If you use Skype for Internet telephony or to provide an inexpensive way to make and receive calls on your PC and you're an Outlook user, here are a number of add-ins available from the Skype Extras Gallery you may want to look into. Skype has released a Skype Toolbar for Outlook with the following features:

• Easily match individual outlook contacts to Skype contacts.

• See Presence, start calls and chats for all known message senders direct from the toolbar.

• See presence, call and chat to all outlook contacts known to Skype.

• Create Outlook contacts direct from incoming email.

• Use Skype to Call all Telephone numbers for Outlook contacts.

• Use Skype to call and chat with all other known contacts in the Cc and To message headers

• Record journal entries for all incoming Skype calls

• Use Skype to call telephone numbers and even Skype names in the body of Email messages

• Start group chats from email messages where topics are automatically set the to the email subject

• Automatically add Skype callto signatures to outgoing email messages.

• Import contacts to Skype direct from Outlook.

• Open Outlook contact automatically for incoming calls.

A similar toolbar for Internet Explorer is also available. There are also two third-party tools: Look 2 Skype (pictured above) and AvantLook (caution slow server - North American mirror here). All are in some stage of beta development and all are free.