I was out in California on the 12th, getting briefed by the Yahoo Messenger folks about the newest release of their instant messaging suite. I was there with Ross Mayfield, Chris Pirillo, and others, but while Ross and Arieanna have already posted about the release, I was waiting for some screenshots and/or my new Mac. Yes, the new version of Yahoo Messenger does not work on Mac yet, so I asked for screenshots (and meanwhile I have ordered a new iBook with 80G so I can install Virtual PC, if only to fiddle with Windows software).
As I sketched in a recent post (Nerdvana: A Better Tool For Communication (I Can Dream, Can't I?)), I would really like a rich client on my desktop that put the buddy list firmly at the center of the universe, and all other stuff -- email, blog posts, to-dos, appointments, geographical location, whatever -- hanging off the buddy list as a collection of attributes. Because people and social relatedness is the center of the universe, not documents, calendars, email, etc.
Well, Yahoo has come mighty close in this release. Leaving aside the big push into VoIP that Arieanna and others have zoomed in on, this is the real advance in this release.
Note the 'contact card' in the screenshow above, where various elements of Jessica's digital relationship to me are displayed. We see various icons, representing ways I can contact her. But better, much better, we see the music she is playing, and new profile info and blog entry.
I want to dissolve the compartmentalizing of the world that having seven different clients forced on me. I use Mail as email client, which does not naturally aggregate around identity -- although I can define 'smart folders' for those that I frequently interact with. I use Sage, embedded in Firefox, to track RSS feeds from the 150 or so blogs I keep tabs on. I use iChat for AIM, Jabber, and iChat IM, Skype for Skypers, and Fire to IM with Yahoo and MSN users. I use iCal to manage calendar, and Basecamp to manage projects.
Yahoo at least are entering the suburbs of Nerdvana, where I can envision a single, unifying metaphor -- the buddy list -- pulling together the loose threads of my desktop into a well-woven fabric. Now all I have to do is wait for a Mac version (grrrr), and a solution to the lack of interoperability between the various networks. Yahoo does seem to be moving toward an open architecture, that would allow others to create tabs in the Yahoo Messenger client, integrating with other tools and solutions. For example, a connector to pull entries from a calendar program, so the appointments I have with Jessica would show up in the contact card. Perhaps this would be a sneaky, back door way for some third party to create a Trillian-like multi-head connection into Yahoo's architecture?
[PS I am thinking about writing a letter to Bush, suggesting that he tackle IM interoperability to counter the negative ratings he is getting on Iraq, Social Security, and the economy. Everyone but Yahoo, Microsoft, and AOL is in favor of it, and, really --- no kidding -- it is clearly in the public interest.]
1. Danish Munir on May 28, 2005 03:16 AM writes...
have you given msn messenger 7 a peep lately? i think it already features all of these things your showing to us right NOW for over 2 months now.
also, i know that their mac version doesnt have all these features, but their web version at http://webmessenger.msn.com DOES have quite a lot of these features, so you can use them from the mac.
the "contact cards", the "upated blog entries", the music "currently playing", and the ability to add "custom tabs", are literally words out of the msn messenger 7 feature list.
ofcourse its really good to see yahoo catching up quite fast. lets hope that they can bring this to the table in perhaps an even more functional and user freindly way. and even more, lets hope that they can add even more features that bring this new release closer to 'Nerdvana'.
Amen.
Permalink to Comment2. Stowe Boyd on May 28, 2005 04:22 AM writes...
Yeah, but I found this message when I tried to run it:
Your web browser is not supported by this version of MSN Web Messenger.
You must have the following to use MSN Web Messenger:
* A web browser: Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.0 or later, Netscape 7.1 or later, or Mozilla 1.6 or later, running in Microsoft Windows.
* An Internet connection (56 Kbps or faster recommended)
* A Microsoft® .NET Passport. If you have a hotmail.com or msn.com account, you already have a Passport.
* Popups enabled for this web site if you are using popup blocker software like the MSN Toolbar
Permalink to CommentSo looking at it will have to wait for my new iBook, and Virtual PC -- maybe next week. I just received the iBook, but haven't booted it up yet.
3. Dave Evans on May 28, 2005 09:43 PM writes...
New iChat lets you chat with Yahoo! members via Jabber. Problem being that Jabber is totally un-userfriendly. Just try creating a new account on a server from jabbr.org, ugh!
Passport to chat, should be an option, not the rule.
Does it really matter if MSN had some of the features two months ago? In consumer adoption timelines that is but a blink of the eye. Avatars are the next big thing in chat. Several companies have come close with clunky VRML-style windows but fall short of decent implementation. I develped an articulated avatar in 1993 with the help of several programmers and $100,000 worth of SGI hardware. You would think Yahoo! would build a toolkit and let people Myspace the heck out of it.
I've had quite a good time with friends "dressing up" our avatars and using the audibles in Yahoo! chat. That alone makes it worth it to me. Fun, playful and useful. Yahoo! is dropping the ball when it comes to branding your avatar. Madonna and a few bands and Yahoo clothing, zzz. Where is the brand liason for Yahoo chat? What a cool job that would be for some enterprising 20-something marketing geek.
My Yahoo avatar has been standing for almost 9 months! When can I let him sit down? When can he stretch or move his body independendly of the 4 facial experssions Yahoo currently offers?
I'm not impressed at all by seeing what is playing in itunes. Linking into iLife metadata is simple. RSS feeds into chat clients is a great opportunity that I'm not seeing being taken advantage of.
Don't get me started on Mac support. MSN and Yahoo clients are eons behind PC clients.
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