FAQ: FlyBe

Is there a Mac or Linux version?

Skinkers has made a considerable investment in researching and developing a desktop alert solution that is now utilised by many of the world’s most prestigious news and commercial organisations (such as the BBC, Sky, The London Stock Exchange and American Airlines). Led by customer requirements Skinkers initially developed the client software to run on the dominant end-user platform, Windows from Microsoft.

However, Skinkers is aware that other platforms and devices are also very popular and as part of its Technology Development Roadmap, for the next generation of information broadcast technology, it has now launched the Live Notification Platform. The Live Notification Platform is designed to be an integrated communications solution to increase the visibility of information that end-users ShouldKnow on any device of their choice. Consequently, client software for Mac, BlackBerry and mobile phone operating systems are all on the Roadmap. Specifically, Mac OS X Tiger (10.4) is the most popular and current operating system on the Apple platforms and as such Skinkers is planning to release a client to run on this environment during Q2 2008.

Please note that any dates given as part of the Technology Development Roadmap are subject to change as part of Skinkers ongoing research and development programme.
I have downloaded the Skinker but it is not running. What's going wrong?

The program that is downloaded is in fact the Skinkers application installer, which must be run to install the application. Make sure you download this file to a memorable place (such as "Desktop" or "My Documents"). Once downloaded, double-click the file and follow the on screen instructions to install the Skinker.
What is the right-click menu? How do I access it, and what is it for?

Using the right-click menu, you can access all of the available functions of the Skinker. These can vary from application to application but will always contain some standard options:
- Show/Hide - Click this to either bring the character/icon onto the screen, or send it away again.
- Settings - Allows you to change various Skinker configuration settings, or activate/deactivate available information channels
- Be Quiet|Snooze - Stop Skinker activity for a set period of time. This does not shut down the Skinker.
- Help - Here you can find instructions and support for the application.
- Exit|Shut Down - Shut down the Skinker totally. You will not receive any messages until it is restarted.
- Message History|Last Viewed message - recall messages you have previously received.
- Extras - from here you can access extra Skinker functions such as Uninstall, the Skinkers Privacy Statement, application information as well as being able to change your answers to previously asked questions.
To access the right-click menu, right-click either the icon located in the system tray, or the character/icon that presents messages to you.
How do I access the Skinker's settings?

From the right-click menu choose the settings option. This could be called one of the following:
- Settings
- Options
- Channels & Options
What are channels?

Much like a television, a Skinker can provide information through seperate "opt-in" streams. For example, the application could have a news channel, a sports channel and an entertainment channel. To select the channels that are of interest to you, simply access the Skinker's settings and check or uncheck the boxes next to the channel names (if available).
I have installed the Skinker correctly, why haven't I received any messages?

There are a number of reasons why this may be happening:
- You could be accessing the Internet through a Proxy Server. By default the Skinkers application will use the same settings as Internet Explorer, so if you can access the Internet through the web browser, your Skinkers application should too. You may however need to manually enter the relevant details into the Skinkers application (Please check with your Network Administrator or ISP to find out if this is the case). To do this, follow these steps:
  1. Access the Skinkers settings from the right click menu.
  2. Click on "Use Proxy.." or "Proxy Settings" to open the proxy window.
  3. Click the circle next to "Manually enter settings" and enter the details provided by your Network Administrator or ISP.
  4. Click "OK" to close the Proxy Settings window, and close the Skinkers settings window.
  Your Skinker, like your web browser, should now connect to the net through the Proxy Server and you should be able to receive messages.
- Most messages are shown at a pre-set time/date. If your computer clock is wrong, messages will not be executed at the correct time. Make sure your time settings are correct by double-clicking the time in the system tray.
- You may not have any channels checked.
- Powerpoint is running. To stop messages from appearing during important presentations, the Skinkers application will not display anything while powerpoint is running. If there is a message waiting, closing Powerpoint will make the message appear immediately.
Why doesn't my Skinker make any sound?

Some Skinkers have sounds, some don't. If you know your Skinker is meant to make some sounds, make sure:
- You have a sound card in your computer
- You have speakers plugged into the computer and they are turned on
- You do not have the sound muted in Windows
- The sound option (if present) is checked in the Skinker's settings
The sound my Skinker is making is annoying, how can I turn it off?

To mute your Skinker, open the Skinker's settings and uncheck the "sound" option.
I closed a message by mistake, how do I recall it?

Simply access the right-click menu and choose the appropriate message from the Message History. Some older versions of the application will only allow you to recall the last viewed message.
How do I change my answer to question I have been asked in the past?

From the right-click menu choose "Extras > Profile Manager". From here you can see some of the questions you have been asked. Selecting one of these will redisplay the question for you to change your answer.
I can't find the icon in the system tray anymore. Where has it gone?

There are 2 possible reasons why the Skinkers icon may have disappeared from the system tray:
- Windows XP has hidden it. To retrieve it, simply click the "<<" button in the system tray.
- "explorer.exe" has crashed and not correctly restored the icon. THE SKINKER IS STILL RUNNING. To retrieve the icon, you will need to stop the application and restart it. Windows 2000/XP users should follow these steps:
  1. Hold down "CTRL + ALT + DEL".
  2. In the resulting window, click the "Task Manager" button (in Windows XP Home Edition, you will automatically be taken to the Task Manager)
  3. The Windows Task Manager will appear. Click the "Processes" tab.
  4. Click the column title named "Image Name" to alphabetically order the processes.
  5. You must find the process related to your Skinker. This is commonly called "skinkers.exe", but may be named according to the application. e.g. the BBC Comedy Robot uses a process called "bbccomedy.exe".
  6. Once you have found the process, simply highlight it and click "End Process". A warning will appear and you should click "Yes".
  7. Now the Skinker has been stopped, you can relaunch it from the Windows Start Menu.
My personal firewall flagged the fact that the Skinker is trying to connect to the Internet. Why?

