Review of Supertintin Skype Video Recorder

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.

Flight Schools and Flight Simulators-They Can be Friends

Simulators have been around for a long time. As most of you know, the military and the airlines have used them for years. You would think that most flight schools would use simulators in ways that are similar to how they are used by the professionals. That has not been the case.

Flight School struggle with finding the balance between what they feel is best for their pilots/students, the owners of the aircraft that are on the line that get leased back to the school and the revenue that can be created by the flight school owner.

With the introduction of glass panel technology, the FAA has been encouraging more use of simulators in general aviation and since the aircraft manufacturers are choosing to include glass panels as a standard, flight schools need to rethink their current policies.

In addition, with the introduction of flight simulators such as the full-motion Redbird, new systems cost and functionality have created opportunities that flight schools can take greater advantage of.

Flight simulators have mostly been used in flight schools for process training. That certainly is one use for them. They can be used for so many other purposes. There are many things that you can do in a simulator that you would never even try in an aircraft. For example, for instrument flight training, you could simulate one half-mile visibility with light snow and low oil pressure. For VFR pilots, you can set them up for low visibility cross-country scenarios that a flight school or flight instructor would never want that pilot to try on a cross-country.
There have been some inherent conflicts of interest that worked against the use of flight simulators in general aviation. Aircraft owners who lease their planes to the flight school want the aircraft be flown instead of the simulator. Secondly, the flight instructors want to have as much time in the aircraft because many of them want to go on to the airlines and as such, there is resistance to using the flight simulator for all but minor IFR only purposes. Many flight schools do not integrate the flight simulator into their curriculum to the extent that even the FAA allows.

All of this is slowly starting to change. The economic climate is having an impact on monies available to fly. This is true both on the government level and the private funding level. Whatever money is available is being looked at more carefully.

A few flight schools are starting to look at the Flight Simulator as another revenue center and one that can effectively be integrated with their parts 61 and 141 programs.

Some flight schools are starting to pay flight instructors more money to fly the flight simulator.

The FAA, by emphasizing scenario-based training and cockpit resource management training while also changing flight simulator definitions, is inherently encouraging a change in perspective between flight schools and the use of simulators.

Glass panel technology is here to stay. The technology is filled with features and benefits that are best learned sitting in the flight simulator.

All in all, the use of flight simulators such as the Redbird, will play a key role in the ongoing activities of pilots at all levels.