Skype Plugin for Windows Media Center

Tim Coyle said: I saw this on Matt’s blog where someone is working on a Skype plugin for Windows Media Center and all I can say is about time!

Who is calling?





TapiRex makes your PC and even TV your Personal Assistant - and works with Skype, too





An award winning software developer is bringing many features of Personal Assistants to a PC screen near you. Did you ever dream of handling your PA through a remote control while watching sports? It’s here and its lifetime cost is less than half a day’s salary of a flesh and blood assistant.





The telephone King TapiRex is actually a serious business tool. According to its award winning developer Christoph Buenger it uses the latest technology to help companies and call centers to identify the names of callers at the instant the phones start ringing. Displaying Outlook Contact notes on the caller or the caller’s photograph allows you to get ready with the right answers or questions even before you lift the handset.





TapiRex channels the incoming caller data to screens on the office network to allow the right person to catch the call. According to its developer, TapiRex proved in field tests to be much more accurate in listing names and numbers of callers correctly than the receptionists it was compared against. Unlike humans, TapiRex provides the caller’s name before answering the call and keeps a history of answered and missed incoming calls with time, date, name and number. TapiRex works through the lunch break and is not subject to working hour’s regulations.





How does it work? TapiRex requires a PC connected through a TAPI device to the telephone line. This is straight forward on any computer featuring an in-built modem or ISDN card, in offices most traditional telephone switchboards can serve as a TAPI device to connect to. TapiRex uses the incoming call’s number data to identify the corresponding contact on its database and on Outlook. It can also read most other databases on your computer. TapiRex even checks the internet and online telephone directories to find information on the caller. As soon as it finds the number it will display the entry, where available with notes (for example from Outlook) and photograph (if on record).





At prices starting from $26.90 for the single user version for download from http://www.cbuenger.com/shop/ it is a bargain which the business user should be able amortize within hours. But it also becomes an affordable gadget for the home user. With its modern, open program architecture TapiRex can be used with free addons broadening its range of features and use beyond the traditional office environment. There is a free addon to make it work with Skype, the popular free VoIP service. Using the addon mceTapiRex (nominated for the „Europe xpMCE Award 2004/2005“) on a Windows XP Media Center 2005 system displays the incoming call on your TV screen – what a sophisticated gadget! You can even use your remote control to check missed calls on the TV screen. The developer is so convinced that you will appreciate the value that you can download the application using it during 30 days for free (after which it expires unless you buy it). Now that is something you won’t get when hiring a personal assistant.








Klaas Brumann


USA Tel. +1 (202) 4703242


Europe Tel. +44 (0) 8700 114911





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Odd. Your link to Matt's blog works. However, when I go to his blog's front page, that particular post isn't visible.




Edit: BTW, nice find! I'm looking forward to the open beta. Now the next thing that people are going to want is a microphone array so that they can walk around a room and Skype at the same time.