Meaning of "away" status

[RRF]

I am a new user on SKYPE.  I noticed that some of my contacts have a status of "away".

What does that signify?  Does the user turn that status on or is it set automatically if the user is logged on to PC but did not launch SKYPE?  On my PC (Windows XP) when I first start it, the SKYPE icon automatically starts up SKYPE.  But I still have to launch it to use.

If I don't launch it, does SKYPE automatically set my status to "away" for my contacts?

If the status of "away" must be set or swithed to manually by the user, the only time I could see doing that for myself is when I'm not using my PC but leave it logged on.  I never leave my PC turned on if I will not be using it for a reasonable amount of time.  Can someone please explain the details, usage, meaning, etc. for status "away".

Thanks in advance...

[rzlines · Accepted solution]

You have to launch Skype if need turn the status to "away". there has an option that you can set it automatically when you are away from pc at Skype general settings. you can also switch the status manually.