IM Usage & Awareness Services

CowboyRobot writes "Queue has two related articles on Instant Messaging. The first, written by two Sun Labs researchers, looks at the lack of standards in IM protocols, as well as the preception that the distracting nature of IM precludes it from being a more useful communications medium. Their solutions involve new 'Awareness Services' and they summarize three research prototypes: 'Awarenex', 'Rhythm Awareness', and 'Lilsys'. The second includes the results of an AT&T Labs study of IM use. Among the findings, "Despite the perception that IM is commonly used for social purposes in the workplace, we found that was rarely the case. Only 13 percent of the conversations we monitored included any personal topics whatsoever, and only 6.4 percent were exclusively personal.""

Comments

I find that 99% of my IM time is non-work related

[ObviousGuy]

Mostly it's trying to round up a posse to go eat lunch or sending little I (heart) U messages to the cute intern.

Sometimes I play Hexic with the wife who is at home.

But in the 1% that is actually relevant to my job, it's usually some pretty serious stuff.

Re:I find that 99% of my IM time is non-work relat

[Anonymous Coward]

Careful messaging the cute intern with stuff like that .. he might sue for sexual harassment.

Re:how was this legal?

[anthony_dipierro]

Didn't you get the memo?

Interesting

[Anonymous Coward]

"the results of an AT&T Labs study of IM use. Among the findings, "Despite the perception that IM is commonly used for social purposes in the workplace, we found that was rarely the case. Only 13 percent of the conversations we monitored included any personal topics whatsoever, and only 6.4 percent were exclusively personal."""

Left hand, meet right hand. We actually have been told at AT&T to NOT use IM at all. Whee.

Hmm...

[iamdrscience]

Business related IMs, eh? I don't think I've ever seen such a thing.

Judging from the IM conversations I've had with most people outside of the geek world I think it would go something like this:

SexyJester2939: hey
kewlPanda52: hi
SexyJester2939: r u doing teh TPS report #s
kewlPanda52: what r u talking abut? those arent due til fri
SexyJester2939: THE #S 4 UR TEAM DOCS!!!!! TODAYY!!!!!!
kewlPanda52: o i c
kewlPanda52: ya I have the #s 4 that
kewlPanda52: just a sex
kewlPanda52: i mean sec lol
SexyJester2939: k
SexyJester2939: lol
kewlPanda52: ok i mail them 2 u
SexyJester2939: thx ;)
kewlPanda52: latez!
SexyJester2939: cu l8r

First Post...

[Realistic_Dragon]

Or it would have been, but I got distracted by an instant message.

Re:Jabber?

[TheMidget]

Say you're spellchecking a document at work, and your wordprocessor doesn't recognize a deparment name.

Ha!

Your word processor could use Jabber to check other word processors in your organization if they know of the word in question.

Hmm, unfortunately, no other wordprocessor knows what a "deparment" is either...

Re:So what exactly is it good for in the office?

[CaptainBaz]

Um, how is text chat a security risk? A productivity risk, maybe, but security? Sure, someone could use it to send classified info to a friend outside the company. But they don't need IM to do this. People talk in pubs, on the phone, by email, hell I could just shout secrets out of my office window :-)

Re:Wow!

[RLiegh]

Don't you have to communicate with other people where you work?

Nope. I'm a mortician.

Re:Wow!

[Decaffeinated Jedi]

"Don't you have to communicate with other people where you work?"

Not if I can help it. ;)

Re:I find that 99% of my IM time is non-work relat

[carpe_noctem]

ObviousGuy's warning level is currently at 45%. Would you like to warn this user anonymously?

Re:So what exactly is it good for in the office?

[Afrosheen]

Yeah, but 'thank you, come again' isn't nearly as funny in text as it is in person.

*quickie mart simpsons reference for the 3 of you that have mod points and didn't get it.