If you'd like to get in touch with me electronically, I try to use open standards for my communications. This is both an ideological stance (I try to avoid relying on proprietary software) and a pragmatic approach (most proprietary communication software works very poorly on Linux, my usual computing platform.)
I use automatic spam filters. If you send me something important and I don't respond, feel free to send a follow up or call me to make sure it didn't get trapped in the deluge of spam.
Instant Messaging
I use Google Talk for instant messaging, which uses the open Jabber protocol and is widely supported on all platforms. If you have a gmail account then you can just follow these instructions to get started and add me (andy at potatoriot dot com) to your contacts.
Since Google have used an open protocol, it is also possible to IM me over jabber from any pretty much any Jabber-capable software.
Voice Over IP
VOIP is becoming more common for social purposes and also for the kind of international collaborations that are so common in science. Many people have found how easy to use Skype is. That's true... if you use it on Windows... see this page for a rant about Skype.
There are many great alternatives to Skype that use the open SIP protocol, which works more like email (you can have an account with one provider and communicate with people using other providers). One easy SIP program is Gizmo. It works on Windows/Mac/Linux and just like Skype you can call other internet users for free and for a low cost you can call out to normal telephones. The call-out features of Gizmo are as easy to use as Skype, although this means that their software is really focussed on working with their servers. It is still easy to call other SIP addresses all over the internet for free.
With SIP I can also shop around for different call-out providers and set cheap or free incoming numbers which will ring my softphone for free. SIP does video too.
My SIP address is werkshy@ekiga.net . Personally I use the Twinkle software for Linux but since SIP is an open standard, I can always switch software when something better comes along. For Macs I recommend XMeeting if you don't want to sign up for Gizmo.
If this button says 'call me' then I'm online. Clicking on it will work if you have a SIP client set up.
If you are locked in to Skype, you might find me as werkshy on Skype.
