I don't know how many of my readers are hip to some of the Web 2.0 projects coming to the web. Having tried a number of these services and applications, I thought I would tell you about some of the more promising ones I've tried. I'm only going to talk about one per post, though, because if you're a regular reader, you know how long I can go on.
As I've grown older, IM has become less and less important to me. Text based conversations with individuals who I know and talk to frequently are tiresome. Nevertheless, IM does provide a nice utility for getting quick answers to questions and coordinating weekend plans. Despite some of my issues with IM, I do like to try every new IM client that shows up -- AIM, DeadAIM, AIM Triton (beta), GAIM, Trillian, etc. Many of these products share features, and about the only thing I can say is that I generally prefer non AIM(AOL) produced clients. Oh, and I will say flat out DO NOT INSTALL TRITON!!! (no link for a REASON)
I tend to prefer applications which cut back on crazy features and enhancements and simply deliver well designed performance w/ enough features to make the app useful. This brings me to Meebo. Meebo is a browser based IM client that I've pretty much turned into my primary IM client. Like many alternative clients, Meebo combines AIM, MSN, Yahoo!, and Jabber chat services so that there is no need to run multiple applications. The elements of Meebo are the same as would be expected in your standard client --- buddy list, IM windows, Away Messages. While Meebo lacks a number of standard features (profiles, away message storage, etc), it adds new, and arguably more useful features like 'sign on invisible'.
For people on the go, this service is a major improvement over services like AIM Express. Meebo employs AJAX web programming techniques to delivery an advanced interface which responds like a standard application, but is contained within a browser. AJAX also allows this Web 2.0 application to run without downloading annoying (and potentially dangerous) browser plug-ins. I showed Meebo to a few friends at Drexel, and now I catch them using it every time I see them in the computer lab. Meebo claims to have served 21,000 simultaneous users, and is averaging about 340,000 daily logins.
Check out Meebo for yourself!
I loooooove Meebo :) It's the greatest thing since sliced bread! Thank you Paul, for bringing Meebo into my life!
Posted by: Irina | Wednesday, February 01, 2006 at 03:34 PM