Instant Messaging

A new version of Instan-t Enterprise Messenger

2008-06-28T13:09:00.005+02:00

This new version of Instan-t includes a wide range of improvements and brand new collaborative features that allows an integration to meet enterprises´ specific needs. In this way, companies can prevent their users from running public IMs (MSN ®, Gtalk®, AOL®, ICQ® & Yahoo®) and control who is allowed to communicate with them. Besides, it offers multi person chat with voice and video, centralized message archiving, send and receive SMS to/from mobile devices, integration with Active Directory, online presentations and computer sharing, among others. Finally, its web-based administration console permits complete control of the IM network in addition to new possibilities as custom defined management levels, create and modify users, enable or disable specific features and check monthly and daily new user registration statistics.

The company offers both a server and a hosted (ASP) model and four enterprise editions with different sets of features to adapt to the needs and budget of each organization.

If you are interested, more information is available here.

Free trials are available here.

Vbuzzer Messenger

2008-06-28T13:00:00.002+02:00

Vbuzzer is an unique instant messenger that combines VoIP, internet fax, RSS, and multi protocol with Windows Live, Yahoo, AOL, ICQ Instant Messengers. While we all know a few other "all-in-ones" out there, none offers the same "all-in-one" to the extent Vbuzzer offers (VoIP+Fax+RSS+Multi Protocol).

I like Vbuzzer's robustness, stability and clearness. Noticing it didn't embed the GIPS engine as everyone else have done, Vbuzzer still achieves great voice quality in all network conditions that can rival Skype, if not better. The multi-protocol IM
function is also my favorite daily tool.

You can download Vbuzzer here.

Pidgin tips and enhancements

2007-06-06T12:12:00.000+02:00

After the rename and the new version Pidgin became more popular than ever. Some people started calling it "The Firefox of the instant messengers". However I think that Pidgin needs a lot of time and hard work to deserve such words. I've been using it for the last few days and here are some useful or not that useful but interesting tips I've found on the web:

How to configure Pidgin to work with Google Talk

Manast.com offers a working (at least for the most people) solution. Pidgin doesn't have all of the features of Google Talk client. However I feel much better using one application for most of the instant messaging protocols.

How to install Pidgin 2.0.0 on Ubuntu Feisty Fawn (7.04)

There are a lot of different solutions around the web but I prefer the Debuntu solution. Just add the Debuntu repository and then download and install Pidgin.

Visual enhancements

Here are some Pidgin themes, icons and emoticons:

Original Yahoo and MSN emoticons for Pidgin - preview and download
Human Theme - great for Ubuntu fans - preview and download
Windows Vista style icons - preview and download
OSX style icons - preview and download

Using Amarok? Show your friends what you are listening to

Get this Amarok script - it updates your Pidgin status message with what you are
currently listening to.

That is the list for now. I'll keep looking for other interesting tips and news related to Pidgin and I'll post them here.

Yahoo! Messenger for the Web

2007-05-03T06:41:00.000+02:00

Techcrunch announced few hours ago that the Flash-based Yahoo! Web Messenger will be launched today. You can chat with both Yahoo! and Windows Live Messenger friends because of the integration with the Microsoft's messenger. It doesn't have all the features of the desktop Yahoo! Messenger but it's looking very promising to me.

To start the web instant messenger go to http://webmessenger.yahoo.com or http://web.im.

More web based instant messengers are listed here.

iVisit - Video Conferencing for PC and Mac

2007-04-30T22:33:00.000+02:00

iVisit is an application which can be used for multi-party video conferencing. You can share all kind of files (pictures, videos, music, etc.) during the conversation. It has versions for both PC and Mac. You can interact privately one on one, in eight way videoconference rooms, 100 party channels. iVisit is great for teams, business meetings, schools, communities. The lite version is absolutely free.

Related: What to do if you forget your iVisit password.

Textbased MSN Client

2007-04-29T16:57:00.000+02:00

TMSNC (from Textbased MSN Client) is a textbased (console) client for the MSN Messenger protocol. It works on Linux, MacOS and BSD systems. The goal of this project is to create a client like MSN Messenger (with sound, webcam and file transfer support), but without any graphical features. The current version of this messenger is 0.3.2. You can download Textbased MSN Client here.

KMess - Open Source Messenger for Linux

2007-04-28T17:27:00.000+02:00

KMess (current version: 1.5-pre2) is an open source chat client for Linux which allows you to chat with your friends who are using MSN Messenger. It focuses on the specific features of MSN.

Some of the main features of KMess are:

Support for group chats with multiple contacts.
Picture and file transfers.
Emoticons and text formatting are supported.
Chat logging.

You can read more about its features here and download it here.

ooVoo - Video Messenger

2007-04-28T11:34:00.000+02:00

ooVoo is a free application which you can use to talk face-to-face with your friends with high quality video and audio. Using ooVoo you are able to:

Include up to five people in your conversation.
Send video messages to a specific person or a group of them.
Of course, text messages and file transfers are possible.

