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Instant Messaging Resources
Got a question that can't wait? Or just want to visit for a bit? Send me an instant message. Or send me an e-mail message.
Note: I use Meebo.com's web-based instant messenger, so I'm unfamiliar with most computer-based instant messaging problems. For help with your instant messaging questions, please try the following resources at BigBlueBall.com.
Contents
Free Instant Messaging Support
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My online / offline status doesn't matter with the following options if you don't mind sending me a message when I'm offline. But if you want to chat now and you've viewed this page before, refresh it to make sure you're seeing my current status.
How to add a status indicator to your web page.
If I'm online or even if I'm offline and you don't have an ICQ, AOL, AIM, Yahoo, or MSN account...
...ask me a question or chat with me now. If I'm offline, I'll get your message when I go online.
Other Chat Options
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Send an email message to my ICQ instant messenger.
Or go to my Unified Messaging Center and where it says ''Send a message to my ICQ'' fill out the form and send me an instant or offline message.
If you do have an AOL, AIM, MSN or Yahoo account, (you can register an account for free if you don't have one) but don't have their instant messenger installed or running on your computer, here are some other options:
Send me an instant or offline message with ICQ2Go!
(the Flash version requires Flash Player - click on Start to contact me - for the Java version, Java must be enabled in your browser and for both versions you have to disable your popup blocker, if you have one. Then from the ''Search for an ICQ user'' window, search for nickname digr65. When you find my profile, add me to your contact list and send me a message.)
Send me an instant message with eBuddy or MSN Web Messenger
(Javascript must be enabled in your browser, you have to disable your popup blocker, if you have one, and you have to log in.)
Send me an instant or offline message with Yahoo! Web Messenger.
(You need to use Internet Explorer, have Java installed, you have to log in, and you have to disable your popup blocker, if you have one.)
Send me an instant message with Odigo Express (You need to have Java installed, you have to log in, and you have to disable your popup blocker, if you have one.)
Send me an instant message with AIM Express.
(You have to log in, and you have to disable your popup blocker, if you have one. Also check to make sure your system meets the requirements. When the Buddy List window appears, click on the IM or Chat icon to send me a message, and send it to rootsdigr65.)
Or send me an offline message with DoorManBot, or AIMMachine.com.
(You need to have Java installed, you have to log in, and you have to disable your popup blocker, if you have one.
Or if you have the AOL instant messenger (AIM) installed and running, use the bar below to send me an instant message. (Ignore the ''I am Online'' part. The bar isn't a status indicator. To see if I'm online, check my online status indicator.)
To learn more about me, check out my profiles.
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You can view my AIM profile from inside the AOL Instant Messenger.
To learn more about instant messaging, check these out:
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WARNING: Going online in Windows XP's default account, which unfortunately is the administrator account, isn't safe. And AIM and ICQ may require administrator rights, so to be safe, apply the following steps to run AIM or ICQ in a Limited User account (LUA).
NOTE: If you don't harden, or secure, Windows XP, you may not need to fix a LUA bug or use RunAs or MakeMeAdmin to run AIM or ICQ in a Limited User account. But I strongly recommend securing Windows before using your PC. skip
- Secure Windows
- Create a Limited User Account (LUA)
- Fix the LUA Bug or Use an Access / Privilege Control Utility
To chat safely by instant messenger, read the following guides:
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To keep your IM or VoIP conversations private, use one of these:
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Retrieve Your IM Password
Advanced Instant Messengers Password Recovery (AIMPR)
MessenPass (for Windows)
Instant Messaging Aggregators
Don't have an instant messenger yet? Try an instant messaging aggregator that connects to all the main protocols, or networks. skip
Secure Aggregators
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- Coccinella (Jabber client - secure text and voice chat for Windows, GNU/Linux and Mac OS X - file transfer, integrated whiteboard, group chat, multilingual)
- BeeNut (a secure aggregator for Windows - supports AIM, MSN, Yahoo!, ICQ and QQ)
- Blowsearch Secured Messenger (a secure aggregator for Windows - supports AIM, MSN, Yahoo! and ICQ)
- Eyeball Chat (secure text, voice and video chat for Windows - chat rooms, file transfer, SSL encryption - supports AIM, MSN and Yahoo!)
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- Pidgin (formerly Gaim) (for Windows, GNU/Linux and Mac OS - portable version available)
- Ayttm (formerly Everybuddy - for Windows, GNU/Linux and BSD, including Mac OS X)
- Meetro (for Windows and Mac OS X - allows you to chat with people in your area)
- A List of Jabber Clients (for Windows, GNU/Linux, Mac OS, PocketPC and other platforms) skip
- Note: Most - but not all - Jabber servers support the AIM, MSN, Yahoo!, ICQ and other legacy IM protocols / services / networks by using gateways.
