{skype:user_skype_name:action:style:message}

Description

Builds a legacy Skype "My status" button: a script tag plus a linked status image for a given Skype name. The first parameter is the Skype name; the rest set the link action, the image style, and the alt/title text. With an empty name it expands to nothing. Note: the image and script it points at (mystatus.skype.com, download.skype.com) were retired by Skype years ago, so the button no longer shows a live status - the command still emits the same markup but the image will not load. Treat it as historical. The Skype name and the action and style values are URL-encoded; the message is HTML-escaped.

Parameters

user_skype_name required

The Skype name (login) of the user. With an empty value the whole command expands to nothing. The value is URL-encoded, so spaces and special characters are safe.

action optional default userinfo

What the Skype link does when clicked, appended to the skype: URL (skype:name?action). Passed through to the URL unchanged (only URL-encoded); the engine does not validate it. The documented values are add, call, chat and userinfo.

Allowed values userinfo (open profile, default), call (start a call), chat (open a chat), add (add as contact). Any other string is passed through unchanged - the engine does not validate it.

style optional default smallicon

Which status-image variant to request from the (now retired) mystatus.skype.com service; it becomes part of the image URL. Passed through unchanged (only URL-encoded), not validated. The documented values are smallicon, mediumicon, balloon, bigclassic, smallclassic (plus add, call, chat).

Allowed values smallicon (default), mediumicon, balloon (text bubble; spelled ballon in the source), bigclassic, smallclassic. Any other string is passed through unchanged - not validated.

message optional default Skype me

Text used for the image alt and title attributes (the tooltip). It is HTML-escaped, so quotes and angle brackets are safe to include.

Examples

virtual{skype:johndoe}

Expected(a script tag plus wrapping Skype me

)

wrapping

)">Actual

The simplest form: just the Skype name. Uses the default action userinfo, the smallicon image and the alt/title text Skype me. Output is HTML markup so this is shown for illustration.

virtual{skype:johndoe:chat}

Expected(... ... image still smallicon ...)

... image still smallicon ...)">Actual

The second parameter sets what the link does. Here chat makes the link open a Skype chat: the href becomes skype:johndoe?chat. Markup output, shown for illustration.

virtual{skype:johndoe:call:mediumicon}

Expected(... ...

...

Actual

The third parameter picks the status-image variant. call sets the link action and mediumicon requests the medium image: the img src ends in /mediumicon/johndoe. Markup output.

virtual{skype:johndoe:userinfo:balloon:Talk to John}

Expected(... ... /balloon/johndoe ... alt="Talk to John" title="Talk to John" ...)

... /balloon/johndoe ... alt="Talk to John" title="Talk to John" ...)">Actual

All four parameters: name, action, image style and the tooltip text. Talk to John becomes the img alt and title. Markup output.

test[{skype:}]

Expected[]

Actual[]

With no Skype name the command returns an empty string, so nothing is emitted. The brackets show there is no output between them. This is the one deterministic, non-markup case.

virtual{skype:john doe:call:balloon:Call "John" <now>}

Expected(... href="skype:john%20doe?call" ... /balloon/john%20doe ... alt="Call "John" <now>" ...)

Actual

The name (and action and style) are URL-encoded, so the space in john doe becomes john%20doe in both the href and the image URL. The message is HTML-escaped, so the quotes and angle brackets in the tooltip become " and < >. Markup output.

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