Instant Messaging: What’s Your Poison?

One thing I must admit that’s better on the Windows platform is instant messaging. With roughly 90% of the computing world using the Windows platform, instant messaging clients are more developed. Case in point, Yahoo Messenger and MSN Messenger. Arguably the most feature packed clients available today. Multi-client programs such as Trillian also offer robust features.

Is the Mac platform far behind. Sadly, in my opinion we are. However, it’s good to know that efforts to catch up are slowly taking place.

So far the best “standalone” client for the Mac is still iChat. The downside is you get to chat only with .Mac and AIM users. The good thing, 4 way video chats. Awesome quality when used with iSight and a good broadband connection. In my experience that makes up of around 10% of the people I know. Most of my contacts are still on Yahoo Messenger followed closely by MSN. Good thing that these two instant messenger clients for the Mac platform. Sadly, they’re both mediocre versions of their Windows counterpart.

Thank God for multiclient instant messenger software for Macs. Enter Adium, Proteus and Fire. I’m sure there are other clients but I mentioned these three because these are the more popular ones I know. I personally use Adium. It doesn’t have features like voice, web cam support, plus file transfer is a bit dicey at best. Good thing that I really don’t consider all these features as deal breakers. The most important thing for me is that I’m able to do instant messaging with various people on various clients in one consolidated software. Adium does that for me. I tried Proteus before but you needed to pay for it. Proteus is now free but since I’m already used to Adium I didn’t bother with Proteus anymore. Fire is something I tried briefly but didn’t really like it all that much. Why? I just didn’t…

Now I really like drawing upon the immense wealth of information that readers provide. So please leave me a comment and let me know what IM client you use and why. Who knows you just might make me change my mind and ditch Adium altogether. Alternatively, you might just reassure me that I am using the best multiclient IM software in the Mac World.