Typing or talking to one person is fun and interesting, but for really good gossip, you need more than two people. Fortunately, the Internet offers limitless opportunities to find like-minded people and discuss anything you can imagine. Clubs, churches, and other groups use the Internet to hold meetings. Hobbyists and fans talk about an amazing […]
Your first time in a chat room can seem stupid or daunting or both. Here are some things you can do to get through your first encounters:
l Remember that when you enter a chat room, a conversation is probably
already in progress. You don’t know what went on before you arrived.
Wait a minute or two to […]
Unfortunately, the instant-messaging systems don’ttalkto one another. Because the goal of all of these systems is to help you stay in touch with your friends, use whichever one they use. If you’re not sure who your friends are, AQL Instant Messenger is a good bet because it’s easy to set up and works automatically with […]
Windows XP comes with the latest instant messaging program, called Windows Messenger. Microsoft noticed that this was a niche in which they didn’t have the dominant program, and so decided to issue everyone a copy of theirs. Windows XP nags you to sign up for a Microsoft .NET Passport, a free account that you use […]
Online chat is similar to talking on an old-fashioned party line (or CB radio). In the infancy of the telephone system, people usually shared their phone lines with other families because stringing telephone lines was expensive. Everyone on the party line could join in any conversation, offering hours of nosy fun for people with nothing […]
You can forward e-mail to someone else. It’s easy. It’s cheap. Forwarding is one of the best things about e-mail and at the same time one of the worst. It’s good because you can easily pass along messages to people who need to know about them. It’s bad because you (not you personally, but, um, […]
