And if America Online decides to adopt the same standard, it will be a great day in the land of chatters, who will now be united in a single, unified, global standard of chatting love. With Windows XP, Microsoft has adopted a new, universal standard for chat programs. People who use the extremely popular AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) are off-limits, separated from you by a great invisible wall of incompatibility. Microsoft updates this Windows component, via the Automatic Updates feature, more often than almost any other.)Īt the moment, Windows Messenger can communicate only with other people who use Windows Messenger. (This dialog box may look different in your version of Messenger. (This icon's appearance indicates whether or not you're online and signed in.) Right: If Windows Messenger didn't automatically sign you in when you went online, you may have to click the link to do so. Left: To open Windows Messenger, double-click its icon in your notification area. If you don't see it, just choose Start All Programs Windows Messenger (although you may also find the icon listed in the left-side column of your Start menu). The quickest way to open it is by double-clicking the icon that appears in your notification area (see Figure 11-9). The software you need is Windows Messenger (which was called MSN Messenger Service in previous versions of Windows). And adding an inexpensive Web camera means that you can actually turn your PC into a cheapo videophone, Dick Tracy “style. It's not quite as handy as a phone ”you and your conversation partner must arrange to be online at a specified time ”but the price is delightful. If your PC has a micro phone and speakers (or a headset), you can also speak to your friends, using the Internet as a free long-distance service. It offers the immediacy of a phone call, with the privacy, transcript-keeping features, and price ($0) of email.īetter yet, you don't have to type all of your witty comments. For millions of people, chat is a big deal. But if you've got even more time to kill, Microsoft invites you to 'chat' with other people on the Internet by typing live comments into a little window. You might argue that you'll have plenty to do at your desk, what with all of the games and programs included with Windows XP (oh, yeah and work ).

Windows xp chat room programs