TUAW reader
varun submitted a good question for an Ask TUAW session on the topic of multi-network chat clients. varun has tried out
the likes of Fire, Adium and Proteus, but hasn't come up with a compelling reason to use one over the other. I thought this would be a nice opportunity to ask you readers to sound off on which multi-network IM client you prefer, and why. When commenting, be sure to mention how the client fits into your workflow, what you like about it and why. The more clients you can bring to the table above and beyond the ones already mentioned, the better.
So what say you, TUAW readers? What is your favorite multi-network IM client, and why?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 7)
3-10-2006 @ 11:11AM
Malfoy Roark said...
There are other options besides Adium for OS X? Bah.
Its an IM client, it just sits there and works. I have a few problems with how it handles some fonts that cause people I'm messaging to see distorted stuff but other than that I love it. On the PC side, I gave Trillian a try but was disgusted by everything about it and forced people to use AIM if they wanted to talk to me.
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3-10-2006 @ 11:11AM
JT said...
Adium. Is there anything better out there?
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3-10-2006 @ 11:11AM
s'fen said...
Adium sense .50
It has EVERYTHING
Now it’s amazing, set the background to transparent. Hot dam; I keep it open all the time
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3-10-2006 @ 11:12AM
Axel said...
adium
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3-10-2006 @ 11:13AM
Bigfat said...
Adium, I love changing it's interface, especially depending on my desktop picture, I love all the add-ons and most importantly I love the way it handles multiple chats. I was a die hard Proteus guy until about a year ago.
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3-10-2006 @ 11:17AM
Kender said...
Adium - all the way. Mainly because I can set the skin semi-transparent.
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3-10-2006 @ 11:18AM
Drew said...
Adium- it works, not intrusive, easy to tweak the interface, plays well with my machine and its software, and the downloads rock--- Kudos to everyone who has submitted sounds or themes.
Drew
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3-10-2006 @ 11:19AM
reovox said...
Adium cos it's the best one for IM me thinks and Mercury Messenger for video with my PC buddies. If only Adium supported video......
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3-10-2006 @ 11:20AM
Eric said...
Adium X for me. I have it on both laptops, my roomate uses it, and my dad uses it.
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3-10-2006 @ 11:22AM
Alcebiades said...
Adium, for sure.
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3-10-2006 @ 11:26AM
Andy said...
I just got a new MacBook and I have a couple of questions. Do any of these clients work with iSight? Also are any of the clients universal yet?
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3-10-2006 @ 11:26AM
djafke said...
I used to use Fire because of its neat design and the ability of sorting contacts bij e-mail adress. But i switched to adium a few month agoo because of better file-sharing (this could be my opinion). So i choose for Adium
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3-10-2006 @ 11:26AM
Brad said...
As everyone else has said so far, Adium takes the gold on my computer. It blends into my screen set-up when online and is quick and responsive. Plus, it allows me to reorder groups unlike Proteus.
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3-10-2006 @ 11:29AM
Dan said...
call me crazy but i like ichat better than adium...i like all my apple software becuase it is integrated into so many different programs and everything is so simple and once you use another program on a mac the format is usually the same everywhere including shortcuts
well plus video conferencing
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3-10-2006 @ 11:31AM
Mitch said...
Adium, used it since i started with OS X. It simply rocks.
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3-10-2006 @ 11:31AM
Kit said...
I used Fire for years. It was the first milti-protocal chat client for OS X, as far as I know. My friends were all over the country on various IM services, and Fire let me stay in touch with all of them. But about 6 months ago, I became increasingly dissatisfied with Fire's stability and performance under moderate to high system load.
Then I gave Adium a try. I had tried it early on, but didn't like it. Frankly, I didn't like the duck motif. But I also discovered its customization and extensibility features and haven't looked back.
I still hold a place in my computing heart for Fire, but Adium is my main chat client now and will be for awhile, I suspect.
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3-10-2006 @ 11:31AM
Reid Ellis said...
Adium, for sure. I used to be a big Fire user, but Adium's sweet sexy looks were too devastating to ignore.
Floating bubbles of friendship communities on my desktop... ahhh.
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3-10-2006 @ 11:33AM
Jared Ferguson said...
Adium X, hands down.
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3-10-2006 @ 11:38AM
Rob Sayers said...
Adium, I also used to use but never looked back once I tried the duck.
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3-10-2006 @ 11:39AM
B3NN3TT said...
I use iChat beause of its integration (as mentioned above). And AIM is the only protocol I'm using right now.
But Proteus is excellent as well.
Fire just crashed all the time...
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