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AIM Bots: Useful or Spam?
An anonymous reader writes "Imagine my surprise this morning when AOL AIM popped up a window and introduced me to two bots that it automatically added to my buddy list. " Two seperate issues- one is simply auto adding robots to your friends list, which is very uncool. The second is a corporation using bots in an official capacity. This is an interesting trend, although technically speaking, not that far from the eggdrop of old.
Right-click, Delete Group. Done.
--Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum sonatur.
try swearing at them or asking for sex; a recent New Scientist article found that this would provoke some bots into fighting back :)
I could really use a friend.
Actually, it popped them up on Trillian Pro, too.
And the first thing I did was delete them. I don't need some "shopping buddy" to automatically add themselves and promote buying over their network. Someone missed the ethics boat on this one.
I'm just surprised that AOL has taken this long to begin sending you advertisements via AIM. They have a near-monopoly on IM communications (near monopoly, I know that there are others out there, but everyone I know has an AIM name), and I'm hardly surprised that they have started to send people advertisements via IMs, since they put all of the resources and effort into maintaining the servers that people connnect to.
And Gaim latest (yep, heard of it). I don't know what that post was about. Why would it matter what client you're running?
Add me to the "immediately-deleted-and-moderately-annoyed" list.
Haida Manga
I see this as the future of advertising. Everyone is now using GAIM or some other alternate client, so people miss all of AOL's annoying (yet profit-generating) ads.
AOL had to think of something new -- some way of profiting off of their protocol. Sticking interactive ads, that people think of as their "buddies"! What could be better?
These bots sneak in to your list, pretend to be your friends, and if you send them a message, BAM! Custom ads delivered right to you.
What are you eating? isItVeg?.
How does it make you feel that a corporation using bots in an official capacity?
What is actually so unethical about adding 2 entries to your buddy list on a service they provide? I had no problem with it other than being mildly confused 2 seconds before I painfully deleted 2 WHOLE buddies from my list. Seems like such a mild issue to get so steamed up about.
Their servers, their rules.
That doesn't make their actions 'cool'.
December 2, 2005 (AP Newswire)
Microsoft has announced a new addition to it's popular MSN Chat service - ClippyBotTM. According to Chief Software Architect Bill Gates, ClippyBot will "be a welcome addition to your buddy list. ClippyBot will watch for common behaviors, and will provide you with gentle, helpful assistance in completing those tasks." When asked about those users who might not want ClippyBot to be added to their buddy list, Gates replied "We are always responsive to the needs of our users. Removing ClippyBot from your buddy list is as easy as editing 13 registry keys!"
#DeleteChrome
That's where you failed it. It's *their* buddy list, and they're just letting you use it under the terms of the EULA.
-- Too lazy to get a lower UID.
I use GAIM here and when I signed on this morning I saw them, I had no idea what was going on, I thought it was some kind of new GAIM feature since I just upgraded a day ago to the new version (I am slow on those things)
Maybe its being pushed in phases?
If someone adds YOU to THEIR buddylist, then you are notified
Not on AIM you aren't.