A number of Skype Linux users have been touch to say they get an error when trying to use it.
Upon opening the app they’re presented with a banner message with following message: “Sorry, this version of Skype is not supported anymore“.
Other are seeing a message that tells them to “get the latest update” to keep using the app.
Naturally, to try and fix the error message, some readers went to the Skype for Linux website to download and install a new package.
Only, the page [at the time of writing; since updated] still links to the ‘not supported’ version, it throws up the same error message!
In a message posted after this article was published Skype say the reason they are “forcing updates is to test our update mechanism for future work.”
Oh, well, that’s fine then…
Solution #1 — Purge and re-install
One tip on the Skype user forum says that uninstalling the app, deleting the config directory, and then re-installing using the installer from the Skype website does fix the issue.
First make sure you full quit the app. Then, open a new Terminal window and run:
sudo apt remove skypeforlinux
Next, find the ~/.Skype folder in your home directory (it will be hidden; press Ctrl + H to view hidden files) and rename it to something like ~/.Skypebackup.
Finally, re-download Skype from the Skype website, install, and run.
Solution #2 – Upgrade to Skype for Linux Preview
Another solution is to upgrade to the new Skype for Linux Preview.
Aside from some contentious design decisions the Skype for Linux Preview is pretty much just as ‘stable’ as the seemingly broken stable client, and it has some extra features like working screen sharing (on X11), various messaging improvements, and some new stickers (!).
You can download the Skype for Linux Preview from the button below. Hopefully Microsoft/Skype will update their own documentation to help migrate users of the beta series on to the preview.