The application has a nice 3d video interface which is convenient and intuitive and nicely compliments the Vista style. All you need is a webcam and a headset (or separate microphone and speakers, of course). The installation takes up to 20 MB.

It seems that ooVoo is trying to be a competitor of Skype. Unfortunately, with ooVoo you cannot call out to standard phones. However there is click-to-call, and the ability to send video messages to non-ooVoo users. The quality of the video and the sound is definitely noticeable.

The ooVoo instant messenger is definitely a very interesting and useful application. One of the biggest problems would be to convince your contacts to switch to ooVoo.

I've found here an interesting story of two people who married using the ooVoo messenger. I don't know if it's real but it sounds like a funny and exciting story.

Take the poll

Free Poll by Blog Flux

More Web-Based Instant Messengers

2007-04-28T04:33:00.000+02:00

About an year and a half ago I've posted a list of some of the most popular web-based instant messengers. Meanwhile many new versions and new messengers appeared. Here is a list of those of the messengers I've found most impressive and interesting:

Ninja IM - Instant messaging for office ninjas
http://www.ninjaim.com/
Now you can IM with your friends and co-workers in the office! For all you who work in an office where IM clients like MSN messenger, Yahoo! messenger and Google Talk are prohibited, you'll love this.
KoolIM
http://www.koolim.com/
KoolIM.com is a web messenger application that allows you to stay connected with your favorite Instant Messenger almost anywhere. You need a computer with just a browser only. You can sign in to AIM, MSN, Yahoo, Google Talk and ICQ.
Meetro
http://www.meetro.com/
Meetro is the world's first location-aware IM client and real-time social network - which means Meetro allows you to meet real people in your neighborhood. It works with MSN, Yahoo, Google Talk and AIM.
RadiusIM
http://www.radiusim.com/
You can use your MSN, Yahoo and AIM accounts here. The most interesting thing here is that the users are placed on a map and you can see where your friends are and find more people in a region specified by you. You should definitely try it.
Plugoo
http://www.plugoo.com/
You can use Plugoo to chat directly from your favorite instant messenger with any visitor of your blog or any website you own. When you’re logged into your instant messenger (Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, AIM, Google Talk, Jabber, ICQ), you can receive in real time all the comments of your visitors or any question they might ask, and answer instantly!

And these are the messengers I've already written about but they are worth mentioning again:

Meebo
http://www.meebo.com/
In my opinion, this is best web-based messenger I've seen.
Goowy
http://www.goowy.com/
Goowy is a service that offers you simple, intuitive tools for communicating and sharing on the web.
Google Talk inside Gmail
https://mail.google.com/
Of course, everyone knows about the chat integrated into Gmail. One of the best additions to the Gmail interface.

Cool IM Websites (Part 1)

2007-04-25T16:51:00.000+02:00

All the emoticons and national flags available in Skype are listed here.

Wondering if your friends at Yahoo Messenger are trying to be invisible? Check here - Buddy Spy will also tell you whether your friend is in a Chat Room or even if their Web Cam is online.

If you don't like to minimize Skype/Google Talk/MSN to look at your RSS reader, you can get your favorite feeds directly in your favorite messenger with Anothr.

Universal Instant Messaging Platform by VoiceOne

2006-08-31T12:03:00.000+02:00

VoiceOne™ Communications presented a new universal instant messaging platform that integrates the instant messaging services of Google (Google Talk), Yahoo (Yahoo Messenger), MSN and AOL IM. By using this service provided on Click4Me.net and VoiceOne Labs the users can send messages between any of the four services. For instance, Google Talk users can send instant messages to MSN users, or AOL users, or Yahoo! IM users - using Click4Me.Net - without having to use separate Instant Messaging clients for each service.

VoiceOne has added this IM integrated functionality to its recently released beta version of Click4Me.Net, the world's first Web-click calling service that utilizes VoIP technology for free phone-to-phone calling, and now Instant Messaging across services. Click4Me.Net is available for testing on VoiceOne's Virtual Lab - an open forum for users to preview, test free of charge, and provide feedback on new IP communications services developed by VoiceOne.

To start using the Click4Me.Net service, just register for free. The members can then review, provide feedback on the service or discuss additional IP communications services with VoIP Inc.'s development team.

Features:

SMS Text messaging to users,
An online Inbox allowing people to leave messages for one another on the Click4Me.Net website,
Email and SMS text notifications of missed calls or new messages,
Instant Messaging across popular IM services.

VoiceOne will add more expanded and new features in the coming days and weeks.

New Generation of IM Worms

2006-08-26T15:01:00.000+02:00

According to Kaspersky Labs, new generation of instant messaging worms is spreading across protocols and platforms. We have seen a lot of worms which were specific to a single instant messaging protocol, for example MSN or AOL. However, the next generation of worms poses a much greater threat because of their ability to use different IM protocols to spread. And more - they can attack both Microsoft Windows and Mac platforms.

Of course, if the instant messaging user is smart and careful enough, the computer will be safe. It's very important not to open any attachments or URLs sent by unknown persons. Even more - if you receive an attachment or URL by someone in your buddy list, always ask him what he's sending you. Maybe he doesn't even know that his computer is under the control of a worm.