- How to Find and Set Up Gateways in Your Jabber Client
- Psi (a secure Jabber client for Windows, Mac OS X and GNU/Linux - includes Off the Record plugin - recommended for experienced users)
- Google Talk (text and voice chat, Gmail notifications and file transfers for Windows, no adware - uses XMPP protocol - supports Jabber and AIM, MSN, Yahoo! and ICQ through gateways - requires a Gmail or Google account - you can get one with your mobile phone - voicemail)
Aggregators for Windows
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- TipicIM (a secure Jabber aggregator)
- Trillian (text, voice, video and mobile SMS chat for Windows - free version supports AIM, MSN, Yahoo!, ICQ and IRC - pro version also supports Jabber and Google Talk - may fail to import your contact lists or pictures of your friends)
- BuzzIM (for Windows - supports AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo Messenger and BuzzIM)
- Nimbuzz for PC (mobile phone and web-based for mobile phone versions, group and global calls)
- A List of Jabber Clients (for Windows, GNU/Linux, Mac OS, PocketPC and other platforms) skip
- Note: Most - but not all - Jabber servers support the AIM, MSN, Yahoo!, ICQ and other legacy IM protocols / services / networks by using gateways.
- How to Find and Set Up Gateways in Your Jabber Client
- Pandion (secure, recommended for beginners / newbies - supports plugins)
- Papla PC (mobile phone version available)
- neos mt (for experienced users)
- Exodus (for experienced users - no multi-protocol transports)
- myJabberIM (now free - for experienced users)
- Miranda
Aggregators for Mac OS X
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- iChat (text, voice and video chat - comes with Mac OS X 10.2 or later - supports AIM, Google Talk, Jabber and .Mac and MSN, Yahoo! and ICQ through Jabber gateways)
- Proteus
- Fire
- Adium
Aggregators for Mobile Phones
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Mobile Instant Messaging (MIM) can now be done from a mobile device through one or more technologies, which include: skip
- Two-Way SMS (Short Message Service)
- Java ME (Java Platform, Micro Edition - formerly J2ME)
- BREW (Binary Runtime Environment for Wireless)
- WAP (Wireless Application Protocol)
- IMPS (Instant Messaging and Presence Service)
- Wireless Village (Mobile Instant Messaging Specification - Now Called OMA IMPS)
- GPRS (General Packet Radio Service)
Mobile instant messages are billed by the amount of data sent, so they're much cheaper to send than traditional one-way SMS text messages. skip
IMPS-Based Mobile Instant Messaging Aggregators
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To do instant messaging on a mobile phone with IMPS, you need an instant messenger that supports the Wireless Village protocol and an IMPS to connect to.
To Start Your Built-In Instant Messenger:
- On a Nokia phone, go to the ''My Presence'' menu.
- On a Sony Ericsson phone, it's called ''My Friends''.
- On a Motorola phone, it's called ''IM''.
Note: The phones' instant messengers are generally designed to be provider neutral, so you have to manually enter the Wireless Village server settings.
If your phone doesn't have a built-in instant messenger, you might still be able to get a third-party one that runs on your phone's Symbian, Java ME, BREW (Binary Runtime Environment for Wireless), or other application environment. You need to get a chat client that's ''Wireless Village compliant presence-enabled''.
J2ME-Based Mobile Instant Messaging Aggregators
(J2ME = Java 2 Platform, Micro Edition - now called Java ME for Java Platform, Micro Edition) skip
- Nimbuzz (only supports Nimbuzz, MSN and Google Talk - for most mobile phone brands and models - requires GPRS and/or UMTS)
- JustYak (for Series 40 and 60 Nokia Java-enabled phones and Java-enabled phones from Motorola, Sony Ericsson, and Siemens)
- Agile Messenger (commercial aggregator for most handheld devices including Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Symbian Series 60, Symbian UIQ, Microsoft Smartphone, Pocket PC, Palm OS 3.5+, BREW and WAP devices)
- IM+ Mobile Instant Messenger (commercial aggregator for Palm OS, Pocket PC, BlackBerry, Symbian, Nokia, i-mode and Java phones)
- Jabber/Google Talk Aggregators: skip
- Most - but not all - Jabber servers support the AIM, MSN, Yahoo!, ICQ and other legacy IM protocols / services / networks by using gateways.
