The Most Popular Chat Messaging Services & Apps

Ever since the internet?s introduction into mainstream America?s every day life towards the end of the 1980s, communication between different people and businesses around the world has gone through a complete transformation. Where once this area of life was completely dominated by the telephone and postal mail system, now we have a myriad of other ways to get in touch with people, both in a business and personal capacity. Email quickly became one of the top ways that people pass information back and forth between each other to the point where approximately 2.9 million emails are sent each and every second!

Another incredibly popular way for people to interact with each other across the Information Highway is instant messaging. Instant messaging provides a sort of middle ground between email and voice conversation, offering the convenience of typing with the real-time exchange found in a voice communication. The number of different messaging services that are currently available are many and varied, some more popular than others. Following are some of the most popular services in use today, the features the include and which platforms they are able to operate on.

AIM

We will start out this list with the messaging service that pretty much launched this type of communication into the level of popularity it currently enjoys: AIM. AIM (AOL Instant Messenger) was originally introduced in 1997 as a stand-alone client designed solely for chatting purposes. Instant messaging was already available for AOL members through the AOL client; however, the company wanted to develop a user base of people who used other ISPs (Internet Service Providers) as a way to increase popularity and attract new users. After experiencing a long run as the top messenger service around, they have been overtaken by other clients and consigned to relative obscurity.

There are several different ways to use AIM, each of which is geared towards a different type of user. For most computer users, the client can be downloaded from the AIM website (http://www.aim.com/) and set up as an independent process. If you are in a situation that does not allow for external applications to be installed, such as in a business or educational environment, AIM can be accessed directly in the browser, with no extra components necessary. Lastly, if you are a mobile user, AIM offers an app compatible with both iOS and Android-device users.

Facebook Messenger

As one of the most popular websites on the internet today in terms of social and business interaction, it was only a matter of time before Facebook launched itself into the messaging service scene. This was accomplished towards the end of 2011, when they launched one of the most popular and fastest growing services, Facebook Messenger.

With Facebook Messenger, users are given the opportunity to chat with people on their Friends list either in real time or by leaving messages for offline people to respond to once they sign in. In addition, a variation called Facebook Mobile is also available for those with either an Android, Blackberry or iPhone mobile device. No matter which version you are interested in, it can easily be downloaded from https://www.facebook.com/about/messenger.

Skype

First introduced in 2003, Skype has grown into one of the largest messaging services currently in use today with a customer base of over 600 million users. Originally developed by Estonian programmers, Skype was first acquired by eBay in 2005 and was subsequently sold to Microsoft in 2011. Current plans include phasing out Microsoft?s current messaging service and replacing it with Skype. Skype currently has versions that support Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android platforms.

Skype has a different format than many of the other popular messaging services, in that it is primarily a VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) service. While text instant messaging is available, most communication is conducted through voice interaction using the internet as a carrier, as opposed to a telephone line or wireless telephone connection. The Skype service offers a wide variety of features, including conference calling, video chat and the ability for traditional landline users to contact Skype users by way of a registered Skype telephone number. The Skype service can easily be downloaded and installed from http://beta.skype.com/en/.

Google Talk

In 2005, internet giant Google released its version of messaging software, Google Talk. Over the following years, Google released additional features not available on the initial client with support over many different device platforms. Currently, Google Talk is available for Windows, Mac, iOS and Android device users.

Google Talk provides many features that have seen it propelled into the top ranks of available messaging services. In addition to the standard text messaging, Google Talk also offers voice and video chat, group chatting and an IRC-style chat environment. Google Talk is also highly integrated with other Google services, including access directly from Gmail, which provides a robust platform for users to manage everything in a central location. All of these capabilities and more can be had when the client is downloaded from http://www.google.com/talk/.

Yahoo! Messenger

Yahoo! Messenger was first introduced in 1998 by Yahoo! under the name Yahoo! Pager. The subsequent years would see not only a change in the name, but also in the features available when using it. As with most of the other messaging services listed here, it can be used on Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices.

Yahoo! Messenger is an extremely well-rounded platform and offers a large assortment of different capabilities when using it. In addition to the basic text chatting feature, it is also possible to conduct voice-based communication between PCs and telephone devices. Video chat is also possible by using a webcam in conjunction with the Yahoo Messenger service. Full product information and download links are available at http://messenger.yahoo.com/.

Mobile-Based Messaging Apps

With the current rate of popularity that mobile devices are enjoying, it should come as no surprise that messaging clients made specifically for this platform are experiencing a high level of use. A prime example of this would be WhatsApp (http://www.whatsapp.com/), a messaging app with compatibility for most mobile platforms. WhatsApp provides standard text chatting, group chatting and the ability to send pictures and video.

Another popular mobile messaging client is Nimbuzz (http://www.nimbuzz.com/), which allows the transmission of text, video and pictures and is a handy way to bypass those costly SMS charges.

Regardless of what kind of technologies the future has in store, chances are that messaging programs will always have a place in modern-day computing. For those situations where you do not have the opportunity to conduct a real-time voice conversation, text chatting is always an excellent alternative and a way to keep in touch with people no matter where you are.

Source: http://www.techtous.com/blog/the-most-popular-chat-messaging-services-apps/

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