Skype has released a beta version of its VIOP software with video support. Though in beta, it performs very well. Its very easy to install on SUSE, here is a small howto.

Skype 2.1 Beta vor Linux has been released yesterday, bringing a lot of new features, including:

* High Quality Video support.
* Skype's SILK audio codec.
* PulseAudio support.
* SMS sending support.
* Chat messages editing/removing support.
* Contact groups support.
* Typing notification in chat.

Skype recently released Skype 2.0 beta for Linux, which includes the ability to make video calls, a feature the Windows and Mac versions have had for some time. I tried the beta on two systems running Ubuntu 7.10 -- my desktop PC with a USB webcam and a MacBook Pro with its onboard iSight webcam -- with mixed results.

Nearly five months after the release of the first beta, the Skype for Linux developers have announced the availability of the second beta for version 2.1 of their Linux Skype client.

Skype is a simple user friendly software available in different platforms like Linux, Windows and MacOS, which enable you to make free calls(Audio,video and conference ) over the Internet by using VoIP protocol.

Skype seems to be following a tradition. They had first introduced Video chat with 2.0 Beta version for Windows. They followed the same version pattern and introduced Video chat in Linux with version 2.0 Beta for Linux

Skype is proprietary software that allows you to make calls over the Internet using your computer. Skype uses decentralized peer-to-peer technologies, so your calls do not go through a central server, but through distributed servers and other users. It uses its own proprietary communication protocol to achieve this.

The very popular Skype VoIP service has provided a Linux client for some years now, but it's not nearly as full-featured as its Windows counterpart, and right now it's a binary-only application. However, things may be partially changing at this company that's in the process of being spun off from eBay.

Free software is definitely going strong in some areas, especially in the server market. However, there are other areas where free software and free protocols have failed. Internet based voice and video communication is one of those areas.