Meanwhile, Postini announced that there is a 160% increase over June in instant messaging attacks against corporate networks. One of the detected IM threats is Prokeylogger, which logs every key you type on your keyboard and gets your passwords. Then it sends this information to their owners, which can get details about your e-mails, credit cards, other sensitive personal information.

Free calls in US and Canada

2006-05-15T23:07:00.000+02:00

All US and Canadian-based Skype customers can now make free SkypeOut calls to traditional landline and mobile phones in the US and Canada. This offer is valid until the end of 2006 year.

While SkypeOut calls within the US and Canada will now be free, SkypeOut calls to and within all other countries will continue to incur charges. Those charges are unchanged by today’s announcement and remain among the lowest available to consumers.

Skype website

Download the latest Skype 2.0.0.105 (Windows)

IMVITE - Multi-Messenger

2006-04-08T17:09:00.000+02:00

The IMVITE multi-messenger is a free application that puts you in control. Users can control who can see their online status and Imvite supports all major platforms: MSN, Yahoo, AOL, ICQ and more. Imvite supports news feeds, Google search and online shopping.

With IMVITE to IMVITE chat, messages are secured with 128 bit encryption, ensuring maximum privacy.

IMVITE features a spam free zone with Free worldwide PC-to-PC calls. With a speaker and a microphone, users can chat with friends and colleagues worldwide free of charge.

The most important features are:

All-in-one Instant Messenger. Chat with all your contacts from YAHOO, MSN, AOL and ICQ. Chat with your friends on different networks all at once.
Free Live Video & Audio Chat!
Personalized RSS News, Encrypted Secure Chat, Share Files, and much more.
Cash Rebates on all your purchases from over 1,000 stores at the IMVITE Shopping Mall.
The free version includes all these features.

More details are available here.
To download it, you must register here (free).

Lycos Phone Beta - an amazing offer

2006-03-27T19:13:00.000+02:00

Lycos Phone Beta offers the following great features:

- Free US phone number;
- 100 free minutes just to start and then earn free talk time through partner offers;
- Lycos Phone is not just a great phone. Upload your MP3 files and listen to music while you chat. Add a webcam for video calls. Watch movie trailers, music videos, and live TV from Bloomberg, NASA, and more...

Of course features like free pc-to-pc calls, free incoming calls, low rates are available. Also, sign up with your e-mail address and you'll receive free gold membership.

The main window shows rotating ads. However if you use some of the advertised products, you'll receive cash in your Lycos Phone account.

Screenshot of the main window

By signing up you receive $1 and a free US phone number as a gold member. I already received a number and tested it, so this is one of the great features of this service.

Official website

Download

Search for Web's Top Video Content

2006-03-04T11:54:00.000+02:00

The Searchforvideo IM service now works not only in AOL IM but also in other major instant messengers - Yahoo IM and MSN. It's really easy to search for video without opening your web browser. Just write "search phrase" and the Searchforvideo buddy will show you a list with the best matches.

Also you can subscribe for alerts or look at the most watched videos by the other users of this service.

For AIM, you just need to add "searchforvideo" to your buddy list, for MSN add "searchforvideo@hotmail.com" to your contacts list and in Yahoo IM - add "searchformedia" to your friends list. That's all. Then just write to the bot - here is a list of the available commands:

search keyword(s) - Example: search super bowl
alert on - That way you'll subscribe to receive the Headline video alerts
alert off - Turns it off
spy watched - See the most recently watched video clips at searchforvideo
spy searched - See the most recent searches at searchforvideo
spy added - See the video clips most recently added to searchforvideo

Recording your voice conversations

2006-02-20T11:56:00.000+02:00

With vEmotion you can record all your voice conversations. It is enabled with Skype, other supported IMs include Msn Messenger, AOL Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, Google talk, Tencent QQ. One can tune up all these big IMs with single installation of the program.

The main features are:

Set background music for Instant Messenger voice conversations. So as to share music among you and your friends.
Send voice emotions/sound effects to your friends who take part in a voice conversations. Anything you have inconvenience in expressing it with your mouth or text, you can communicate it by voice emotions.
Record calls into audio files with perfect quality for future review. And manage/replay the call records easily.
It supports the most prevalent audio formats, currently including MP3 and WAVE. Supporting for OGG and WMA will be available before long.

Since the beta version was released, the program has been updated several times. Now, the latest version is 2.0.8.99. People do appreciate the vibrant developing team behind the product. It was said that they are still endeavoring to develop new features for coming versions.

The most attractive aspect, I noticed, is that vEmotion is free to use. No expiration limitation was imposed on it, despite some trivial limitations for recorder users. For an average user, these limitations are completely reasonable and acceptable. After all, you can experience all its functionality without paying.

Download

Important Update for Miranda IM Users

2006-02-11T09:47:00.000+02:00

There is an important patch for Miranda IM. If you use the ICQ protocol you could lose some messages. The bug is defined as "unknown TLV(19) bug".

