As a huge fan of Skype, I was very interested to read about the new Ringjacker add-on, which allows you to specify a custom ring-tone that the person you’re calling hears (yes – the person who you’re calling!!!). This intrigued me as I couldn’t see how you could do this without having some control over the other party’s Skype.
Well, a quick visit to Ringjacker’s website confirmed my suspicions:
“Note: if the contact does not have Ringjacker installed, the contact will be sent a message asking the contact to install Ringjacker. Only after the contact has installed Ringjacker will you be able to make a Ringjacker call to that contact.”
That brings me to the main point of this article – why??? If someone called me on Skype, but I was told I have to install some unknown software before I could even hear the ringtone (let alone take the call), why would I? Would you? In these days of viruses and spyware, I will only install something that I’ve researched myself and feel improves my interactions with my PC (such as Launchy). But an unknown app? Never!
If you feel you’d like the idea of installing some unknown software that will ultimately try to sell you more stuff, please let me know – I’m sure I could write something very quickly if there’s a demand! 
In the meantime, you can experience this firsthand at http://www.ringjacker.com/.
For more information on Skype, go to http://www.johnlandells.com/Recommends/Skype.
