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Send Picture Skype For Business Mac Client We Couldn't
Skype For Business Mac Client
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I’m on a business trip with an iPhone 7Plus and iPad Pro and I can’t comprehend why is not possible to send a picture or pdf with Skype for Business - all other forms of messaging have this basic feature. Even the personal Skype does have it but not Skype for Business. We've started using Skype for Business, and a few of us have installed the new Mac client. One problem we have found is whereas inviting external users to a meeting via email is fairly straight forward on a PC, we can't find the equivalent functionality on the Mac client. The file attachment option is not available for Skype for Business in Mac 2016. We need this capability so we can send files in Skype. If you have Skype for Business Server 2015 and Office 365, see the Skype for Business on Mac column in Client comparison tables for Skype for Business Server 2015. If you have Lync Server 2013, see the Skype for Business on Mac column in Client comparison tables for Lync Server 2013. Describes an issue that prevents you from seeing contact photos in Outlook 2016, Outlook 2013, Outlook 2010, Lync 2013, Lync 2010 or Skype for Business. This behavior concerns the 'Show user photographs when available' option. Resolutions are provided.

You can now finally download Skype For Business For Mac. The final version was released late on 26th October 2016 although Microsoft slipped it out quietly overnight as there was no official announcement until later. The first update to the new client was also released on November 22nd to include contact group management, contact tagging and stability improvements. Note that if you’re still using the Preview of Skype for Business on Mac, you can install the final release alongside it – it won’t copy over the Preview installation. Microsoft does recommend uninstalling Lync 2011 first as it may conflict with the new client. Here we take a closer look at the new Skype for Business Mac.

The long awaited release of the Skype for Business Mac client was delayed in Q3 by Microsoft. It was originally due for release in Q3 2016 but then revised to October 2016 although this seemed increasingly unlikely as October drew to a close. Even just a few days ago Microsoft support stated “we aren’t able to provide the exact date when Skype for Business 2016 Mac Client will be released”. It’s now clear that Microsoft simply left it very late in the month to release Skype for Business on Mac.

SfB has been long awaited on Mac to replace the highly unreliable and maligned Lync for Mac which hasn’t been updated by Microsoft since 2011. Until now, Mac users have either been stuck with the Lync or had to use Skype for Business online or the recently released Skype Meetings service in the meantime (more on those two later).

Here’s an overview of the new Skype for Business 2016 Mac client.

As stated in the introduction, anyone can now download Skype for Business for Mac from Microsoft. The system requirements for Skype for Business on Mac are OS X 10.11 El Capitan or macOS Sierra 10.12. It will not work on OS X 10.7 Lion, OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, OS X 10.9 Mavericks or OS X 10.10 Yosemite. You’ll also need to make sure you’ve upgraded the server to Skype for Business Server 2015 or Lync Server 2013. For Outlook integration you need at least Outlook Mac build 15.27 (161010). Note for any other technical doubts, the Skype Operations Framework (SOF) has also been updated to help system admins roll out Skype for Business for Mac in enterprise environments.

The Skype for Business Mac download runs the Skype for Business for Mac installer which requires your Mac admin password to install and will also prompt you to close your browser while you install it.

Note that the Skype for Business Mac installer also installs Microsoft Update on your Mac to keep the software updated. When you launch Skype for Business on your Mac for the first time, it will automatically ask you whether you want to check for software updates manually or automatically and offer you the chance to join the Office Insider program:

Skype for Business will then launch and you log on using your organization credentials:

The advanced options also allow you to configure a proxy for SfB to use:

When you launch Skype for Business for Mac, you’ll need to enter your organization username and password. Note that a Skype username or Microsoft account will not work.

Once you sign-into Skype for Business for Mac, as long as you have at least Outlook build 15.27 (161010), it will display your meetings for today and tomorrow based on your Outlook calendar:

You can expand the Meeting Calendar to access and join meetings directly from within the client by clicking on the appointments:

When you join a meeting, you can display full screen video, share content, chat with others and invite others into the meeting:

SfB for Mac supports group video calling and up to 4 participants can be added:

You can also see a full list of the Presenter and Attendees to the right of the interface and search for participants during a call.

Microsoft is slowly integrating Skype for Business on Windows into other Office applications such as PowerPoint and Word. Office Online customers i.e. those that use the Web versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote can now start a chat with another user or collaborator simply by clicking on the blue Chat button.

Skype for Business chat is also accessible in both the web version and desktop version of Outlook. Simply click the Skype icon in the top navigation bar to access contacts and start a chat. Alternatively, you can click the IM button in the users contact card.

You can customize a few preferences on Skype for Business for Mac. The General tab allows you to tweak things like whether you want a prompt before leaving a call and want to show video for incoming calls. You can also choose a download location to store call logs:

Under Contacts you can choose whether to use a compact contact list or show contact status:

Under Calls you can activate things such as call forwarding, pause iTunes and configure PIN settings for joining meetings:

The Video/Audio settings allow you to customize the audio and video input devices if you want to use external mics or webcams:

Finally Notifications allows you to customize how you receive notifications via Notification Center:

Apart from the launch of Skype for Business on Mac, Microsoft has also updated the mobile apps with the ability to present in a meeting from the Skype for Business mobile app and better video based screen sharing. This means you now have the intriguing possibility of making a PowerPoint presentation remotely with an Android or iOS device.

What’s Missing?

Unfortunately, Skype for Business for Mac is not exactly the same as the Windows version although it’s likely Microsoft will introduce some missing features soon to bring it up to speed in future updates. Some of the most notable missing features include a lack of presence features, pre-populated contacts lists, no IM conversation logs in Outlook, whiteboard support, PowerPoint/OneNote support and many more. For a full breakdown of all the features that are missing from Skype for Business for Mac compared to the Windows version, check the Skype for Business client comparison table. Some of these features simply aren’t in the client at all whereas others, such as the ability to create groups, are greyed-out. There are also no plans as yet to add Persistent Chat rooms (PChat) either to SfB although it’s likely that it will be added at some point. There are also several known issues on the Mac version Skype for Business for Mac which Microsoft are working on.

Senior Product Marketing Manager for Skype for Business for Mac Paul Cannon has confirmed that Microsoft will continue adding features to the Mac version on the Microsoft Office Blog:

The goal is quality over quantity. We have adopted a modern software development model where we will regularly introduce new value and continuous product improvements based on customer feedback post GA. Please check out our post GA roadmap to see what’s upcoming. We will work with our field organization to make priority adjustments in our post GA roadmap based on customer feedback and business needs.

Still, it’s always better not to get too carried away when Microsoft software is released on Mac. There has been a lot of excitement surrounding the release of SfB on Mac due to the fact that Lync for Mac is so hated but don’t expect it to be pla

Send Picture Skype For Business Mac Client