To fix this problem, you have to download and replace the file icq.dll in the Miranda folder.

Download icq.dll

It seems that the ICQ protocol has been changed a little bit and that's why only the official ICQ client is working properly. Other clients like Miranda and QIP must be updated. For QIP you just need to download the latest alpha version.

Chat Inside Gmail

2006-02-07T12:48:00.000+02:00

Use Google Talk and Gmail together. Now you can chat with anyone with Gmail account without leaving your Gmail interface.

Chat with your friends from right inside Gmail. There's no need to load a separate program or look up new addresses. It's just one click to chat with the people you already email, as well as anyone on the Google Talk network. And now you can even save and search for chats in your Gmail account.

Full details are available here.

Zoep - A Free Phone for Firefox

2006-01-25T22:27:00.000+02:00

Zoep, an Internet Telephony service, have released Zoep Browser Phone for Firefox users. Zoep Phone is a Firefox addon that lets you make free calls to other Zoep users from your Firefox browser.

PC to PC calls are free and like other popular services there is a pre-pay PC to Phone option. Zoep can communicate with other open Jabber based services like Google Talk for Instant Messaging.

Zoep Firefox extension is currently for Windows only and requires Firefox version 1.5. Voice-mail, SMS and an inbound phone number to accept incoming calls from landlines or mobile phones are expected in future versios of Zoep.

Zoep Website
Install the extension
Source of this info

IBM Instant Messenger Linked With Google, Yahoo And AOL

2006-01-25T11:02:00.000+02:00

Customers of Time Warner's AOL, Google's Gtalk and Yahoo's Yahoo Messenger will be able to communicate freely to users of IBM's instant messaging system.

The feature will be available free-of-charge in the Lotus Sametime v7.5, combining IBM's market to Yahoo's 60 mln users, and AOL's 43 mln users.

Community Chat - multi-room cross-platform web chat application

2006-01-20T10:13:00.000+02:00

FlashComs, a developer of flash based communications, has released Community Chat, a multi-room cross-platform Web chat application. Community Chat can be installed to any Web server both under UNIX/windows platform and does not require any additional software. The Chat can be integrated with a Web site user's database to import user login and personal details into chat. Apart from advanced text formatting, the Chat includes other user options: sound settings include volume control, mute option, different sounds choices for incoming, outgoing, private, and system messages. In addition to default rooms created by administrator, users can create their own rooms and invite chat users to join them. Community Chat users can block all incoming messages from un-welcome chatters. A user can be added or removed from a personal black list at any time. Chat availability status can be changed by clicking on one of the status icons.

List of the features:

Advanced Text Formatting
Users Database Integraton
Chat Status Indicators
Moderator/Administrator Control

and more.

Information about this product is available here.
Screenshots
Demo

Internet Call Company to Sue Google for $5bn

2005-12-31T18:16:00.000+02:00

Google is being sued by a small New York internet call company that claims to hold patents for the technology that enables voice calls to be made over the internet. The New York-based Rates Technology said it would probably seek damages of about $5bn. It alleges that the internet search engine has infringed its patents with the recently launched Google Talk.

Jerry Weinberger, chief executive of Rates Technology Inc (RTI), said he was the inventor of software programming that allows telephone calls to be placed over the Internet. Weinberger alleged that Google has abused two patented RTI software programs in Google Talk, which enables users to talk through a computer headset or to instant message each other for free.

RTI claims companies including Microsoft, Cisco, IBM, Yahoo and Lucent have made one-off payments for use of its patents and that the firm is in similar talks with Time Warner and eBay. It is in legal action with others. Google (Steve Langdon) said the suit was without merit.

Gaim - A multi-protocol IM client

2005-12-29T15:06:00.000+02:00

As many people on the internet like applications like Trillian and IM2, there is also another very popular instant messaging client, called Gaim. It has everything you need and one of the best things is that it's open-source.

Gaim is a multi-protocol instant messaging client for Linux, BSD, MacOS X, and Windows. It is compatible with AIM and ICQ (Oscar protocol), MSN Messenger, Yahoo!, IRC, Jabber, Gadu-Gadu, SILC, GroupWise Messenger, and Zephyr networks.

Gaim users can log in to multiple accounts on multiple IM networks simultaneously. This means that you can be chatting with friends on AOL Instant Messenger, talking to a friend on Yahoo Messenger, and sitting in an IRC channel all at the same time.

Gaim supports many features of the various networks, such as file transfer, away messages, typing notification, and MSN window closing notification. It also goes beyond that and provides many unique features. A few popular features are Buddy Pounces, which give the ability to notify you, send a message, play a sound, or run a program when a specific buddy goes away, signs online, or returns from idle; and plugins, consisting of text replacement, a buddy ticker, extended message notification, iconify on away, spell checking, tabbed conversations, and more.

Gaim runs on a number of platforms, including Windows, Linux, and Qtopia (Sharp Zaurus and iPaq).

