skype

Vendor:	skype.com
License:	non-free (copyright.txt)

quality:
Version reviewed: 2.1.0.81-1
Download	unsigned APT
Source:	not-available
Lintian:	minor errors
Control scripts	none
Languages:	bg de en es et fr it ja ko lt lv pl pt ro ru th tr zh
Architectures:	i386 only	-
Legend: = Pass ; = Bad

Skype is a non-free (proprietary) software. It isn't supported by Debian. It's probably wiser to use a VoIP software, like ekiga !

Installing skype

Binaries are now available for amd64 and i386 for Debian 5 or later:

http://www.skype.com/intl/en/get-skype/on-your-computer/linux/

Skype repositories listed below are working

i386

As Open Source activists, we are of course inclined to indicate that there are programs similar in function to what Skype is performing. Their user base is - smaller, though. If you hence have to use skype, fairly likely, then please be aware of Skype's repository for Debian's i386 platform:

deb http://download.skype.com/linux/repos/debian/ stable non-free

After adding this line to /etc/apt/sources.list, do as root:

apt-get update
apt-get install skype

and then as regular user just call:

skype

amd64

This section is an ugly hack.
You will have to re-download the package, each time there's a security update.
Note that the most recent beta versions since Skype 2.1.0.47 run into a Debian packaging bug of the lib32 libraries on amd64. See the bottom of this link for a fix. You may possibly consider downloading an older 2.0.x version and following the same steps as follows, but not if you know how to use a Linux console.

Skype is only available as 32bit binary. it is packaged for amd64, but the content is still 32bit, so won't work with e.g. jackd.

To install the amd64 package, run the following as root:

aptitude install ia32-libs ia32-libs-gtk libqt4-core libqt4-gui
wget -O skype-install.deb http://www.skype.com/go/getskype-linux-beta-ubuntu-64
dpkg -i skype-install.deb

You can make video work by installing lib32v4l-0 and using LD_PRELOAD=/usr/lib32/libv4l/v4l1compat.so skype (Video works without this step on Squeeze as of 29-Nov-10).

If you get error like this Inconsistency detected by ld.so: dl-open.c: 643: _dl_open: Assertion `_dl_debug_initialize (0, args.nsid)->r_state == RT_CONSISTENT' failed!

Try to run this as root

# chmod a-r /usr/lib32/libpulse{-simple.so.0.0.2,.so.0.8.0,common-0.9.15.so}

Original thread in Debian Forum

There's also a better way to fix it, which is described on GPLHost's page here:

http://www.gplhost.com/software_skype.html

Package Review

Path and Files

Standard files locations.

Lintian

lintian -v:

N: Setting up lab in /tmp/Ay69U9p9N7 ...
N: Processing 1 packages...
N: ----
N: Processing binary package skype (version 2.0.0.72-1) ...
W: skype: binary-without-manpage usr/bin/skype
E: skype: description-starts-with-package-name
W: skype: extended-description-line-too-long
W: skype: extended-description-line-too-long
W: skype: possible-unindented-list-in-extended-description
W: skype: new-package-should-close-itp-bug