Instant Messenging

IBM Lotus Sametime

Is an enterprise instant messaging and web conferencing application sold by the Lotus Software division of IBM. Lotus Sametime provides enterprise instant messaging functionality, presence information, and web conferencing. It uses a proprietary protocol named Virtual Places (VP), but also offers support for standard protocols, including Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), SIMPLE, T.120, XMPP, and H.323. Lotus Sametime also integrates with Lotus Notes and Microsoft Office. The consulting company Frost & Sullivan named IBM Lotus Sametime as the 2008 North American Enterprise Product of the Year.
The product was originally the synthesis of technologies IBM acquired from two companies: the first, an American company called Databeam, provided the architecture to host T.120 dataconferencing (for web messaging) and H.323 Multi-Media Conferencing; the second was Ubique, an Israeli company whose software technology provided the "presence awareness" functionality that allows people to detect which of their contacts are online and available for messaging or conferencing.

Reaction: Customized look and function according to each individual's needs. The
Management and organization of hundreds of IM buddies on many IM network. Can also be enhanced through the use of different sound sets.

Jabber

Instant Messaging and Presence technology. Built to be extensible, the protocol has accumulated features over time such as Voice over IP and file transfer signaling. Where anyone who has a domain name and a suitable Internet connection can run his own Jabber server and talk to users on other servers.

Reactions: It implements Standard network and many clients are also free and open source software. Since a user may wish to log in from multiple locations, the clients specify a further string known as a resource, which identifies which of the user's clients it is (for example home, work and mobile).

AOL

The best known for its online software suite, also called "AOL", that allowed millions of customers around the world to access the world's largest "walled garden" online community and eventually reach out to the internet as a whole. At its zenith, AOL's membership was over 30 million members worldwide,most of whom accessed the AOL service through the AOL software suite. AOL was quickly running out of room in 1996 for its network at the Vienna, VA campus and moved to Dulles, VA a short distance away. The move to Dulles took place in mid-1996 and provided room for future growth. Accordingly in a five year landmark agreement with the now reigning operating system winner was AOL bundled with Windows.

Reaction: AOL was relatively late in providing access to the open Internet. Originally, only some Internet features were accessible through a proprietary interface but eventually it became possible to run other Internet software while logged in through AOL.