- How to Find and Set Up Gateways in Your Jabber Client
- Bombus (web site is in Russian)
- Colibry IM (web site is in Russian)
- elechat
- imov Messenger (for all Microsoft Windows Powered Smartphones and most Windows CE devices, including all Pocket PCs and Handheld PCs based on Windows CE 3.0 or greater)
- JabberMixClient(JMC)
- KomKom
- mJabber
- Mobber
- moJab (small)
- MGTalk
- MXit (requires J2ME and GPRS/3G - messages are limited to 2000 characters - has anonymous chat)
- Papla Instant Mobile (J2ME - supports AIM, MSN, Yahoo, ICQ, Google Talk, Jabber)
- TipicME (for J2ME, PocketPC and Symbian devices - supports AIM, MSN, Yahoo, ICQ, Google Talk, Jabber)
- Vayusphere XMPP Messenger (encrypted MIM for BlackBerry devices)
Other Mobile Instant Messaging Aggregators
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Yahoo, Microsoft and Google have all made moves on messaging, be it instant or e-mail, on phones.
- ICQ Wireless (''ICQ has pioneered the use of multiple technologies in the wireless arena, and its powerful suite of services for mobile devices includes ICQ 2 Way SMS (Short Messaging Service), ICQ for SMS, ICQ for WAP (Wireless Access Protocol), ICQ for the J2METM Platform, ICQ for i-modeTM and the ICQ for the Symbian OS version.'' - ICQ)
- EQO Mobile (supports AIM/ICQ, MSN, Yahoo, Google Talk, Jabber, Skype)
- EQO for Skype (enables Skype users to send and receive text messages to other Skype users via their mobile phones, start multiparty chat sessions, and check the status of their buddies, as well as standard features such as Skype calling, incoming Skype call management, and contact list synchronization - supports more than 40 different phone handset models from vendors including Nokia, Motorola, and Sony Ericsson)
Aggregators for PDAs
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Single-Protocol Instant Messengers
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NOTE: If you want to send messages to people who are offline, use ICQ, Yahoo! Messenger with Voice, MSN Messenger Live, Odigo or a Jabber client. (other ways to send offline messages) skip
- Skype (secure text, voice, video, group, phone, cell phone and SMS chat for Windows, Mac OS, GNU/Linux and Pocket PC)
- Hush Messenger (a secure instant messenger for Windows)
- BitWise IM (secure text and voice chat for Windows, Mac OS X, and GNU/Linux - offline messages, files transfer, whiteboard, whitelist, mobility - no central servers)
- iGo Incognito (a secure instant messenger for Windows)
- PSST Easy Encrypted Instant Messaging (encrypted, P2P-based text and video chat for Windows and GNU/Linux - doesn't go through central servers - uses 128-bit block encryption and keys are randomly generated with every session)
- RetroShare (secure text chat, filesharing and channels - opensource, Friend to Friend (F2F)-based , so no central servers and uses OpenSSL encryption)
- Gale (for Windows, Java and POSIX)
- Secure Shuttle Transport (secure text and voice chat, offline messages, conferencing, direct file transfer, and e-mail - uses RSA encryption)
- SecuriChat (secure chat for - uses triple-layered encryption and rotating keys)
- X-IM Free Encrypted Instant Messaging (secure text chat and offline messages for Windows - voice and video chat coming soon - free version has ads - pro version has secure file transfer and memos - communications are encrypted with strong 256-bit encryption, digitally signed and protected by secure hash)
- CryptoHeaven Desktop Edition (free and commercial, secure IM, e-mail, file sharing, and online storage for Windows, Mac OS X, Unix or any other operating system capable of running Java 1.3 or better - uses AES symmetric Rijndael cipher with a 256 bit symmetric key, public-key cryptography with 2048-4096 bit asymmetric keys, and SHA-256 message digest function - no third party keyholder)
- CryptoHeaven Web Edition (requires Java)
- GSMK CryptoPhone for Windows (a secure desktop phone that connects to the public switched telephone network - currently unavailable for Winmodems - secure cell/mobile phones also available - based on a stripped down version of Windows Mobile, where we remove a substantial number of known and potential attack vectors to prevent outside attacks - full source code available for independent review - uses AES256 and Twofish in parallel, both with 256 bit key length, derived from a 4096 bit Diffie-Hellman key exchange with SHA256 hash function - readout hash-based key authentication - encryption key is destroyed as soon as the call ends)
- Cyber-Rights.Net Messenger (secure IM for Windows - based on the popular Hush Messenger system - notifies you when new email arrives in your Cyber-Rights.Net account)
- Sonork (secure, commercial IM client and server for businesses)
- QQ for Asia - English Version (for Windows)
- QQ for Africa (secure messenger for Windows - text, voice and mobile SMS chat, offline messages and peer-to-peer file sharing - WARNING: P2P file sharing leaves your operating system, software and private data vulnerable to corruption, control and theft)
- 12Buzz Messenger (text, voice and video chat and file sharing for Windows)
- MySpaceIM (for Windows)
- AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) (text, voice and video chat, offline messages, broacasts and SMS for Windows, WinCE and Palm OS - contains adware - supports Jabber and ICQ, Google Talk and MSN/WLM and Yahoo! through gateways) skip
- Yahoo! Messenger for Windows (text and voice chat, share videos, Flickr photos, and personalize - supports Windows Live Messenger - WARNING: Now contains spyware, nagware and Flash-based adware!) skip
- ICQ (for Windows, Mac OS, Windows CE, Pocket PC and Palm OS)
- If ICQ won't run in your Limited User account, here are some software that allow you to do that.
