Rani Thao
April 28, 2005
QMCS 425
Instant Messaging
Introduction
In the last
decade instant messaging has become quite popular. Everyone knows what an
instant messenger is but a formal definition is that it is a client which hooks
up to an instant messaging service. It differs from e-mail in that
conversations happen in realtime. Most instant messaging services offer a
“presence awareness” feature, indicating whether people on one’s list of
contacts are currently online and available to chat. Usually, both parties in
the conversation see each line of text right after it is typed (line-by-line),
thus making it more like a telephone conversation.
History of Instant Messaging
AOL has always
had a form of instant messaging in the early ‘90s. When they introduced the
Buddy List feature in 1996, it took off. In the same year, ICQ (I Seek You)
came into the Internet scene and helped popularize instant messaging. However,
AOL Instant Messaging was exclusive only to AOL members while ICQ was a free IM
software available for download to anyone.
AOL finally
introduced AIM which allowed its members to talk with non-members for the first
time in 1997. AOL became the dominant player in instant messaging when it
bought Mirablis, the creator of ICQ.
As the
popularity grew, other messengers were created.
How Instant Messaging Works?
Instant
messaging allows a person to maintain a list of people that they wish to
interact with. They can send messages to any of the people on their list, which
is often called a buddy list. However, they can only send messages if this
person is online. When a message is sent, a small window opens up where this
person and his or her friend can type in messages that both of them can see.
Features of Most Instant Messengers
- Instant messages - Send notes back and forth with a
friend who is online
- Chat - Create your own custom chat room
with friends or co-workers
- Web links - Share links to your favorite Web
sites
- Images - Look at an image stored on your
friend's computer
- Sounds - Play sounds for your friends
- Files - Share files by sending them
directly to your friends
- Talk - Use the Internet instead of a
phone to actually talk with friends
- Streaming content - Real-time or near-real-time stock
quotes and news
Instant Messengers
|
Messenger
Name |
Creator |
First
Release Date |
Cost |
|
Adium |
Adam
Iser |
Sep-01 |
Free |
|
AIM |
AOL |
May-97 |
Free |
|
aMSN |
Alvaro
J. Iradier Muro |
May-02 |
Free |
|
BitlBee |
Wilmer
van der Gaast |
Aug-02 |
Free |
|
Centericq |
Konstantin
Klyagin |
? |
Free |
|
Fire |
Eric
Peyton |
? |
Free |
|
Gaim |
Mark
Spencer |
Nov-98 |
Free |
|
iChat |
Apple
Computer |
Aug-02 |
Free |
|
ICQ |
Mirabilis |
Nov-96 |
Free |
|
IM2 |
IM2
Limited |
Apr-03 |
Free |
|
JAJC |
Mikel
Ivanov |
2002 |
Free |
|
Kopete |
Kopete
Team |
Mar-02 |
Free |
|
mICQ |
Mattew
Smith, Rudiger Kuhlmann |
1997,
2001 |
Free |
|
Miranda
IM |
Miranda
IM project |
Feb-00 |
Free |
|
MSN
Messenger |
Microsoft |
Jul-99 |
Free |
|
Proteus |
Justin
Wood |
? |
15 USD |
|
Psi |
Justin
Karneges |
2001 |
Free |
|
QQ |
Tencent |
? |
Free |
|
Skype |
Niklas
Zennstrom, Janus Friis |
2003 |
Free |
|
Tkabber |
Alexey
Shchepin |
2003 |
Free |
|
Trillian
|
Cerulean
Studios |
Jul-00 |
Free |
|
Trillian
Pro |
Cerulean
Studios |
Sep-02 |
25 USD |
|
Yahoo!
Messenger |
Yahoo! |
Jun-99 |
Free |
|
YSM |
Rad2k |
2001 |
Free |
AOL Instant Messenger
AOL Instant
Messenger has become one of the most popular instant messengers. You no longer
have to be an America Online member to experience the immediate cross-Internet
communication made possible by AOL Instant Messenger.
AOL Instant
Messenger allows Internet users to:
- Communicate via private,
personalized text messages
- Indicates when friends, family
members, and co-workers are online
- Send and respond to messages
immediately
- Disconnect when crank chatters
contact you
- Send personalized greetings from
Buddy List
- Forward a copy of your Buddy List to
a friend
- Add your own comments to an entry on
your Buddy List
- Add buddy icons
- Rate AIM users
- Chat via webcam
- Play video games with another users
- Share digital photos
- Create your own away messages
The AIM Buddy List lets you
organize your online friends into easy groups like "Work",
"Family", etc. To group your online buddies, just hit the List Setup
tab to get started. You can add a new group or start populating the default
groups by hitting the Add a Buddy button at the bottom. You can always
re-organize later by easily moving buddies to new groups.
You can use the Buddy List to easily send instant messages. Just double-click
on the user's name and an instant message box will appear. You can also
customize your instant messages with a buddy icon, create your own chat rooms,
or talk with multiple AIM users in one window.
Pros:
- AOL and non-AOL members can
communicate
- Allows you to customize your away
message
Cons:
- Automatically launches when you
start your computer
- You can not leave a message for
someone who’s offline
- No authorization needed for someone
to add you to their Buddy List
- No “invisible” option when you would
prefer to hide from someone
MSN Messenger
MSN requires you
to create an account with its own Hotmail (or Passport) program before you can
install the messenger client. Entering your demographic information is not
optional.
With MSN
Messenger:
- You are notify when your friends are
online
- You are notify when you have new
e-mail in your Hotmail account
- You can access your inbox with the
click of a button
- You have full control over who can
contact you and view whether you are online
- You can see a list of users who have
added you to their lists
- You can easily block a user if you
choose to do so
- You can invite someone in your list
to play an Internet game
- You are notify when the other person
is typing so that you can avoid overlapping messages
- You can visit chat rooms and join in
- You can arrange your contacts into
groups
- You can select emoticons from a
drop-down list
You can use the
Contact List to see who's online and available to chat. You can then exchange
instant messages with up to four friends in the same conversation window. MSN
correspondents in your Contact List can also be broken down into groups for
easy organization.
A nice privacy
feature is the ability to "hide" your online presence. You can appear
"Offline" to everybody in general or only to those you choose by
using the "blocking" option. You can also block people from sending
you instant messages.
Pros:
- You are able to choose whether or
not you want to appear online or offline
- You get notify if you have new
e-mails
- You get notify if a friend comes
online
Cons:
- The notification pop-ups can be
annoying
- You can’t customize your “status”
Miscellaneous
Smileys
|
:) |
Happy
|
|
:( |
Sad
|
|
:O |
Surprised |
|
:P |
Sticking
Tongue Out |
|
:D |
Big
smile |
|
:*) |
Kiss |
|
;) |
Winking
|
|
:/ |
Frustrated |
|
^_^ |
Squinty
eyes |
Instant Messaging Lingo
|
lol |
laughing
out loud |
|
brb |
be
right back |
|
btw |
by
the way |
|
bbiab |
be
back in a bit |
|
bbl |
be
back later |
|
thx |
thanks |
|
sup |
What's
up |
|
l8r |
later |
|
ttyl |
talk
to you later |
|
ttfn |
ta
ta for now |
|
gmta |
great
minds think alike |
|
imho |
in
my humble opinion |
|
np |
no
problem |
|
gtg |
got
to go |
Resources
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instant_messaging
http://www.howstuffworks.com/instant-messaging.htm
http://www.viewz.com/features/imprint.htm