Gaim integrates well with GNOME 2 and KDE 3's system tray, as well as Windows's own system tray. This allows you to work with Gaim without requiring the buddy list window to be up at all times.

Download v1.5.0
Beta - Gaim 2.0.0beta1
Beta - Gaim 2.0.0beta2

Google Plans to Standardize Multimedia Instant Messaging

2005-12-25T10:43:00.000+02:00

Earlier this week, Google shared its plans for the future unification of the instant messaging (IM) market. The benevolent overlord of modern Internet innovation, Google has become a tremendous stabilizing force within the complex ecosystem of web-based services. When Google released their Jabber-based IM application earlier this year, they promised consumers that they would vigorously pursue protocol interoperability in order to facilitate communication between users of different IM systems. Since the birth of text-based Internet chat in the 1980s, countless IM protocols and applications have emerged to meet the rapidly growing demand for interactive text communication. AOL's ubiquitous AIM service is thought to have over 50 million active users, a number that continues to increase as more consumers take up the habit.

Google chose to use Jabber's Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP) for its own Google Talk application because XMPP is a well-documented open protocol fit for standardization and extension. The broad availability of XMPP support in open source communication applications ensures that users of all common platforms, including Linux and OS X, will be able to interact with Google Talk users. Working closely with the nonprofit Jabber Software Foundation (JSF), Google plans to bring voice and video communication services to all XMPP-compliant IM utilities. Described in a Jabber Enhancement Proposal, the new peer-to-peer voice and video standard is currently called Jingle. An open source implementation called Libjingle has already been released by Google under a BSD-style license. For those not in the know, BSD licenses are very permissive, facilitating commercial redistribution even in proprietary applications, which means that closed source IM applications like AOL's AIM client can take advantage of the code.

Google recently hired Sean Egan, one of the lead developers of a popular open source IM application called Gaim. Egan and other Gaim developers have already managed to integrate Google Talk's voice features into the Gaim 2.0 branch, which is scheduled for release next month. (Interested users might want to take a look at the beta release!)

After Google's acquisition of a five percent stake in AOL last week, both companies decided that it would be advantageous to implement complete interoperability between Google Talk and AIM. Now that Google has the uncontested champion of IM technologies on its buddy list, it has the leverage it needs to get other services to jump on the interoperability bandwagon.

/arstechnica/

Festoon - bringing users of different messaging services together

2005-12-22T20:47:00.000+02:00

Today Santa Cruz Networks launched Festoon Unity, a new feature to its wildly popular Festoon plug-in, uniting the world's 453 million IM users. With more than 3.7 million downloads and over 52 million video call user minutes, Festoon is the first plug-in bringing users of different messaging services together in group voice and video calls where they can talk to and see each other. Users can also share content and engage in personalized video experiences. Face-to-face communication in one-to-one calls or in large groups of hundreds is better and more fun with Festoon.

"People don't need to have the same email program or the same phone service to send each other emails or call each other," says Itzik Cohen, CEO of Santa Cruz Networks. "We believe it should be just as simple with voice and video communications. Festoon Unity connects different Instant Messaging services so that users can call each other across services as simply as sending an instant message or email."
IM users all over the world use Festoon each day to see each other while chatting, playing games, sharing pictures, or conducting business. All without having to install another messaging service.

"We are pleased to be the first to connect Skype and Google Talk users," said Cohen. "With ubiquitous voice and video calls as the goal, in early 2006 we'll be adding Festoon Unity support for AOL Instant Messenger (AIM), Yahoo! Messenger and MSN Messenger. In addition we'll be providing a series of web services that anyone can use to quickly and easily add video communication to their site."

With Festoon IM users can securely conduct voice and video calls in groups up to the hundreds while sharing photos, spreadsheets, presentations, or applications with others in the call. In future releases users will be able to download additional video effects and personalized experiences, access our library of camera personalities, wallpapers, and more. In addition to Festoon Unity other new features in this product upgrade include significantly improved video speed, voice and video synchronization, enhanced group audio, automatic proxy support, and a number of new EyeCandy personalizations to name a few.

Festoon is available at www.festooninc.com for free.
Download.
Festoon works on any Windows 2000/XP PC with an 800 Mhz processor or greater running Skype or Google Talk.

OpenWengo - connecting your phone to the future

2005-12-15T22:01:00.000+02:00

OpenWengo is an open source project, initiated by the French company Wengo, itself backed by neuf telecom. They provide a standards-based VoIP platform - they are committed to providing unlimited free telephony and enhanced features to the users, while promoting innovative usage-driven services.

WengoPhone is a multiplatform SIP softphone which offers free PC-to-PC audio, video and text messaging. Call-out to phones and mobiles is also available at good rates.

Download for Windows 2000/XP
Download for Linux (Debian package)
Currently there is no release for MacOS.

Toonah - Text to Speech Plugin for Instant Messaging

2005-12-09T10:29:00.000+02:00

With Toonah you are able to hear the text messages which are sent to you. It has also EmotiSounds(laughingm, crying, etc). You can choose from multiple voices. If someone else on your contact list installs Toonah, he will be able to hear your messages, too. There is an option to hear your own messages before sending them.
The most used chat acronyms are translated.