The Skinkers application needs to contact the Internet occasionally to see if there are any messages it needs to display. If there are, and these messages contain multimedia content, the Skinker will also download these assets in the background. The application will also send back anonymous statistics (such as the number of clicks on a particular link) to our server. These are the only reasons why the Skinker needs to access the Internet so you should allow it through your firewall.
Ever since installing Service Pack 2 on Windows XP, my Skinker has stopped displaying messages. How do I get it working again?

Service Pack 2 introduces a Microsoft's new Security Center, which includes a personal firewall (Windows Firewall), stopping malicious applications from accessing the Internet. Sometimes Windows Firewall will also stop your Skinker from accessing the Internet to retrieve messages. To restore it's permissions follow these steps:
1. From the Windows Start Menu, choose "Control Panel" (or "Settings > Control Panel if using the "Classic Start Menu").
2. Click the icon named "Security Center".
3. In the resulting window, click the "Windows Firewall" link.
4. The Windows Firewall settings panel will appear. From here choose the "Exceptions" tab.
5. Click the "Add Program..."
6. In the following list find the Skinkers application you are running, highlight it and click "OK"
7. Click OK again, close the Security Center and close Control Panel.
The Skinkers application is causing my computer to dial up to the Internet without me knowing. How do I stop this from happening?

There is an easy way to stop your computer from trying to automatically establish a connection:
1. From the Windows Start Menu, choose "Control Panel" (or "Settings > Control Panel if using the "Classic Start Menu").
2. Select "Network and Internet Connections > Internet Options" (or "Internet Properties" if using a Windows version earlier than XP).
3. Click the Connections tab, then click the circle beside "Never dial a connection".
4. Click OK to save and close the window.
After you've done this, to go online simply click on your dial up connection. It is recommended you do this as otherwise you could allow other software applications to automatically dial up for malicious purposes.
What port does the Skinker use to access the Internet?

Port 80
Is the Skinker storing all of the messages on my computer? Will I run out of space?

No. Once a message has been "bumped" out of the message history, all assets relating to that message are deleted.
Does the Skinker contain adware, spyware or viruses? Are you uploading my personal information without my knowledge/consent?

No, the Skinkers application does not contain any type of malware. The only information the application uploads are anonymous statistics. Please see our Privacy Policy for details.
Is the Skinkers application using a lot of system resources?

No. The application uses very little system memory (usually between 5 and 10 megabytes), its CPU usage is very low and the hard disk space used will rarely exceed 20 megabytes.
When I click on a link sent to me by the Skinker, nothing happens. Why?

Some users, AOL users in particular, may have an unsupported browser associated with links or not have one set up at all. Follow these steps to fix this issue:
1. From the Windows Start Menu, choose "Control Panel" (or "Settings > Control Panel if using the "Classic Start Menu" or a Windows version earlier than XP).
2. Select "Network and Internet Connections > Internet Options" (or "Internet Properties" if using a Windows version earlier than XP).
3. On that window, select the "Programs" tab.
4. Make sure you tick the box next to "Internet Explorer should check to see whether it is the default browser".
5. Start Internet Explorer and choose "Yes".
6. (If using another browser such as Mozilla, Netscape, Firefox or Opera please refer to the relevent help section in those applications to set them as the default browser).
Some of the text in the messages seems not to fit in the window and there are no scrolling options to go view the bottom of the message. Why is that?

You may have large fonts setup in your display settings. To revert to small fonts, you need to do the following:
1. From the Windows Start Menu, choose "Control Panel" (or "Settings > Control Panel if using the "Classic Start Menu" or a Windows version earlier than XP).
2. Select "Appearance and Themes > Display" (or "Display" if using a Windows version earlier than XP).
3. Select the Settings tab.
4. Click the "Advanced" button.
5. Change Display Font Size to Small Fonts.
6. Click Apply/OK and Reboot.
(Note: this will also change the font size of all of your desktop icons etc)
Why does my Skinker character/icon hide itself after a few minutes even if I don't touch it?

The Skinkers application is programmed to hide the character/icon after few minutes to prevent it from getting in the way. It can always be recalled by choosing Show/Hide from the right-click menu.
Why do videos not play?

The Skinkers application is able to display videos in a number of formats using Windows Media Player. However, you may need to install extra software (known as codec's) on your computer to support these formats. Please go to the following URL to download the most up-to-date codec's from Microsoft:

Microsoft Codec Installation Packages
Why doesn't the "send to a friend" function work?

Unfortunately, the send to a friend function is not supported by certain email clients, such as AOL and Lotus Notes.
I want to uninstall the Skinker, how do I do that?

There are 3 ways to uninstall the Skinkers application.
1. From Windows Add/Remove Programs, located in the Control Panel (please consult Windows help for information on how to do this).
2. From the Start Menu. When it is installed, the Skinkers application creates an uninstall icon in its program group in the Start Menu. Clicking this will start the uninstallation process.
3. From the right-click menu, select "Extras > Uninstall" and follow the onscreen instructions.

Skinkers

FAQ: FlyBe