I understand Osgood has somehow resolved his ICQ/Trillian problem, but I've discovered an odd little quirk of my own. You can use Trillian for MS IM, Yahoo messenger (did you know there was a Yahoo messenger?), IRC and
either AIM or ICQ, but not
both at the same time. I understand ICQ is now owned by AOL, but I can't for the life-of-me understand why they woudn't want you to use both.
This probably won't affect very many of you, but it affects me. It turns out there a Grumblers who use MS IM, AIM, ICQ and even Yahoo. (Does anyone use IRC?) There are several that use the telephone and even a couple that just get in the car and drive over when they want to chat. It would be nice if there were an official Grumbler chat standard, but I understand everyone has their favorite.
There was a thread, long long ago, where a bunch of Grumblers listed their ICQ numbers. Unfortunately, the vast majority of those Grumblers are no longer active on TG. So, for anyone who's interested, here are my chat contact names. I have no reservations about listing these, because it's very easy to block anyone on any of these systems. In fact, when I first signed on to ICQ, I was immediately greeted by a very friendly person named Linda. Not wanting to be rude, I said, "Hi." Linda must have been pretty busy. It took a minute or so, but her next words were, "How do you feel about erotica?" Linda's gone now - lost in space. I get enough spam from my email. (BTW, I'm almost certain that wasn't
our Linda.)
MS IM:
RonEggers@hotmail.com
AIM: roneggers5
Yahoo: jrone39
ICQ: 148905159
I'd encourage other Grumblers who are interested in chatting to list their contact info as well.
Also a couple of tips if you're trying instant messenging for the first time:
- When you IM a Grumbler for the first time, identify yourself as a Grumbler - especially if your screen name is something like GH56C45&.
- Just because someone is on-line, don't assume they have time to chat - just ask. And don't get hurt feelings if they say, "Busy now, but I'll catch you later."
- Spontaneity is one of the highlights of Instant Messenging, but unlike The Grumble, you can't edit chat messages once they're sent. Think before you press that send button.
Did I miss anything?
And, finally, can anyone tell me if "messenging" is even a real word? I have my doubts.