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AOL and .mac IM Not Entirely Integrated
gsfprez writes "While chatting with some Apple employee friends (with .mac accounts and iChat), we were stumped why we couldn't see each other on AIM. It seems that AOL has decided to take the opportunity -- while integrating the .mac users 'into the fold' -- to modify their AIM protocols so that Open Source clients (like Fire and Trillian) can't see those with '@mac.com' IM accounts, and vise versa. Bottom line: you can't be seen by .mac IM users, and they can't see you, unless you get the crufty, single service AOL IM client. The only positive affirmation of this is from the Fire mailing list. 'Into the fold ... sorta' is more like it." Well, it's still early, this may merely be about bugs that need fixing, rather than intent to block .mac users. We'll see.
Trillian isn't open source. although it is possibly the best IM client out there.
When I discovered that my friends were on iChat, I immediately downloaded AIM and registered, to my surprise the AIM download link that i was given pointed to a version that was not only out dated, but completely incompatible with .mac users. Selecting "upgrade" from the "My Aim" menu (and some time waiting for the download) i was presented with the ability to chat with my .mac friends.
http://www.epicware.com/fire.html
Undoubtedly, anyone who depends on running on two or more messenger systems will stick with Fire. Those who use only AIM will probably switch to Apple's offering. But if this is true, then within any circle of friends it has to be one or the other -- Fire (or your fave) or iChat.
It would be a shame to see Fire die, but with the trend for Macheads to adopt Apple programs, that might very well be what happens.
[Sigh] Back to running two messenging apps again. :(
omnia tua castra sunt nobis
I believe (and I could be wrong) that the reason you don't see .mac people on these clients is because of the protocol they use (the old TOC one). Gaim uses oscar, and I believe you can see people just fine. It probably just hasn't trickled down through TOC, although AOL might choose just to ignore it.
Anyone have any concrete information on this?
The other day I signed on to my AIM account using Proteus and a new contact was magically added to my buddies list: "PleaseUpgrade000". That sort of told me that I had to give up on Proteus.
Just to add more to the discussion, I remember that even AIM had to be upgraded to work with or see Mac.com buddies, so it's just that the others haven't caught up yet.
How? I looked around quite a bit. Saw nothing.
Under the "View" menu, you can choose "Show as Text" or "Show as Balloons." Methinks you didn't look around quite as much as you say you did.
You mean from stealing AOL's resources, right? If AOL wants to only let their clients, or licensed clients connect, then they should be able to do so. It's their resources after all. If Trillian wants to be compatible, they should step up to the plate and talk to AOL, just like Apple did. If AOL declines, well, this is a free country and you can do business with whoever you want.
-BrentThis may finally allow AOL to license their servers to over companies and have their own @company.com clients that interoperate. Perhaps Microsoft needs to talk to AOL about licensing again. And Yahoo. and whoever else wants to offer a specialised IM client. I want my bmetzler@yahoo.com AIM ID. That'd be cool.
-Brent
Do you have to keep a .mac account to use iChat? Oh, just great. Just when I thought I'd get an instant messaging client, I find out it costs $100 a year to use. Forget that.
I think I'll stick with ignoring my email instead of moving to ignoring my instant messages.
If it's for-profit but free, you're not the customer -- you're the product (e.g., the Slashdot Beta's "audience").
But Adium only does AIM, right? I want all four services running at once and Fire does a pretty nice job at that. If I want Yahoo Webcam or one of the special features the 'real' client provide, I log off that service in Fire and launch the authorized app. This happens very seldom - most of the time Fire is fine.
DeanT
Nah, when they asked for your personal information, you probably lied and said, "Bill Gates, 1 Redmond Way".
-Brentis your 3rd party client passing the ads that AIM displays? AOL has a good reason for not wanting users to use 3rd party clients!
i mean it is a sucky reason, but a reason nonetheless.
Originally, AIM users were all AOL accounts. Now, AIM users are either AOL accounts or .Mac accounts. The system had to be changed to cater for this. No conspiracies, no black helicopters, just the standard lag you'll get if you're using a reverse-engineered client instead of the official one.
This isn't the death of Fire, or Trillian any more than all the other changes to Oscar were. The third-party clients will reverse-engineer the changed protocol within a week, Trillian users will download (yet another copy of) aim.dll, and we'll all be happy again. Meanwhile, the idea that AOL would force-upgrade all of its legitimate users just to annoy Trillian users for a week is pretty ludicrous.
The more I learn about the Internet, the more amazed I am that it works at all.