What are your favorite instant message services and clients?

registered · Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2010 6:51 am

I have never been all that good about keeping an IM session up for my close set of friends and family. I can definitely see the benefit of it, especially when friends and family are spread all throughout the world these days, but also from time-to-time with clients. Sure would save on communication "misses" (as I can ask allot of questions) and on long distance phone calls (or worse, just never communicating).

I really have not been all that happy with the server and tools I have been using, so am now reaching out to see what others have found useful to them. What are your favorite IM services and clients (and what platforms as I only use Linux now) and it would be nice to know a little bit about why you like it/them so much. Smile

TIA!

Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2010 8:28 am

I use Pidgin happy enough with it. Sounds like I use it about as religiously as you do though. I don't have a webcam so thats not an issue. As far as why I use it the main reason is that it supports most any client. That and its actively developed which is a huge plus in open source wares.

registered · Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2010 4:06 pm

sixonetonoffun wrote:

I use Pidgin happy enough with it. Sounds like I use it about as religiously as you do though. I don't have a webcam so thats not an issue. As far as why I use it the main reason is that it supports most any client. That and its actively developed which is a huge plus in open source wares.

xD ,
got some nice third party plugins for gaming aswell , I use PLAYXPERT that does the same trick (for winshit)

Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2010 5:37 pm

For linux, really there is no better client then pidgin. Of course it only provides the basic services(no webcam and voice is a pain to get setup).

I believe Kopete comes with Ubuntu, but I'm not sure. It works well.

Trillian is great for Windows, and Adium for Mac, IMHO.

Check out:
http://www.nirmaltv.com/2008/04/19/18-multi-protocol-im-clients-for-windows-mac-and-linux/

Should give you a decent list, I've tried most of them, but pidgin is my favorite for linux.

Posted: Tue Jun 15, 2010 5:23 pm

Here in order to keep contact with friends you have to have a Windows Live ID, that's why I use emesene, available for both Linux and Windows, it's great, clean and light client with all the basic functions (Audio/Video is buggy, but that's not a issue for me).

I have sometimes used Pidgin and Empathy, both multiprotocol and very good clients...

Posted: Tue Jun 15, 2010 5:25 pm

BTW, I'm talking from the Linux user standpoint

Posted: Tue Jun 15, 2010 8:22 pm

Yeah, I've been using Pidgin for several years. What about I'M service providers?

Posted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 2:30 pm

AIM for the win!!.

For my serious clients(net only contact):
MSN

for my serious clients(face to face meetings and such):
skype

For the clients I could live without:
yahoo

for other developers and such:
AIM

for random encounters(rarely talk to anyone here):
ICQ

For tech support and to meet in groups:
IRC

It's how it has been for years for me, and it's not changed.

Posted: Sat Jun 19, 2010 8:07 am

Thanks Greg! BTW, welcome back to the community and this site. Smile

Posted: Sat Jun 19, 2010 10:17 am

Thanks Monetego,

wanted to get back into the community Very Happy