Table of contents
Description
The plugin Skype Online Status allows you to add one or multiple, highly customizable and accessible (!) Skype buttons to your blog. You can pick any of the available Skype button themes that will show your online status and place them in your pages and posts content (with a neat little Skype quicktag button in the WYSIWYG editor), in your sidebar via widgets (unlimited number) or anywhere in your theme template files.
The Skype Status admin page and Skype Widget options are adequately annotated but there is also a Quick Guide section with lots of information on all the possible ways to get you blog Skyped. If you still cannot get it working the way you want to, find a Skype link to the developer on the Notes & Live Support section.
Button themes are mostly based on the themes you can find on Skype’s button wizard page but more feature rich, like showing your online status in the alt text of the image, more accessible (!) and much more customizable, like setting your own Status texts in your blogs language. Even a button to invoke normal phone calls or multichats or conference calls is possible!
Installation
- Activate plugin on the ‘Plugins’ page
- Configure (or update) your SkypeID and settings on the ‘Options’ > ‘Skype Status’ page
- Activate the widget or put the quicktag in your posts to display the Skype button on your blog pages.
Read more on usage in the Quick Guide section of the Options > Skype Status page, available after installation.
Faq
Why is my Skype button showing Offline even when I am online?
First, you have to change an option in your Skype client settings to make your online status publicly visible:
- Open your Skype client and go to ‘Options > Privacy’ or ‘Advanced’ (depending on your client version).
- Find the option ‘Allow my status to be shown on the web’ and place a checkmark beside it.
- Close the Options window and change your Skype status to Offline and back Online again to update the Skype server.
If your online status is still incorrect, type in your webbrowser http://mystatus.skype.com/yourskypename and check what is shown there. The plugin takes your status directly from the Skype server and should correspond with your status shown on the above URL (using your skype name obviously). If your status is not correct on that URL, it basically is out of your hands. You can wait for the Skype server to get ‘up to date’ or browse the Skype forums for fixes suggested by others…
I have found a bug. Where do I report it?
For bug reports, go to Skype Online Status Google Group and describe what is happening there. Please provide as much related info as you can but at least give me your plugin and Wordpress version number.
I have a feature request. Where do I ask?
For all ‘normal’ feature requests go to Skype Online Status Google Group but if you want custom development, please contact me directly. I will gladly consider any proposal. You can find my Skype ID on the Notes & Live Support section of your WordPress ‘Options’ > ‘Skype Status’ page, available after installation. Or browse to my website 4Visions.
I have trouble setting up a Skype button on my blog. Where do I get help?
Have you read the Quick Guide section of your WordPress ‘Options’ > ‘Skype Status’ page, available after installation already? For all remaining questions, go to Skype Online Status Google Group and post them there. I will be happy to respond in due time
I would like to contribute. Is that possible?
Of course! What did you have in mind? Monetary funding is always appreciated but if you can help me out in development, that’s cool too
Right now, translation (.mo) files are MORE then welcome! Read translation instructions (also included in the latest package) for more info.
Any small donation via PayPal to keep me developing is VERY welcome. Thanks!
Read more on usage in the Quick Guide section of your WordPress ‘Options’ > ‘Skype Status’ page, available after installation.
Screenshots

Set your basic fall-back and advanced options on the Skype options page.

Activate a Skype widget and either set alternative options or leave blank and fall-back options will be used.

Example of Skype button widget in sidebar.
Other Notes
Support
Post your questions, bugs and feature requests on Skype Online Status Google Group
When reporting bugs, please describe as carefully as possible and provide information like the version number of the plugin, WordPress and – if relevant – server security settings, PHP and MySQL version.
What’s New
Since version 1.1 there have been some major changes to the layout of the ‘Options’ > ‘Skype Status’ page. Documentation has been much extended.
And some new features:
- internationalization
- widgetized!
- lots of new templates
- some new tags for the template files,
- a ‘Reset options’ button to revert to original settings and a ‘Remove’ button to completely clear the plugin settings from your database
- a quicktag to display a Skype Status button in posts and page content!
- editable template
- language switch for Skype default status texts
- download skype now link (replaceable with your own referral link since version 2.6)
Since version 2.6.3 there are unlimited customizable Skype Status Widgets available
Since version 2.6.4 there is internationalization… Anyone who wants to contribute, please consider doing a translation
Notes
This plugin has grown a lot since the start but it should be mentioned that it was built upon the neat little plugin Skype Button v2.01 by Anti Veeranna. Many thanks!
This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
Wish List
For version 3 and beyond
- More translations! Read translation instructions (also included in the latest package) for more info.
- Skypecasts widgets !
- Skype-like button theme wizard…
- Upload your own button/template file
- integration with WP user system (skype field on the Profile page, ++)
- Get XML online status (and local time?)
Bugs
Please report anything you find on Skype Online Status Google Group. Provide as much related info as you can, so we can reproduce the error… And fix it
Known issues
- The javascript provided by Skype that detects whether Skype is installed (client side), does not work properly on Linux. It defaults to displaying a download popup even if Skype is installed on the visitors computer after the Skype button is clicked. Hopefully, Skype will fix this some day :/