About Instant Messengers (Good To Know)

[RedWine]

MSN Messenger

Microsoft's free MSN Messenger hits the sweet spot. This colorful instant messaging application is simple to use and easy on the eyes, and its many features generally work as advertised. If you already have a Hotmail account, you can use your e-mail address and regular password instead of creating a new ID, once you've installed MSN Messenger.

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After I got rid of the unnecessary MSN Today welcome screen, the IM app worked very efficiently. MSN uses clearly labeled icons for voice chats, video conferencing, file transfers, and so on. As I traded instant messages with my editor, I enjoyed the soothing white space in the IM window and the ease with which I could move from one task (sending a file) to another (checking my e-mail). Out of the corner of my eye, however, I saw the ever-present ad squatting at the bottom of the contacts window.

If you get tired of keyboard text, you can click the pen icon and use your mouse or stylus to write a few words or create a sketch. If you like emoticons or mini-animations (called Winks), you can insert them via the pull-down menus conveniently located in the IM window. And for added personality, you can dress up your messaging identity by appending a greeting and/or displaying a picture: something from Microsoft's small (and free) collection--rubber ducky, anyone?--or an image of your own.

Donning headsets, my editor and I yakked away using MSN Messenger's voice chat. Call quality was superb--the best experience of any IM application we've recently tested. Our voices sounded crystal clear, without any detectable echo or choppiness. In fact, we completely forgot that we were talking over the Internet.

Our video conferencing tests were equally impressive, with MSN Messenger again earning top marks. Though the images looked a little pallid at times, overall quality was excellent. The video was smooth and our lip movements matched up with our voices surprisingly well.

At first blush, with its fun aspect and long list of games, MSN Messenger might seem better suited to interactions with family and friends than to communication with your coworkers, boss, or apps. But MSN Messenger includes a few business-oriented applications. The file transfer feature, for instance, works very well. But when we tried to tap into the program's whiteboarding and application sharing--features offered for XP systems only--we had less luck. Despite repeated tweaking, we couldn't get either one to work. Microsoft says that the whiteboarding and application-sharing features don't use the MSN Messenger protocol; the company suspects that our troubles were due to our working behind Network Address Translation (NAT) routers/firewalls.

One last quibble: To the left of the main contacts Window, MSN displays a vertical column of ten icons. Some of them I could understand immediately--links showing "eBay" and "Xbox," for example--but others had me scratching my head. A winking smiley face turned out to be a link to communicate with MSN, while a screen with a wiggly red line linked to CNBC on MSN Money. Beats me.


Upshot: If you're looking for an IM application that can handle both recreational and work needs, MSN Messenger gives you slick tools to do the job.

[RedWine]

Qnext

Unique to our recent crop of instant messaging programs is Qnext--a free (and secure) personal communication and sharing suite that also serves as a universal instant messenger. It handles AIM, ICQ, MSN Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, and (of course) Qnext accounts. The program also supports Internet Relay Chat (IRC).

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Initially, my editor and I ran into connection problems. Both of us were logged on to Qnext, but each saw the other as offline. In this situation, one of the users must either open the ports on the firewall or router or use a proxy (our tactic). Thereafter, we were good to go.

Qnext handled conversations on AIM, ICQ, MSN Messenger, and Yahoo Messenger networks with ease. The messaging window displays prominent icons for actions such as setting time stamps, changing the display's background color, and a CC-ing (that is, sending a message to multiple Qnext contacts simultaneously). It also maintains unobtrusive buttons for changing text formats and for adding emoticons. Qnext's spelling checker came in handy in our tests, underlining possible misspellings as we typed. Unlike Yahoo Messenger and MSN Messenger, Qnext has no ads, toolbars, or other commercial junk.

Compared to Trillian Basic, Qnext does a so-so job of identifying contacts as belonging to AIM, ICQ, and so on. In my long list, each contact entry displayed a tiny symbol--the logo representing the IM program in question--beside the person's name. I had trouble distinguishing one small, gray symbol from another.

When the time came to make a phone call, I hit the phone icon in the messaging window. To my surprise (and my editor's), the image on my Webcam flashed up. Eek! How embarrassing to be caught on video unawares. Qnext permits you to turn off the video feed if you want to send audio only.

I was generally pleased with the quality of our PC-to-PC calls. We did encounter some stuttering sounds, however, and several sentences dropped off the radar completely. Video quality was good overall. Whenever the image turned into a mosaic-like picture, it quickly smoothed out again.

