America Online has said it plans to enable users of its instant messaging service to see when friends and business associates are online, even if they're not on the contact list.

The company plans to let users connect its AIM software with the address book of a popular Microsoft calendar and e-mail program in a deal with a third-party company that lets it bypass the Redmond software giant.

Executives of the online division of Time Warner said it struck a deal with Intellisync, which plans to release software that lets AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) users know when a contact within their Microsoft Outlook program is online and reachable by AIM automatically.

The move on Monday by the world's largest online service is another way the company plans to spread its wings across the Web in an aggressive gambit to reverse a historic aversion to giving away anything for free.

"The web is open...It's not siloing yourself," said Chamath Palihapitiya, vice president and general manager of AIM. "AIM is everywhere consumers are. We want to take it to where they are."

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News source: C|Net News

I know of 1 person that uses AIM... I think instead of adding stupid features they should rip out all the garbage from the IM Client and redesign it.

this is perhaps the most useless tool for AIM. why doesn't aol just try to update their im program, remove the damn spyware it installs (viewpoint media player), and make a decent IM program ... it needs a complete overhaul. it's a big bloated POS IMO

I agree totally. At least it's not as bad as ICQ, useless features and memory hogging haha.

Viva La Trillian

WTF? Overexaggeration

BTW. Viewpoint != spyware but WildTangent games support is

Actually I'm NOT over exaggerating. I only really know of 1 person that uses AIM that I talk to on a regular basis. And she only has 1 contact on her list.

AIM is the shittiest IM Client out there. Along with their Internet Services. AOL needs to die. I mean sure it's great for people who don't know how to use the internet, but if you didn't know how to spell in grade 10 would you not be held back in English class? People need to learn how to use the "real" internet and not some fisher price packaged software bundle that hinders learning and makes everything easy.

AOL Instant Messenger is rather outdated compared to MSN Messenger and Yahoo! Messenger, but it can get away with this because so many people use AIM. Hopefully, AIM will be streamlined in version 6.0, and maybe they'll stop bundling extra software with AIM.

which equals AIM not getting installed on my computer. i don't want spyware installed on my computer. and i could give a crap about the games AIM has, as they suck a$$.

i use GAIM, fuck anything aol makes.

I know a lot of people that use AIM, but I won't go near it. Trillian for me.

I just use GAIM with everyone but 4 buddies blocked on AIM. IM clients are pretty useless - I mainly just call them or email them.

See, I'm the complete opposite. I rarely use the phone, and usually only email if I am trying to send a file.

i use aim for the people that perfer it but i also use msn so im covered on both ends

I use gAIM as well but I don't have a a lot of people blocked. I just rarely answer anyone in general on any IM client. After a while I got sick of people just IM'ing me doing this:

AIM might not be that great. I use an older AIM client with Dead AIM added on. AIM is the #1 instant messenger for teenagers.

Are you sure it's not the other way around... lol j/k

i stopped using aim long ago as there were hardly any good people on it.anything aol is a POS.

yeah that's true, but remember how good AOL used to be back in the day? ......


oh wait, what am i saying. it was always crap

Well, AOL did play an important role in the growth of Internet usage and instant messenging.