Pamela for Skype

Pamela for Skype is a piece of software that, as you would imagine integrates with Skype.

Note: At the time of writing, I was using Pamela Professional, version 4.6.

The application is loaded with various features that include call recording (audio and video), Local Voicemail, auto chat reply, auto Mood and Status changes, chat logging, podcasting, and more. However, the app comes in various versions: Basic, Standard, Professional, and Business. A purchased license comes with free updates for life.

The Basic version is their freeware version, and thus also very limited. You are limited to 15 minutes of audio-only recording per call. You have the mood changer, local answering machine, and auto chat reply from above.

The status and mood changer is very useful if you’re using Skype with many contacts throughout the day. A scenario where it would come in play is for those using Skype as a support line. When you are on a call, your Skype mood/status changes to busy (configurable) and you can put a message saying something along the lines of “I’m on a call right now, please call me when I’m available.” Auto chat reply can come in too. If they send you a chat message, Pamela will automatically respond with a message that you can customize. Here you can write something like, “Thanks for contacting support. I am currently on a call, but I’ve received your message. I will get back to you shortly.”

For 10 Euros, about $15 USD according to their conversion, you get the Standard version, which adds: Contact Personalization, Email Forwarding, and the ability to save Skype voicemails as local files. Oh, and a bump up to a 30-minute audio-only recording limit.

Contact Personalization allows you to give different Skype contacts and numbers different settings for greetings, auto chat replies, call transfer, and other various options. Email forwarding will send a copy of received voicemails and chats to an email address of your choice.

For 20 Euros, about $30 USD, you are licensed the Professional version. The Professional version boasts the most features. The Business edition (30 Euro, $45 USD) sports less features than the Professional but you’re paying a premium for the Priority Support. Seeing how Pamela offers an extensive knowledgebase, user forum, and “normal” support contact, I didn’t see a need to go with Business, and decided on Professional.

For me, the two great addons with Pro, not to mention the removal of a recording time limit, are video recording and chat logging. You also get a podcasting and blogging system and the ability to run external applications after a call or voicemail is recorded. I imagine these features would be great for Skype power users, but not being one, I didn’t need them.

Skype Video Recording is really the main reason I got Pamela. Though, it’s a fairly new feature from what I understand. I use this feature to record interviews and such and host them for others to see. Recordings are encoding with Windows Media Video (wmv). You get to customize the frame rate (upto 25 fps), the resolution (320×240, 358×288, 480×360, 640×480, 720×540, and 800×600- though there may be an advanced ability to do other resolutions of your choice), and the quality (4 levels, low to highest). You also have an option called “Automatic video frame scaling according to Skype” but it doesn’t seem to do anything at all.

Having set it to 800×600, 25fps, and highest, no matter the size of my Skype window or the resolution of the video feed (right click on the video in Skype and hit “Actual Size” to see the resolution you’re receiving) I still get a 800×600 recording. If the video feed you’re getting is smaller than 800×600, and odds are it is, you’ll end up with a blown up (zoomed in) pixelated recording. For example, if the feed is 400×300 recording it this way gives the same effect as taking a 400×300 video file and playing it at 200% in your video player, but you’re taking up much more space on your computer. I’d like to see it actually scale based on resolution in a future update.

The recording itself is surprisingly primitive. Pamela doesn’t actually get the video feed from Skype internally. Instead, it acts like a screen recorder and records your desktop. What differentiates it from a normal desktop screen recorder is that it knows the actual size of the Skype window and the location on the screen. You can even resize and move around the skype screen and Pamela will adapt. HOWEVER, if another window, like your internet browser, is covering the Skype window, Pamela will record the browser and not the video from the Skype window. The sound recording is internal through Skype and won’t, for example, pick up a song playing from your computer, unless of course if the microphone is in earshot of the speakers. The video and the audio are out of sync. This is definitely a problem that needs to be worked on. Additionally, Pamela frequently pops up an error and stops recording video after 4 or 5 minutes.

Video recording is an essential feature for Skype users and this functionality is provided only by Pamela. However, there’s a lot of room for improvement with the recording method used by Pamela. Thankfully, Pamela is actively maintained and updates are provided free for life.

Even with the problems mentioned, Pamela Professional is a powerful application that is definitely worth its price tag. Take a look at their website, here.