Qnext's file-sharing capabilities are its shining star. You create Zones to share content with your Qnext contacts: Microsoft Office files, photos, even MP3s. Then you can allow your pals to scope out your music collection and listen to individual tracks without downloading any files. Setting up (and managing) your Zones is a breeze.

The program's photo-sharing Zone feature is terrific, too. While viewing your buddy's collection of snaps, you can resize and rotate the images on the fly, run a slide show, or download the originals. Qnext also supports file transfer, so you can drag and drop files or folders onto your buddy's name.

On the security side, Qnext uses an embedded 192-bit encryption key on all of its Peer-to-Peer communications; all items sent over Qnext alone (as opposed to over a public network such as AOL's, MSN's, or Yahoo's) go directly from your PC to your contact's PC and won't be archived on an IM network's servers. When you use Qnext to access one of your IM networks, the program transfers any existing privacy/security settings you have with AIM, ICQ, MSN Messenger, or Yahoo Messenger (as does Trillian Basic).

Qnext pledges that its next release, version 2.2, will solve the issues we encountered with voice chat and with connecting through firewalls. Qnext 2.2 may be available by the time you read this.


Upshot: Unlike any other IM application, this universal messenger offers music streaming along with file-sharing. Qnext might just be the ticket for your family- and work-oriented collaborations.

[RedWine]

Google Talk

You need a Gmail account to try Google Talk--yet another Google service in beta form. If you have that prerequisite, you can get rolling by inviting the Gmail contacts you choose to download the free Google Talk app (these contacts are automatically moved into Google Talk). Installing the Google Talk instant messaging application is quick and painless, and it starts up in just a few seconds.

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The first thing that struck me about Google Talk was its simplicity--a rare thing in IM Land. If you're used to working with instant messaging applications that are laden with features and customization options, you'll see find Google Talk startlingly austere: It's truly bare-boned, with limited customization settings. Though it lacks video, Google Talk handles text and voice messaging features very nicely.

Once I got Google Talk up and running, I appreciated the squeaky-clean environment: It's ad-free and pop-up-free, includes lots of white space, and contains no clusters of icons to distract you from your messaging business. In fact, going from the likes of Yahoo Messenger to Google Talk is a bit like going from a noisy consumer electronics superstore to a quiet boutique up a side street.

I also liked being able to detach the messaging window from the contacts list window and then move both around. If you reattach them by placing the messaging window below the contacts window, the former automatically resizes itself to fit the latter's vertical profile.

If you leave Google Talk's Notifications settings at their default values, you'll receive an alert every time a new e-mail message arrives at your Gmail account. A small window pops up briefly, identifying the sender's name and the subject line. That's handy if you want to keep an eye out for a particular missive. But if you get dozens of e-mail messages every hour, you may want to turn off those peppy signals.

In our voice chat tests, call quality sounded impressive--initially. Despite a faint hum in the background, my editor's voice and mine sounded crisp, and our sentences stayed intact. But further into our conversation, things went downhill. It sounded as though we were both talking on cell phones in a car wash. The slushing sound became so distracting that we simply hung up. (Not all is lost on the video side, however. Google Talkers yearning for this feature can try a plug-in called Festoon by Santa Cruz Networks.)

You might consider Google Talk somewhat exclusive, since you need to be part of the Gmail club to get it. But it's not a closed circuit: The Google Talk network is compatible with the Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP), which lets you send IMs to other XMPP-compliant programs, such as Gaim, Jabber, and iChat. Your buddies will need to have Gmail and must configure their IM program to work accordingly.


Upshot: If you rely on Gmail--and have built up a large address book--Google Talk lets you integrate text and voice messaging very easily. But if you want much more than that, look elsewhere.

[RedWine]

Yahoo Messenger with Voice

If you want every feature you can squeeze into a single-network IM app, you'll enjoy Yahoo Messenger with Voice. But if you dislike tacked-on extras, you'll understand why I felt ticked off at this free program.

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When I went through the installation process, Yahoo got aggressive: Unless you set your own preferences, it will change your browser's home page and search engine to Yahoo.

After I loaded the program, I discovered that Yahoo had installed an e-mail checker, LAUNCHcast radio, and its own Internet Explorer toolbar. Sure, the other IM apps come with similar luggage, but Yahoo Messenger was the most invasive. Thankfully, you can prevent LAUNCHcast and the Inside Yahoo welcome screen from greeting you when you start the IM app.

The text messaging window is colorful without being overcrowded. Plenty of tools--including text formatting buttons and emoticons--rest above your typing field, where you can grab them as needed.

