Skype is used by millions of users worldwide and is perhaps one of the most popular VOIP solutions in the world (I use Skype most of the time to call my family:) ).

There are various accessories that you can use to improvise and enhance the service. Most of the business users use VOIP phones for contacting their offices abroad. When it comes to such users, it may be required for them to document these conversations.

The interesting fact is that you can easily record your Skype calls using third party solutions certified by Skype. You may also note that you can download Skype for your Windows , Linux (beta version) and Macintosh operating systems.

Well, there are two ways by which you can record your calls : Using a reliable software and Using necessary hardware.

The first option is the most convenient one for most of the users. In this edition, I will be reviewing some of the solutions that you could use for recording your Skype conversations.

Software Tools

PowerGramo skype recorder is one of the most popular solutions that is available in the market. It can record all types of Skype calls (including conferences). It is free to use if you are using it for recording Skype-to-Skype calls. It has options that allows you to record the chat conversations with the other user.

It also comes with a customizable answering machine you can use along with your Skype! You can also enable personalised greeting messages when you initiate a call. The quality of the recorded file seems to be fine.

KishKish  is another solution that is available in the market. They also supply Skype add-on hardware (like Skype phone) as well. They also have developing their own Skype Lie Detector, Skype Answering Machine and SkypeForwarder.

If you are using Outlook in Windows, you may be interested in trying out Skylook. Skylook  is essentially an extension for the Microsoft Outlook product. With this you can record your ‘skype conversations’ in your Outlook itself! The solution also allows users to make PC-to-PC calls, voicemails, IMs from within the Outlook window itself. If you wish to try Skylook for 14 days, you can download it from here.

HotRecorder for VoIP is another tool that you can use to record your Skype calls. You can also use the same solution for recording voice conversations from any standard IM client (like Pidgin, Google Talk or Gtalk , AOL / AIM,  Yahoo! Messenger, Firefly, Net2Phone etc). You can also save the recorded files in your preferred format ( OGG, WAV and MP3 formats are supported)

 CallBurner is another utility worth trying. It can be used to record your Skype conversations and conference calls. The solution is found to be relatively stable and reliable.

If you wish to ‘build’ a call center using Skype, then PrettyMay  is a solution that is worth trying. It is a pure software solution (which means that you need not buy any extra hardware material). It can perform all the actions and requisites required by a small or even a medium sized company.

If you want to try something really interesting, then you should try Skype IP PBX (that also is provided by PrettyMay  ). It is a Private branch exchange (PBX) which can perform various advance level tasks like  Auto-Attendant, Interactive Voice Response (IVR), Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) technologies etc. This even allows you to use the existing phone systems in ‘Skype environment’.

PS: My company is using Asterisk based PBX for providing customer service!

Hardware Based

You may think that it is hard to do. But it is very easy to perform. All you need to do is to download this pdf file and follow the instructions carefully. You can build your own Skype recording system and can use the native sound recording system for recording the Skype conversations!