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My only knock against Chromebook is that Skype is not supported. For many casual users Skype is still a requirement. Supposedly there is a way to install Skyp

by sireat 12y ago

My only knock against Chromebook is that Skype is not supported. For many casual users Skype is still a requirement. Supposedly there is a way to install Skype for Android on a Chromebook (http://www.pcworld.com/article/2686712/run-any-android-app-on-your-chromebook-with-this-hack.html http://www.pcworld.com/article/2686712/run-any-android-app-o...) but Skype app did not load properly for me. I ended up making a dual boot with Lubuntu on it just for Skype. Otherwise a Chromebook is pretty much sufficient for casual users(my mother-in- law etc).

netcan 12y ago
This comes to mind: http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/fog0000000020.html http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/fog0000000020.html "what happens is that they give their program to a journalist to review, and the journalist reviews it by writing their review using the new word processor, and then the journalist tries to find the "word count" feature which they need because most journalists have precise word count requirements, and it's not there, because it's in the "80% that nobody uses," and the journalist ends up writing a story that attempts to claim simultaneously that lite programs are good, bloat is bad, and I can't use this damn thing 'cause it won't count my words."
on_and_off 12y ago
I have switched to Hangouts instead. It only misses interoperability with similar services like Skype (one can dream).
- ahstilde 12y ago
  Skype and Hangouts have both proven to be difficult to use for me and my girlfriend in our long-term relationship. Given a steady internet connection, Hangouts is the preference, as I have found it drains the battery and other performance less. However, Skype seems to be better if there are weaknesses in the connection.
sethrin 12y ago
I was able to install and use Skype on Chrome OS but the webcam didn't work. It is a major downside for me as well. I've noticed a couple other issues, namely that rtfs aren't supported well (you must upload them to Docs, you can't just open them), and password-protected excel files cannot be opened in either Google Docs or Microsoft Office Online. You can open them in LibreOffice using rollapp.com, however. Also, as a minor complication, the touchpad drivers for the Acer C720 (and possibly other devices) only made it into the kernel with version 3.17; with most distributions this will require you to compile the kernel yourself. Finally, if I am allowed to pick at nits, then I would say that I dislike the Chrome OS partitioning scheme. There is an ARChon-ready version of Skype on Github, which may or may not work for you.[0] [0] https://github.com/sebdroid/skype-chromeos https://github.com/sebdroid/skype-chromeos

by sireat 12y ago

netcan 12y ago

This comes to mind: http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/fog0000000020.html http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/fog0000000020.html "what happens is that they give their program to a journalist to review, and the journalist reviews it by writing their review using the new word processor, and then the journalist tries to find the "word count" feature which they need because most journalists have precise word count requirements, and it's not there, because it's in the "80% that nobody uses," and the journalist ends up writing a story that attempts to claim simultaneously that lite programs are good, bloat is bad, and I can't use this damn thing 'cause it won't count my words."

on_and_off 12y ago

I have switched to Hangouts instead. It only misses interoperability with similar services like Skype (one can dream).

ahstilde 12y ago
Skype and Hangouts have both proven to be difficult to use for me and my girlfriend in our long-term relationship. Given a steady internet connection, Hangouts is the preference, as I have found it drains the battery and other performance less. However, Skype seems to be better if there are weaknesses in the connection.

sethrin 12y ago

I was able to install and use Skype on Chrome OS but the webcam didn't work. It is a major downside for me as well. I've noticed a couple other issues, namely that rtfs aren't supported well (you must upload them to Docs, you can't just open them), and password-protected excel files cannot be opened in either Google Docs or Microsoft Office Online. You can open them in LibreOffice using rollapp.com, however. Also, as a minor complication, the touchpad drivers for the Acer C720 (and possibly other devices) only made it into the kernel with version 3.17; with most distributions this will require you to compile the kernel yourself. Finally, if I am allowed to pick at nits, then I would say that I dislike the Chrome OS partitioning scheme. There is an ARChon-ready version of Skype on Github, which may or may not work for you.[0] [0] https://github.com/sebdroid/skype-chromeos https://github.com/sebdroid/skype-chromeos