It is fully compatible with AIM, MSN, Yahoo!, and ICQ.

As you can see, Toonah can be something really funny.

Download free version
Download pro version (No ads and customer support)

The "smart" Messaging Worm

2005-12-08T11:54:00.000+02:00

I've read about this "smart" worm in few websites. When I read these articles I'm really wondering what is so smart in this worm. Just read this quote (link)

Instant messaging security firm, IMlogic released a warning on Monday, regarding a new type of malicious IM bot that can pose as a human being, and send messages.

The threat, called IM.Myspace04.AIM infects a user’s computer, then starts sending messages to people on their AIM contacts list. The bot sends a link, and encourages receivers to click on it with messages such as “lol no its not a virus.” Once a user clicks the link, their computer also becomes infected, and begins spreading the program.

Just sending previously defined messages like "its not a virus" is something I've already seen in so many spam messages (for example: "look at my picture right here...").
So it seems to me that this is just another worm which was made popular by some security-related websites.

AIM Triton for Windows

2005-11-23T17:38:00.002+02:00

Time Warner Inc.'s America Online has upgraded its instant-message service to help win users and boost advertising sales.

The latest version of the software, to be made available over the next three months, improves existing voice and video chat services, and adds Internet calling and access to 20 XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. stations, AOL spokeswoman Krista Thomas said Tuesday.

The slogan of Triton is "I am everything you need to communicate". Here are the features included in this version:

Now there's room in your Buddy List® feature for 500 of your closest friends. Organize your chats, your buddies' Away Messages, and use IM to send gigantic files.
Use AIM Talk® to go from typing to talking, right from the comfort of your Buddy List® feature. Free.
Look your buddies in the eye while you chat with them. Video chat lets you switch from an Instant Message chat to a high-quality video conference.
AIM® Mail is a mere click away from the Instant Messenger™ service. With 2GBs of storage, a handy "Unsend" button and industry-leading spam and virus protection, AIM Mail is the only email you need.
Now you can access your Buddy List® feature on your mobile device to send and receive IMs. You can also send IMs from your computer to your buddies' cell phones.
Blogging directly from the messenger.

Click here to download.

Sony IVE - Instant Video Everywhere

2005-11-20T22:35:00.000+02:00

Sony launched a new product - Sony IVE (Instant Video Everywhere), which allows you video and voice calling to the other IVE users for free.
You can call to cell-phones, too, but this is paid.

These are some of the most important features of Sony IVE:

"Video Call Mailbox" - a mailbox for the missed calls;
"Multy-Party calls" - You can instantly make a video call that includes multiple people at once - no matter if the other participants are on IVE, a regular telephone or cell phone or a traditional video conferencing system. You’ll see or hear everybody at once. Just like a chat room;
Live Support
Of course, you get a personal number

To download for free, click here.

Instant messengers becoming medium of choice

2005-11-14T14:24:00.000+02:00

The researches show that more and more people are using Instant Messengers instead of emails.
Is the faster communication the only reason? Maybe the instant messaging is more like a live meeting between the people and this is really important for most of them.

This info is part of the results of the AOL's survey:

"Instant messaging is overtaking email as the preferred way to
communicate, especially among teens and young adults. Overall,
IM's are up 19 percent year over year, with many Americans sending
as many, if not more, IM's than they do emails, according to
AOL's Instant Messaging Trends Survey.

Thirty-eight percent of respondents say they send as many or more
IM's than emails. But for teens and young adults that number is
vastly higher with two-thrids reporting they send more IM's than
emails, up from 49 percent last year.

At work, 58 percent of IM users send instant messages to
colleagues for answers to questions, 49 percent to make business
decisions, and 29 percent use IM to interact with customers or
clients. Twelve percent have used IM to avoid a difficult
face-to-face conversation. "

Source: WebProNews

IM2 - Great and free messenger

2005-11-12T10:53:00.000+02:00

IM2 (or Instant Messenger 2) is a good alternative of Trillian. You can use it for:

MSN
AIM
ICQ
IRC
Yahoo

The interface is comfortable and IM2 supports skins if you want to change windows' view. It is translated to French, German, Russian, Italian and more languages.
Also IM2 allows secure encrypted chat, video and audio chat.

Click here to go to the official website of this project and here to download the current version.

Screenshots: 1

Updates:
03 February 2006 - IM2 2.0 FINAL
04 January 2006 - IM2 2.0 Build 268 RC8

New versions of some messengers

2005-11-11T16:28:00.000+02:00

There are some new versions of popular instant messengers.

AOL Instant Messenger Triton 0.9.13 Beta
This new beta version can be downloaded here.

Miranda IM 0.4.0.3 Build 39 Beta
Also a beta version. Download here.

Google Talk 1.0.0.76
Download here.

QIP 2005a Build 7600
A new version of the Qip messenger. Download here.

Some of these messengers' features are described in other posts in this blog.

