Using Skype for Business

Making a Skype for Business call

  1. In the *Skype for Business main window, either find a contact in your Contacts list or type a person’s name in the search box.
  2. Move your cursor to the person’s contact listing, and click the phone icon to make a call.
  3. When a call is accepted, you can use Skype’s audio controls to mute your input, place a call on hold, or redirect audio output to a different device. See the next section “Using audio call controls,” for detailed instructions.  

Using audio call controls

Point to the phone/mic icon at the bottom of the conversation window to access the controls, and then do any of the following:

  • To put the call on hold, click Hold Call.
  • To mute your audio, click Mute.
  • To interact with the phone system (ie. entering a voice-mailbox code or navigating an automated menu) click on the Dial Pad tab.
  • To change which device is transmitting audio from Skype, click the Devices tab and select from the available options.

Answering a call

 Skype will display a pop-up alert to inform you of incoming calls. Interact with this alert window in order to:

  • Answer the call by clicking anywhere on the photo area.
  • Reject the call by clicking Ignore.
  • Reply with an instant message or set your status to Do Not Disturb so that you can avoid other calls by clicking Options and selecting your desired action.

Staring a video call

  1. Open Skype for Business (Lync) and find a contact with your Contacts list or by typing a name in the search box.
  2. Move your cursor to the contact’s picture, and click the Video icon.

Skype will display an incoming video call alert on your contact’s screen, which they can use to either accept or reject your call.  

  1. If the video call is accepted, the conversation window will expand to display video input.
  2. At any time during the call, you can:
    • End the call by closing the window or clicking the End Call button.
    • To temporarily stop transmitting video from your camera, point to the camera icon, and click Stop My Video. Your computer will continue transmitting audio into the call.
    • To disable your video input for the duration of the call, point to the camera icon and click End Video. Your computer will continue transmitting audio into the call. 

You can also add video to an existing instant messaging (IM) conversation by clicking the camera icon in the chat window.  

Using video controls and views

In the conversation window of a video call, modify your viewing options by clicking Pick a Layout and selecting from the following options:

  • Gallery View shows video from all of the call’s participants (if there are more than two). This feature is unavailable on Lync Basic 2013.
  • Speaker View shows the presenter’s video or photo at the lower-right corner of the meeting window, plus meeting content.
  • Content View shows only the meeting content without any individual participant’s video input.
  • Compact view shows each participants’ photo in a compact window.

To control call participants, right-click someone’s video or photo in the chat window and select from the following options:

  • Mute, Unmute, or Remove to mute, unmute, or remove that person from the call.
  • Lock the Video Spotlight to disable the video/photo input for callers who aren’t in the call spotlight.

To see videos or photos in a separate window, go to Pop out the video gallery and click Full Screen View for a large view of the videos or photos. To restore videos and photos to a single window, click Pop in people region.

 

Scheduling a Skype Meeting with Outlook

To schedule a Skype meeting, you need a sign-in address and password from an organization that uses Skype for Business Server.

  1. Open Outlook, and go to your calendar.
  2. On the Home tab ribbon, in the Skype Meeting section, click New Skype Meeting under the Skype Meeting section
  3. To set up the meeting:
  • Type each participants email address in the To box (make sure to separate addresses with semicolons).
  • Type a name for the meeting in the Subject box.
  • If some participants will be attending in person, click Room Finder in the Options section of the Meeting tab to set a destination room, or list a location (ie. conference room) in the Location box.
  • Select a start time and end time. In order to find a time that works for everyone, use the Scheduling Assistant in the Show section of the Meeting tab ribbon.
  1. In the meeting area, type an agenda or subject. Be careful not to inadvertently change any other meeting information in the process. IMPORTANT:  Scheduling a meeting with the default options  (like we just reviewed) is suitable for small, internal meetings with a few coworkers. If you have a larger meeting with people outside your, we recommend changing the meeting options as necessary prior to sending invites.  Do this by clicking Meeting Options from the Skype Meeting section of the meeting request.  
  2. After making sure you entered all the meeting details correctly, click Send.

Setting up an online meeting through the Outlook Web App

To create a Skype for Business Meeting request in Outlook Web App, you need to:

  1. Be using a browser that supports the full version of Outlook Web App.
  2. Have a username and a password from an organization with a business or enterprise subscription to Office 365.
  3. Click the app launcher in the Office 365 portal, then select Calendar to open the Calendar app.
  4. Click the plus sign or New option below the app launcher, and fill in the appropriate meeting information.
  5. Click Online Meeting in the middle of the meeting window above the message area. Call-in details (ie. the Join online meeting link) will appear in the message area. If your account is configured for dial-in conferencing, you’ll also see a Find a local number link. NOTES: You may be unable to see the Online Meeting link for the following reasons:
    • You’re not using a browser that supports the full version of Outlook Web App.
    • Your Office 365 subscription does not include Skype for Business.
    • You’re logged in as a user who doesn’t have a Skype for Business license .
  6. If some participants will be attending the meeting in person, type the appropriate destination under Location or click Add Room for help finding a conference room.
  7.   To look for a time that works for everyone involved, click Scheduling Assistant at the top of the meeting window.
  8. To view who has access to the online meeting, who needs you to manually admit them into the meeting, and who can present during the meeting, click Online meeting settings (just above the message area).
  9. (Optional) You can list an agenda or subject in the meeting area. 
  10. (Optional) To add a picture or attachment alongside the meeting agenda, click the More actions icon at the top of the meeting window. Click the Insert option and then select from Attachments, OneDrive files or Pictures.
  11. Once you’ve confirmed that the meeting details were entered correctly, click Send at the top of the meeting window.

 

*Skype for Business (Formerly known as Lync).

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