Translations by Naida Durmo

<link xref="net-chat-empathy">Chat on any network using <app>Empathy</app></link>, <link xref="net-chat-video">make video calls</link>, <link xref="net-chat-skype">install skype</link>, <link xref="net-chat-social">social networking apps</link>

Chat &amp; Social Networking

With <app>Empathy</app> you can chat, call and video call with friends and colleagues on a variety of networks

Instant messaging on Ubuntu

With the <app>Empathy</app> application, you can chat with people online and with friends and colleagues who use Google Talk, AIM, Windows Live and many other chat programs. With a microphone or a webcam you can also have audio or video calls.

<app>Skype</app> is proprietary software and must be installed manually on Ubuntu

How can I use Skype on Ubuntu?

<app>Skype</app> is proprietary software that allows you to make calls over the Internet using your computer.

Skype uses decentralized peer-to-peer technologies, so your calls do not go through a central server, but through distributed servers and other users.

The Skype software is free to use, but it is not free software; the source code is proprietary and not available for modification.

Skype is not installed by default on Ubuntu. <link href="apt:skype">Install the <em>skype</em> package</link> to use it.

You need to <link xref="addremove-sources#canonical-partner">activate the Canonical Partner Repository</link> to install <app>Skype</app>

Additional resources for help with <app>Skype</app>

<link href="https://help.ubuntu.com/community/SkypeRecordingHowto"> How to record Skype conversations </link>

<link href="https://wiki.ubuntu.com/SkypeWebCams"> A list of webcams which are compatible with Skype </link>

<link href="https://help.ubuntu.com/community/SkypeTroubleshooting"> Troubleshooting Skype - for advanced users </link>

Post to <em>Twitter</em>, <em>Facebook</em> and other social networking sites directly from your desktop

Social networking from the desktop

To set up your social networking accounts:

Click <gui>Authorize</gui> and insert your account settings for that site, and follow the instructions

What applications can I use to make video calls?

Video calls

Other applications which support video calls include

Choose which web browser you would like links to be opened in by changing the <gui>Web</gui> option.

When you open up a different web browser, it might tell you that it's not the default browser any more. If this happens, click the <gui>Cancel</gui> button (or similar) so that it doesn't try to set itself as the default browser again.

Change which mail application is used to write emails

When you click a button or link to send a new email (for example, in your word processing application), your default mail application will open up with a blank message, ready for you to write. If you have more than one mail application installed, however, the wrong mail application might open up. You can fix this by changing which one is the default email application:

Choose which email client you would like to be used by default by changing the <gui>Mail</gui> option.

<link xref="net-default-email">Default email apps</link>

Email &amp; email software

Do I need to scan my emails for viruses?

You may, however, wish to scan your email for viruses in case you happen to forward a virus from one person to another. For example, if one of your friends has a Windows computer with a virus and sends you a virus-infected email, and you then forward that email to another friend with a Windows computer, then the second friend might get the virus too. You could install an anti-virus application to scan your emails to prevent this, but it's unlikely to happen and most people using Windows and Mac OS have anti-virus software of their own anyway.

Knowing your IP address can help you troubleshoot network problems.

Find your IP address

Visit <link href="http://whatismyipaddress.com/">whatismyipaddress.com</link>.

Ubuntu comes equipped with the <app>Uncomplicated Firewall</app> (<app>ufw</app>) but the firewall is not enabled by default. Because Ubuntu does not have any open network services (except for basic network infrastructure) in the default installation, a firewall is not needed to block incoming attempted malicious connections.

For more information about how to use ufw, see the <link href="https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UncomplicatedFirewall">online documentation</link>.

Turn the firewall on or off

To turn on the firewall, enter <cmd>sudo ufw enable</cmd> in a terminal. To turn off ufw, enter <cmd>sudo ufw disable</cmd>.

Allow or block specific network activity

Many programs are built to offer network services. For instance, you can share content, or let someone view your desktop remotely. Depending on which additional programs you install, you may need to adjust the firewall to allow these services to work as intended. UfW comes with a number of rules already pre-configured. For instance, to allow <app>SSH</app> connections, enter <cmd>sudo ufw allow ssh</cmd> in a terminal. To block ssh, enter <cmd>sudo ufw block ssh</cmd>.

Each program that provides services uses a specific <em>network port</em>. To enable access to that program's services, you may need to allow access to its assigned port on the firewall. To allow connections on port 53, enter <cmd>sudo ufw allow 53</cmd> in a terminal. To block port 53, enter <cmd>sudo ufw block 53</cmd>.

To check the current status of ufw, enter <cmd>sudo ufw status</cmd> in a terminal.

Use ufw without a terminal

You can also install <app>gufw</app> if you prefer to set up the firewall without using a terminal. To install, click <link href="apt:gufw">this link</link>.

You can launch this program by searching for <app>Firewall Configuration</app> in the <gui>Dash</gui>. The program does not need to be kept open for the firewall to work.

You need to specify the right network port to enable/disable network access for a program with your firewall.

Commonly-used network ports

Port

Description