You also get lots ways to enliven your messages, if that's your thing (it isn't mine). You can insert one of Yahoo's Audibles--an animated character that delivers canned quips, often in a foreign accent ("Groovy baby. It's almost the weekend."). Or you can select an IMvironment--a themed animated background, such as Garfield or snowflakes. Like MSN Messenger and ICQ, you can add a picture to your Yahoo IM identity, after which it will appear whenever you're in a session. If you don't like any of the dozen images in Yahoo's collection or on your own hard drive, you can create an avatar.

Yahoo Messenger's integration with Yahoo Mail is unusually discreet. A small envelope icon at the bottom of your contacts window takes you to your Yahoo Mail's sign-in (or straight into your e-mail, if you want to set it up that way). When new mail pops in, Yahoo Messenger pings you with the sender's name and the subject line.

Call quality was poor. My editor and I could make out each other's ramblings some of the time, but we also heard a constant crackling sound, almost like walkie-talkie static, in the background. In addition, some of our sentences turned into gobbledygook, as voice packets dropped. However, Yahoo deserves a bonus point for its free voicemail option; no other IM app in this roundup offers this feature.

I was reasonably impressed with Yahoo's video chats. Our images looked crisp most of the time; the rest of the time, both of us appeared washed out. Two gripes: Yahoo had five windows open during our video conferences: a video image of yours truly, another of my editor, my contacts list, our text dialog, and the as-yet-unzapped welcome screen. It felt like my desktop had been hijacked. Plus, throughout our entire video chat, one of the video windows sported a big ad.

I very much liked Yahoo's file-sending and photo-sharing features. Both were extremely easy to use; and in the case of the photo-sharing, you simply drag and drop your batch of pictures, and your friend at the other end can view the slideshow--without any ads. (What bliss.)


Upshot: Yahoo Messenger is best suited to users who interact with family and friends only and want heaps of customization options (and fluffy stuff).

[RedWine]

Trillian Basic

If your instant messaging comrades spread themselves across AIM, MSN Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, and ICQ, you might go bonkers juggling multiple IM programs on the go. Trillian Basic to the rescue. This free universal application from Cerulean Studios lets you ping your buddies who use AIM, ICQ, MSN Messenger, and Yahoo Messenger. Once you establish your accounts in Trillian, it will grab your existing settings, such as buddy lists and security preferences, so you're ready to rock and roll. Trillian also connects to IRC chat servers.

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Overall, Trillian worked well as a universal messenger--and like Google Talk and Qnext, it's refreshingly ad-free. Setting up my connections to three of the Big Four networks worked fine, though initially I did have some trouble syncing Trillian to ICQ. The problem? Trillian would repeatedly try (and fail) to connect to ICQ, without working out a solution. Cerulean Studios later explained that Trillian couldn't make sense of my ICQ information: I had entered my nine-digit ICQ number with a few spaces interspersed (mimicking the format that ICQ itself displays), and the resulting string thoroughly flummoxed Trillian. So I re-created my ICQ account on Trillian--this time without inserting any spaces--and I never looked back.

Of course, the list of all of your contacts from your different IM accounts may be terribly long. But Trillian color-codes your contacts and makes it easy to find them with a quick scan: Beside each buddy's name, you'll see a yellow, red, blue, or green circle, corresponding to AIM, Yahoo Messenger, MSN Messenger, and ICQ, respectively.

Basic text messaging in Trillian was smooth and efficient. Right above the text field are some tools you can use on the fly--text size and color, underlining, and URL formatting--along with a link to an alarmingly large number of emoticons. A unique bonus: Trillian integrates your text messaging with Wikipedia look-ups. Simply hover your cursor over a term that Trillian underlines, and up pops a separate window containing Wikipedia's entry on the item.

Trillian's tabbed window arrangement makes it easy for you to stay on top of different conversations across multiple networks. You'll find prominent buttons for Audio and Send File (among others) at the top of the messaging window. Click the History button to view a log of your text messages with that particular buddy in Microsoft's Notepad app or in your favorite text editor.

When my editor and I tried to use Trillian's voice chat, we couldn't get it to work. Every attempt to talk using our MSN Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, ICQ, and AIM accounts resulted in either an error message or a "nothing happening" situation.

Conspicuously absent from Trillian Basic's repertoire--compared to other IM programs we've reviewed lately--is video functionality. To get video chat, you have to upgrade to Trillian Pro and cough up $25. The Pro version also gives you advanced history viewing options, Jabber connectivity, plug-ins, RSS support, and animated emoticons.


Upshot: Consider using Trillian Basic as your hub for centralized IM communications--as long as you don't need a video chat capability.