It's Time To Take Back Instant Messaging

2005-10-15T17:42:00.000+02:00

This is an interesting article in Slashdot:

http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/10/15/138220&from=rss

The TechZone says the world of instant messaging is a disjointed mess, and it's time for a citizen's revolt. From the article: "The obstacles in this case are three big companies: AOL, Yahoo! and Microsoft. Each wants to keep their networks closed, thereby forcing consumers to use their brand of software and effectively using their size to eliminate competition. Five years ago, Yahoo! and Microsoft were calling for then-leader AOL/ICQ to open their network to allow others to compete. They even successfully petitioned the FCC to restrict AOL's future developments before approving the AOL/Time Warner merger. When it was convenient for their business goals, Microsoft and Yahoo! waved the interoperability flag, but now that both companies have built substantial IM communities with their own closed networks, they have lost their passion for open networks."

Web Based Instant Messengers

2005-10-06T16:13:00.000+02:00

Sometimes the web based messengers can be very useful - especially in work, school or somewhere else where installation of new software is forbidden (for example, look at that comment).
Many of them are not as comfortable as the regular instant messaging applications but they are working.

Here are some messengers for the most popular instant messaging protocols:

ICQ - ICQ2Go
http://www.icq.com/icq2go/
There are both Flash-based and Java-based versions.
Here are some screenshots from the Flash-based ICQ2Go. With Mozilla Firefox it looks strange sometimes but it works.
Screenshots: 1 | 2

AOL IM - AIM Express
http://www.aim.com/get_aim/express/aim_expr.adp
AIM Express lets you send instant messages directly from a Web browser, such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer, to anyone who has registered for AIM or who uses the America Online service. AIM Express respects your privacy and, best of all, its FREE. To use AIM Express, you must be a registered AIM user or subscribe to America Online.
I tried to use it but I always see this error. Maybe the problem is with my browser or its extensions. Here is a screenshot from the official website.

Jabber - JWChat.org
http://jwchat.org
It uses only HTML and Javascript. Looks interesting. Unfortunatelly, when I tried to login with my Google Talk account, Mozilla Firefox became "Non-responding". I'll try with another browser later.

MSN - MSN Web messenger
http://webmessenger.msn.com
MSN Web Messenger lets you talk online and in real-time with friends and family using just a web browser! Use it on any shared computer - at school, at work, at a friend's house or anywhere you can't install the MSN Messenger software.
Don't forget to allow the site in you popup blocker if you have one.
Screenshots: 1 | 2

MSN - Clientless Conversations
http://www.clientless.net/
This service allows you to use the popular MSN Messenger service with only a browser. No downloads required!
Do you need to chat at work, at home, at university, behind a firewall, or on a kiosk? Clientless Conversations is a free simplistic Web Based MSN Messenger Client which allows you to chat anywhere!

MSN - MSN2Go
http://msn2go.com
MSN2Go is a web-based MSN client or web-based MSN Messenger client that enables you to access the MSN Messenger network at work, school, or anywhere else.

I couldn't find a web-based messenger made by Yahoo. But e-Messenger supports YIM.

All-In-One - E-Messenger
http://e-messenger.net
e-Messenger is a web application that enables you to chat with your MSN, AOL and Yahoo buddies without having to install any program or Java applet. All you need is a JavaScript enabled browser and you're set to go and use e-Messenger. Even if you're behind a firewall.

All-In-One - Instant-Messenger.info
http://www.instant-messenger.info/
Here you can use MSN, AOL and Yahoo. It also doesn't use Java or Flash.

All-In-One - Meebo
http://www.meebo.com
Meebo is a really interesting all-in-one instant messaging client. It is based on Ajax and the interface is very comfortable. It doesn't have some special functions but it works great as a web-based messenger. Supported protocols are: AIM, ICQ, Yahoo, Jabber, Google Talk, MSN.
Thanks to that visitor for the link about Meebo :-)

Goowy
http://www.goowy.com
Goowy is a web-based application offering Free Web Email service that enables you instant messaging, chat, file sharing and much more with your buddies from AOL, MSN, Yahoo and ICQ.

[New Release] Skype 1.4.0.71 (update - 2.0.0.81)

2005-09-29T16:54:00.000+02:00

http://www.skype.com

Skype is a little piece of software that lets you talk over the Internet to anyone, anywhere for free. And it just got even better — download the latest version of Skype:

Our call quality is the best ever for talking, laughing and sharing stories.
You can forward calls on to mobiles, landlines and other Skype Names.
Make calls instantly from Outlook email or Internet Explorer with our new toolbars.
Personalise your Skype — play around with sounds, ringtones and pictures to show the world who you are.

Updates:
08-02-2006 - New release: Skype 2.0.0.81
02-01-2006 - New release: Skype 2.0.0.79
26-01-2006 - New release: Skype 2.0.0.76
20-01-2006 - New release: Skype 2.0.0.73

QIP - the messenger of the Russians

2005-09-22T11:27:00.000+02:00

http://qip.ru

QIP is a unique closed source computer program for immediate cross-Internet communication. The basic functionality of QIP enables its users to see who else is online and available and then easily contact them with text messages in real time sent through a public server. QIP development currently is in the Alpha stage therefore you should understand probability of facing some bugs.

