Your Favorite AIM Client
What do you use? iChat, Fire, Aol Instant Messanger, AOL itself, or something else?
Currenlty I'm using iChat. It has a very very nice interface, but still has some bugs to work out. Now I've encountered a bug where you can add new screen names to the buddy list, but they won't show up when they come on. So now I'm looking for a new client. I used to use Fire before. That was a very powerful one, but all i needed was AIM, and iChat was perfect.
Waiting to hear all you opinions?
Currenlty I'm using iChat. It has a very very nice interface, but still has some bugs to work out. Now I've encountered a bug where you can add new screen names to the buddy list, but they won't show up when they come on. So now I'm looking for a new client. I used to use Fire before. That was a very powerful one, but all i needed was AIM, and iChat was perfect.
Waiting to hear all you opinions?
Comments
The 2.0 builds are looking nice.
<strong>...I've encountered a bug where you can add new screen names to the buddy list, but they won't show up when they come on. ...</strong><hr></blockquote>
Try removing them from your buddy list and adding them again. If that doesn't work, try signing on with AOL's client and removing them there, then add them again in iChat. I had the same problem. I think it only happens when you use an old SN that has the same buddies on the list, but for some reason iChat doesn't recognize them.
Of the AIM-based clients I've tried, Adium is by far the best (IMO)...
I really didn't like iShat when I tried it, but I've heard it's gotten a bit better.
-Rob
There was a bug in AIM which would make the senders messages not appear sometimes on their IM window, but I haven't run into that in awhile.
Nothing beats AIM since AOHell is retarded and keeps their protocol private. iChat blows but since AOL let Apple under the tent I can see iChat becoming better than AIM eventually, when it gets all of AIM's features. Someday I mean to test out Proteus since I hear so many good things about it!
edit: the reason to use Adium over AIM is CPU useage. AIM must have pretty crufty code because it's CPU useage hit over 30% on my iBook, Adium usually was at 1% or less.
[ 03-06-2003: Message edited by: Aquatic ]</p>
<strong>Now I've encountered a bug where you can add new screen names to the buddy list, but they won't show up when they come on. So now I'm looking for a new client.
Waiting to hear all you opinions?</strong><hr></blockquote>
are you using a @mac.com name? if so thats why they wont show up. in order for the users to support @mac.com and show up on your buddy list they need to have the latest versions of AIM or AOL. Many dont apparently
Then you can say, "I'm on Fire."
<strong>AIM... the others are okay, but none have all the features of AIM.</strong><hr></blockquote>
I agree. AIM is the best.. Once iChat or Adium updates with more features I'll probably use one of them.
I tried taking them off my buddy list and then putting them back on. They would appear on my list, but they would not come on even if they were actually on line. Then when I would quit, they left the list when I started it up again.
1. The ability to send image files without having them act all retarded. iChat attempts to display images right in the chat window like AIM. AIM is pretty bad at it, but iChat really sucks at it. Most of the time it ends up screwing something up and you have to close and reopen the chat window. It SHOULD just transfer it like a regular file... feh, I just put pictures in a folder before sending them.
2. Community chats. These suck, but AIM can still access them while iChat can't.
3. You can edit your profile in AIM.
4. You can lump multiple buddies into various groups in AIM. iChat can't do that, although you could put a group name in front of each buddy and then organize alphabetically to simulate the same effect.
5. File sharing. You can transfer files in iChat just fine, but you can't specify a public folder to share with other people, and you can't access other peoples' public folders.
That's all I can think of for now. iChat also has advantages, like blocking buddy icons and assigning custom names.
Proteus/Fire: The idea is very, very good, but I still hate the interface. I find it clunky, and convoluted and just plain infuriating. A really killer feature is the ability to sign on to multiple screen names at the same time.
AIM X: I don't like it, but I don't hate it either. What I remember was AIM's odd tendency to slow down my entire system when I was using it...it seemed to suck up CPU cycles and memory like mad.
Adium: In my opinion, the best AIM client out there. It's got a kick-ass interface, and it's clean, efficient, and stable. I really wonder why Apple didn't just hire Adium's programmer for developing iChat, or just acquire Adium wholesale.
iChat: I'm still angry at Apple for not implementing the ability to switch between multiple screen names. That and whenever my friends send my pictures over AIM, they never come through. Asides that, like Adium it's nice, clean and stable.
<strong>5. File sharing. You can transfer files in iChat just fine, but you can't specify a public folder to share with other people, and you can't access other peoples' public folders.
</strong><hr></blockquote>
i can access other people's public folders, but other people can't access mine... why not?
<strong>
AIM X: I don't like it, but I don't hate it either. What I remember was AIM's odd tendency to slow down my entire system when I was using it...it seemed to suck up CPU cycles and memory like mad.
</strong><hr></blockquote>
That used to be a problem, but the last 3 or 4 versions have been MUCH better. AIM used to take up to 50% at times, now most of the time the max is 5%.
<strong>The actual AIM client sucks, text isn't antialiased (unless they've updated it since I last trashed it), it displays ads, and it can't display people actual names instead of their screennames.</strong><hr></blockquote>
The buddy list is antialiased, but IMs and stuff aren't, you can find it without ads, and personally I like it better that it shows the screennames rather then the real names.
<strong>you can find it without ads,</strong><hr></blockquote>
WHERE?????
the ads are SO ANNOYING!!!!
<strong>
The buddy list is antialiased, but IMs and stuff aren't, you can find it without ads, and personally I like it better that it shows the screennames rather then the real names.</strong><hr></blockquote>
I dunno bout you, but antialiasing is very important to me, and AIM X won't even work with Silk. And ads sucks, and I shouldn't have to search for a version without ads.
And I've found that when I'm on AIM, I get random spam IMs that I don't get w/iChat or Adium.
Lastly, the single message window mode of Adium is very nice and very well done.
But again, I'm very fond of the fact that with iChat, I can be online without having to open up the application. And screennames are so 1999 (says he while posting to an anonymous web board). It's not like you don't know that people you're chatting with.