voicemail item, you can listen to your voicemail using the audio-out device you have configured for Skype (for example, headphones or speakers).