Download here

Updates:
23-May-2006 - New release: Click to download QIP 2005 Build 7920
16-February-2006 - New release: Download QIP 2005a Build 7820 Alpha
12 January 2006 - New release: Download QIP 2005a Build 7810 Alpha
02 January 2006 - New release: Download QIP 2005a Build 7800 Alpha

[New Release] Skype for Linux 1.2.0.17

2005-09-22T10:30:00.000+02:00

http://www.skype.com

A new version of Skype for Linux - 1.2.0.17 has been released.

The changes since 1.2.0.11 are:

change: New multilingual EULA in Help.Licence
change: Call quality improvements
change: "Find in chat" engine rewritten
change: Refreshing icons on start tab
change: Cleaned up RPM packaging
bugfix: Menu items not disabled when going offline
bugfix: Crash when a new message was received
bugfix: Crash when password changed
bugfix: Crash when chat search string contained "+331234567"
bugfix: Crash when chat search string contained emoticon
bugfix: Auth requests from previous user being shown
bugfix: Crash while history was loading
bugfix: Find crash when searching for empty text
bugfix: Auth request remaining on event panel after authorization

About previous changelogs, click here.

Download:
Choose the package for you here.

[New Release] Miranda v0.4.0.3 Alpha 34

2005-09-18T21:30:00.000+02:00

http://miranda-im.org

A new alpha version of Miranda has been released.

Miranda is all-in-one chat client. It has many plugins, skins, etc.
It's open source and much lighter than other such applications.

Download It Here

Updates:
30-01-2006 - New release: Miranda IM 0.4.0.3 Build 46 Alpha
19-01-2006 - New release: Miranda 0.4.0.2 Final
02-01-2006 - New release: Download it here: Miranda IM 0.4.0.3 Build 43 Alpha

Trillian - All-in-one instant messenger

2005-09-08T19:27:00.000+02:00

http://www.ceruleanstudios.com

Trillian is a fully featured, stand-alone, skinnable chat client that supports

The professional non-free version has even more capabilities.

Trillian provides capabilities not possible with original network clients, while supporting standard features such as audio chat, file transfers, group chats, chat rooms, buddy icons, multiple simultaneous connections to the same network, server-side contact importing, typing notification, direct connection (AIM), proxy support, encrypted messaging (AIM/ICQ), SMS support, and privacy settings. Just everything you might want to use.

Without stealing your home page and with no other included software, pop-ups, or spyware, Trillian provides unique functionality such as contact message history, a powerful skinning language, tabbed messaging, global status changes (set all networks away at once), Instant Lookup (automatic Wikipedia integration), contact alerts, an advanced automation system to trigger events based on anything happening in the client, docking, hundreds of emoticons, emotisounds, shell extensions for file transfers, and systray notifications.

For Windows:

Download here: http://www.download.com/3001-2150_4-10367846.html

Screenshots from Trillian:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4

Google Talk

2005-09-08T17:51:00.000+02:00

http://talk.google.com

Is it something new or something already seen? Really it has many things common with messengers like Skype, ICQ, etc. But what I like in it are currently two main things – the integration with Gmail and the good quality of the sound. Maybe the simple and nice design (fx. not full of ads like Mirabilis’ ICQ) is also one of the things which make good impression.

Here are the main features (note that it’s still beta version):

You can contact your friends by email (Gmail), to call them or to write them an instant message. It’s always nice to have more possibilities.

You can import your Gmail contacts and to invite some people who still didn’t download Google Talk.

And… you can use another IM client (if it supports Jabber). A list of such clients are listed here http://www.google.com/talk/otherclients.html

As we know that every product of Google is different from other their competitors, we can expect many new and unique features soon.

Download (Win 2k/XP): http://www.google.com/talk/index.html

Screenshots:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

Updates:
27-January-2006 - Google Talk 1.0.0.84 Beta

Stanaphone

2005-09-03T20:44:00.000+02:00

StanaPhone.com

That's the most interesting calling service I have found. Here are some of the features which they offer for FREE!

Everyone gets a free New York area phone number (for example, Skype are offering SkypeIn which is definetely not free).
Everyone with a normal phone can call you and even leave you a message if you are out. Yes...the voicemail is free, too. You'll receive every message in your mailbox as an attachment. If you have an account in Gmail, just imagine how many messages can you save!
You can receive fax for free. When a fax is sent to your number, it is converted in PDF format (TIFF also available) and is sent to your e-mail address as an attachment.
Of course, all Stana2Stana calls are free.
Nice: conference server! Also free. Max. 10 callers and max. 2 hours but that should be enough for most people.
The calls from Stana to a normal phone is one of the few non-free things but the rates are normal.
Calls to 911 are available but only for non-emergencies.

They are offering a program for Windows (about 3MB) which has a look like a phone.

You can sign up here and download the required software here.

Try it! It works!

Screenshots:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5