Since fast broadband connections have become more common worldwide, voice and video calls over the internet have become essential business tools. They are also as a very cost-effective way to keep in touch with home. The technology used for these internet phone calls is known as “Voice over internet Protocol”, or VoIP for short. Skype is by far the most popular VoIP program worldwide. However, if you use Skype for voice or video calls, you may well want or need to record Skype calls. The Skype program does not have built-in recording functionality, and general-purpose Windows screen capture programs mean a large load on the processor, as well as the creation of very large files. The quality of screen capture programs can also be quite poor. So you need another program to record Skype calls.
Having looked at several popular Skype Recorder programs, I’ve chosen Supertintin as the best of the bunch. You can download it from http://www.supertintin.com. The unlicensed version of the package is fully functional, but has a five minute limit on recordings. For $29.95 you can purchase a license, and then make recordings of unlimited length. It has several major advantages over the competition:
1. Usability:
First and most importantly, the program is ridiculously easy to use, even for people who are not especially computer or internet literate. Installation is straightforward, and the interface is simplicity itself. The main elements of the program are a large red “Play” button, which is used to start and stop Recording Skype Calls, and a large green “Pause” button if needed. Even Grandma can use this!
2. Size:
Supertintin is impressively lightweight – coming in at a lean 2.4MB for the complete program – and has an equally tiny memory footprint. It’s compatible with Windows XP, Vista and 7, and works with the latest versions of Skype. It allows you to capture and record Skype calls as the media data is produced by your computer, which means that it has no impact on the call quality or speed. Effectively you won’t even know it’s there until you need to access a Skype record.
3. Record how you want:
This nifty little program is very easily configured, with separate options for video and audio. For audio calls, there is a choice between recording the microphone (local end), speaker (remote end) or both (if you want the whole conversation). For video calls, the most basic option allows disabling the video record if you only want the audio. At the top end, you can create near-DVD quality .avi files, which are suitable for DVD reproduction. Your choice of video quality will depend on both the speed of your internet connection and the power of your computer – specifically the processor and the graphics card.
4. Record what you want:
In addition, Supertintin can be set up to record exactly what you need – and no more. If you need to record separately at one or both ends, you can record the local webcam only, the remote webcam only or both ends to separate files. On the other hand if you want to have a simultaneous record of both ends in one file so that the conversation can be easily followed, you can choose between picture-in-picture or side-by-side layout showing both ends of a video call. This gives a clear and unambiguous Skype record if you need to review the events of a call. In the main screen Supertintin also shows a list of your Skype call recordings which is easy to manage.
5. Set and Forget:
You can use the program for automatically recording Skype calls, by choosing both the option to start the program every time Windows starts and the option to automatically record all calls. Alternatively if you only need to record occasional calls, just start up Supertintin Skype Recorder when you need it.
If you are looking for a Skype recorder, there is no simpler program. I recommend you download it and start using it by clicking the big red button.
Having looked at several popular Skype Recorder programs, I’ve chosen Supertintin as the best of the bunch. You can download it from http://www.supertintin.com. The unlicensed version of the package is fully functional, but has a five minute limit on recordings. For $29.95 you can purchase a license, and then make recordings of unlimited length. It has several major advantages over the competition:
1. Usability:
First and most importantly, the program is ridiculously easy to use, even for people who are not especially computer or internet literate. Installation is straightforward, and the interface is simplicity itself. The main elements of the program are a large red “Play” button, which is used to start and stop Recording Skype Calls, and a large green “Pause” button if needed. Even Grandma can use this!
2. Size:
Supertintin is impressively lightweight – coming in at a lean 2.4MB for the complete program – and has an equally tiny memory footprint. It’s compatible with Windows XP, Vista and 7, and works with the latest versions of Skype. It allows you to capture and record Skype calls as the media data is produced by your computer, which means that it has no impact on the call quality or speed. Effectively you won’t even know it’s there until you need to access a Skype record.
3. Record how you want:
This nifty little program is very easily configured, with separate options for video and audio. For audio calls, there is a choice between recording the microphone (local end), speaker (remote end) or both (if you want the whole conversation). For video calls, the most basic option allows disabling the video record if you only want the audio. At the top end, you can create near-DVD quality .avi files, which are suitable for DVD reproduction. Your choice of video quality will depend on both the speed of your internet connection and the power of your computer – specifically the processor and the graphics card.
4. Record what you want:
In addition, Supertintin can be set up to record exactly what you need – and no more. If you need to record separately at one or both ends, you can record the local webcam only, the remote webcam only or both ends to separate files. On the other hand if you want to have a simultaneous record of both ends in one file so that the conversation can be easily followed, you can choose between picture-in-picture or side-by-side layout showing both ends of a video call. This gives a clear and unambiguous Skype record if you need to review the events of a call. In the main screen Supertintin also shows a list of your Skype call recordings which is easy to manage.
5. Set and Forget:
You can use the program for automatically recording Skype calls, by choosing both the option to start the program every time Windows starts and the option to automatically record all calls. Alternatively if you only need to record occasional calls, just start up Supertintin Skype Recorder when you need it.
If you are looking for a Skype recorder, there is no simpler program. I recommend you download it and start using it by clicking the big red button.