- Windows Live Messenger (formerly MSN Messenger) (text, voice and video chat and file transfer for Windows - has offline messaging and SMS)
Single-Protocol Instant Messengers for Mobile Phones
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Single-Protocol Instant Messengers for PDAs
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AIM Extended Profile Services
Don't like AOL Instant Messenger(AIM)'s limited user profile? Create an extended profile with one of these free services. skip
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- SweetIM (free emoticons, winks, nudges and sound effects for AIM, MSN, Yahoo! and Internet Explorer)
- Video Avatar (trialware - creates animated GIF avatars)
- Fix8 (animates your expressions and movements in real-time on AIM, MSN, Skype, and Yahoo!)
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If you don't want to install software, here are some Web-based instant messaging aggregator and single-protocol services you can use instead. skip
Web-Based Instant Messaging Aggregators
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Web-Based Aggregators with Mobile IM
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- Nimbuzz Web (for mobile phones)
- Grou.ps (a new social networking site - allows you to share anything, including SMS, with your group)
- Mabber (based on the Jabber / XMPP standard - has a mobile version for Java-enabled cell phones)
- claims to support AIM, MSN, ICQ, Yahoo!, Jabber and Google Talk
- Yahoo! doesn't connect automatically, needs to be connected manually
- I haven't tested Jabber / Google Talk's online status, but in Internet Explorer when I test the other protocols' online status, ICQ appears offline or has unknown status
- in Firefox, AIM appears online, but MSN, ICQ and Yahoo! don't appear online even though they appear to connect
- has a popup window - a separate window pops up when you get a message, if you set it to do that, which is great when viewing other tabs in your browser
- to log out, simply close the buddy list popup window
- eBuddy.com (formerly e-Messenger.net - secure login option - web-based and mobile IMs - supports AIM, MSN and Yahoo! - each messenger pops up in a separe window, instead of all in one window, like Mabber)
- YamiGo (seems to have been abandoned in late 2005 - for Windows, PDAs and cell phones - based on the Wireless Village protocol - requires GPRS)
Other Web-Based Aggregators
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- Google Talk Gadget (text and voice chat, Gmail notifications, voicemail and file transfers for Windows, no adware - uses XMPP protocol - supports Jabber and AIM, MSN, Yahoo! and ICQ through gateways - requires a Gmail or Google account - you can get one with your mobile phone)
- Google's Gmail Chat (uses Google Talk network - supports Jabber and AIM, MSN, Yahoo! and ICQ through gateways - can pop out IM as a separate window for popup alert when web browsing - can save chats)
- Meebo (my favorite - aggregator requires a Meebo account - supports AIM, MSN, ICQ, Yahoo!, Jabber and Google Talk - can pop out IM as a separate window for popup alert when web browsing)
- RadiusIM (supports AIM, MSN, Yahoo! and Jabber/GTalk - also have their own direct IM service similar to Meetro, except web-based and which determines your location and places an icon on a Google map embedded in the site and allows you to drag map around the world to see which members are located there, whether they're logged in or not - will have an IM Desktop Notifier soon)
- Kool IM (link not available due to offensive spam in its forum - search for Kool IM to find the site - Jabber-based - has a popup window - supports AIM, MSN, ICQ, Yahoo!, Jabber and Google Talk - sometimes Yahoo! and other times ICQ shows offline when connected)
- imo (for AIM, MSN, Yahoo! and Google Talk)
- IMhaha (secure aggregator requires account - supports MSN, Yahoo!, AIM and QQ - encrypts password, username and messages with SSL - IM conference: chat with a group no matter which of the four IM systems they're using - Easibo: a commonly shared, real-time, online white board)
- Centova (Jabber-based - has a popup window - supports AIM, MSN, Yahoo!, Jabber and Google Talk - claims to also support ICQ, but when I test it in Firefox and Internet Explorer, ICQ appears offline or unknown status when connected - has a login limit: log in too many times in 15 minutes and you're required to wait at least 10 minutes before logging in again)
- WARNING: Centova records conversations by default. For your privacy, I strongly recommend disabling this feature. To disable it, click the Menu button, select Preferences, click the Chat tab, and remove the checkmark from the ''Store conversation logs'' checkbox. Then click OK to save your preferences.
- Centova Personal Edition (web, AJAX, PHP and Jabber-based IM aggregator - requires web space, PHP v4.1.2 or later, MySQL and Jabberd, a Jabber server)
- Goowy (can't block un