|
AOL's AIM 6.0, Yahoo!'s Yahoo! Messenger 8.1, and Microsoft Windows Live Messenger 8.1 are compared, newly revamped instant messaging (IM) platforms. Testers like AOL best, with its tabbed format that allows users to organize numerous conversations into a single window and also its notifications (short summaries of messages that appear on-screen when the chat window is not open). AOL and Microsoft do not limit the sizes of photos or files to be shared, but Yahoo! does, and testers also had a difficult time getting video chat to work with Yahoo! Messenger. Sharing of digital files, especially photos, is very easy with any of the three, and calling via the computer is also straightforward. Video chat is enabled via Webcam. Competitors to the products include Apple's iChat and Google Talk, as well as offerings from Skype and SightSpeed. Skype offers phone abilities, and SightSpeed provides video capability. Also available are Meebo and Trillian, with which the user can log onto multiple IM accounts concurrently. AIM 6.0 makes all its features user-friendly, including the buddy list and the ability to swap from one buddy to another just by selecting a screen name on the left had side of the screen. Many other features are described, including the effect of the Internet connection on quality and ease of video and audio transmissions.
|
Information Sources, Inc.
![[Get Copyright Permissions]](http://license.icopyright.net/images/icopy-w.gif){kind=small}