Public IM Services
A Quick Reference to
Consumer Instant Messaging
Last updated: March 02, 2007
The Internet has had a huge effect on the
way we communicate with friends, family and co-workers. Giving out your
e-mail address has become as commonplace as giving a phone number. While
e-mail is
considered to be the staple on online communicating, instant messaging
is also common as it allows for
real-time (i.e,
immediate) contact with others.
By definition,
Instant Messaging (IM) ienables you to create a type of
private chat room with another individual in order to communicate in
real-time over the Internet, analogous to a telephone conversation but
using text-based communication. Typically, the instant
messaging system alerts you whenever somebody on your private list is
online. You can then initiate a chat session with that particular
individual.
Instant Messaging Features
To use IM to chat with others online you first need to decide which
of the available free public services you want to use. You download the
messaging client and sign-up for the service by creating a username and
password. Once you have done that, you will then be able to communicate
with others using the service. IM clients allow you to add users to a
contact list, also called a buddy list. Once a user has been
added to your contact list, you are then able to see that person's
status, or
presence — that is, whether they are online and available to chat, online
but currently away from their computer, or offline. You can
then initiate a real-time conversation with the person who is online. Depending on the service you use, this could be a text-based instant
message, a text-based chat session,or voice chat session. Some services
allow you to send a text message to a person who is not online. In
this case the user will receive the message the next time he or she logs on. Most public IM services also allow you to
send files, sounds, images and Web links to users on your contact
lists through the IM client.
Many IM clients will allow you to
communicate only with users on the same network. However, there are
alternative clients that you can use to enable cross-platform
communications. Here is a list of the most popular public instant
messaging networks and clients being used today:
Popular Instant Messaging Platforms
ICQ
ICQ was the first
free public IM system and launched in 1996 by Mirabilis, which was acquired
by America Online (AOL) in 1998. ICQ says its application has
been downloaded over 370,000,000 times and that 400,000 million messages
are sent each day through the system. Some of the current instant
messaging clients offered by ICQ include ICQ 5.1, ICQ2Go!, ICQ Pro 2003b, ICQ Wireless,
and ICQ for Mac.
AIM
Hot on the heels of ICQ , in 1997 AOL followed up with
its own instant messaging service called AIM, which now boasts
more than 53 million active registered users. AIM is an advertising
supported platform, meaning its users will often see ads displayed
while using the client. AIM supports file-sharing, buddy lists, RSS
feeds, the capability to send messages to users who are offline, a
universal address book, AIM pages, AIM bots, a customizable
interface, AIM plug-ins, and other features. Current AIM clients
include AIM 6.1, Pro, AIM express, AIM Triton, as well as an
assortment of beta clients.
Windows Live Messenger
Previously called MSN Messenger, Microsoft's Windows Live Messenger
(WLM) is also an advertisement supported IM service. It currently
has more than 27 million active registered users worldwide. WLM offers
file sharing, PC-to-PC calling, time-stamped messages, offline
notifications and other features. In 2006, Microsoft and Yahoo
announced an
interoperability agreement which would allow users on either
system to communicate with each other. The current release version
is Windows Live Messenger 8.1, and there is also a mobile version
available.
Yahoo Messenger
In 1998 Yahoo launched its IM service under the name of Pager. With
its 22 million users Yahoo Messenger is also an
advertisement-supported IM service. Users are required to have a
Yahoo ID, which also enables you to use other Yahoo services.
Features of Yahoo Messenger include PC-to-Phone calling,
PC-to-PC calling, plug-ins, voicemail, file sharing, webcams, and
chat rooms, client customization, and avatars. It recently
incorporated Yahoo Mail into its IM service. The current
version is 8.1 and supports interoperability with Windows Live Messenger.
Trillian
Created by Cerulean Studios and released in 2001, Trillian is an
IM client that connects users of other IM services such as AIM, Windows
Live Messenger, Jabber, Skype and more. If you have different
friends on different networks, you can use Trillian to manage your
various IM accounts. When you log in to Trillian, users on
proprietary systems will see you as being online in each of those
systems. Trillian uses a color-code system to indicate which service
you are receiving messages through. Features of Trillian include
Emotiblips, skins and customizable interfaces, plug-ins, and more.
There are free and commercial versions of Trillian available. The
current versions are Trillian 3 and Trillian Pro 3.
Gaim
Gaim is a Linux, BSD, MacOS X and Windows multi-IM client that
works similar to Trillian. It currently supports AIM, ICQ Windows
Live Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, Jabber, and others. With a Gaim
account you can access your multiple IM network accounts
simultaneously. Current features include file transfer, away
messages, notifications, buddy sounds, spell checking, tabbed
conversations, and more. The current version of Gaim is 1.50 (2.0
beta).
Jabber
Jabber is an open system that uses the XMPP protocol, which allows
anyone to run his or her own Jabber server to talk to users on other
systems. According to Jabber more than 10 million people use their
system. Jabber incorporates a technology called transports that
allows its users to access other IM networks, without needing the
other network's client. There are many clients available using the
Jabber / XMPP protocol, including; Freetalk, Gnome Jabber, Mango,
Spark, Google Talk, Soapbox Communicator, Miranda IM and more.
Meebo
Meebo is a popular Web-based IM system that lets you log into
different IM networks from any computer with a browser and Internet
connection. Based on AJAX technology, it works like a desktop
application within your browser. Because Meebo is browser-based, it
requires no download to use. Meebo supports AIM, Yahoo Messenger,
Jabber, ICQ, Google talk, and MSN Messenger. Meebo also offers a
service called "meebome" that lets users create a chat widget
for your own Web page. Users to your Web site will appear as a buddy
on your chat list.
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Vangie 'Aurora' Beal -
Writer, www.Webopedia.com
Last updated: March 02, 2007
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