Does anyone know anything about Skype?

My 12 & 15 year olds have just starting using this to chat with their friends. Does anyone know anything about how it works? I'm wondering how I can check on who they've had conversations with, (not necessarily what the conversations are) especially the 12 year old. I feel like I'm running backward trying to keep up with the new technology in this house.

Like any IM client (MSN, AIM, Yahoo, etc) you can open it and look at who they've added to their friend's lists, but that's about it. You'll still have to figure out who those names belong to.

Originally Posted by threecatowner

My 12 & 15 year olds have just starting using this to chat with their friends. Does anyone know anything about how it works? I'm wondering how I can check on who they've had conversations with, (not necessarily what the conversations are) especially the 12 year old. I feel like I'm running backward trying to keep up with the new technology in this house.

Click to expand...

Yeah, I use it all the time to communicate with my family in Brazil. You can use it as a video phone or chat.

If you right-click on the contact's name on the left, you will have an option to see all the chat the messages with that person, for the timeframe you choose.
Of course you are out of luck as far as phone calls goes,but you can see when they came in and how long they last.

Hope this helps!

Be forewarned though, kids that age tend to value their privacy if they suspect snooping so they might delete their history.

Thanks, guys - I have no intention of reading anything, I just wondered how to find out who is on the friends list. My sixth grader had his teacher on, and since I think she acts like a "Mary Kay Letourneau" wannabe, I was kinda worried. I told him to take her off, so I'll check.

He's been video chatting with a best buddy who moved to Boston, so for that, I think it'll be great. Just didn't want those two pulling something over on me...

Yes, I use Skype all the time. I can see that everyone has answered any questions you may have had... just contact me if you need any more help!