Audience: People who use the Internet and who are looking for an instant message program. Chatting online can be very fun sometimes, but it can be annoying if you don't have the right Instant Messenger. Choosing an instant message program is hard, and some offer many different options. MSN Messenger, ICQ, and AOL Instant Messenger are just a few of the leading brands, but each program offers different features.
             MSN Messenger allows anyone with a Hotmail or MSN address to use this program. This program allows you to see when someone is online and permits you to send instant messages. A great feature I like is the typing bar. This bar displays a message when the other user is typing. This is great because you are not interrupting someone thoughts when they are typing. MSN also integrates file transfers into the program. These transfers are faster than any other program. MSN also has Video Conferencing in their program. MSN can also page someone from his or her program. This is also good if you don't want to give out your pager number.
             ICQ is a chat-based product, which offers features such as user details. User details tell you information about other users. This information includes time information, addresses, and phone numbers of the user. ICQ also allows you to talk to the person instead of just chatting. This feature is called voice chat. ICQ also allows you to leave a message for someone. When the user logs on, they receive any messages you left. ICQ has just about the best search engine feature. This is a great way to help you find people in your area and people with the same interest. Downloading mp3 files is just another feature that helps make this a good download. This is similar to Napster, and it is still illegal.
             AOL Instant Messenger is about the most popular program, but it does not offer the best features. This program includes the basic chat function. It doesn't include any of the special features mentioned abo...