Word: immed
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...Hardly. IM is one of the Internet's true killer apps. It's free, and it's instant (duh), but what the RCC recognized is that IM isn't just about passing notes; it's a powerful communications tool. You can call instant meetings. You can keep tabs on your friends (and enemies) with a "buddy list." You can swap data files, such as MP3s and digital photos. Most IM services can even carry voice communications, and some are available on PDAs and pagers...
This is all assuming the person on the other end is using the same IM program you are--and therein lies the rub. AOL, ICQ, MSN and Yahoo all have IM programs, but most don't talk to one another; if I use AOL Instant Messenger, and you use MSN Messenger, for example, we're out of luck. Imagine if two people using different phone companies couldn't call each other. That's the current state of instant messaging...
...come AOL won't play with the other kids? AOL's spokespeople claim that AOL is committed to interoperability (as the IM geeks call it). Its AIM software is available free on the Net to any user who wants it, and AOL has readily licensed the technology to competitors. But the company argues that opening up its system could expose users to hackers and spam and other nastiness. IMUnified says that's bunk, that the technical questions are child's play ("My grandmother could implement interoperability"), and that AOL should get with the program...
...right? It doesn't look as if we will find out any time soon. Under the FCC's terms, AOL Time Warner has to open up its network to competitors before it can offer any "advanced, IM-based high-speed services" that involve streaming video. Big deal. AOL has indicated that it wasn't planning to offer such a service in the foreseeable future anyway...
Meanwhile, if you want to make sure everybody can reach you via IM, you will have to keep several IM programs running at once; you can also try a program called Odigo www.odigo.com) which connects to AIM, Yahoo and ICQ through a clever bit of hackery, though it's a hassle to use. Or you can do what I do: give up and just use AIM, because my friends...