Instant Messaging 即时通讯
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When you meet someone for the first time, do you ask for their ASL? Do you LOL if they
come out with(想出) something funny, and say CU L8er when you finish the conversation? If you know what I’m
talking about(谈论), then you are probably already a user of Instant Messaging, or IM.
The idea behind IM is simple. A program on your computer tells you when a friend is
online(网上). You can then send a message to your friend, who can type a reply instantly. To do this, you need an IM program.
Worldwide(全球范围), AIM, the Instant Messaging service provided by AOL, is by far the most popular. It has 195 million users who send about 1.6
billion(一亿) messages every day. ICQ, which is
owned by(拥有) AOL, has about 140 million messengers, and MSN and Windows IM
make up(组成) about 75 million users.
The
advantage(优势) over e-mail is that with Instant Messaging you know you’re likely to get a reply. IM is already
hugely(巨大地) popular in the USA, where people spend five times more time online than in Europe. However, IM is starting to
take off(起步;开始) in the UK, with over 3000 people
signing up(登记) to MSN Messenger alone every day.
While the
plus points(优点;好处) of IM are
obvious(明显的), there is one very important
disadvantage(缺点;弊端): you can only contact someone on the same
network(网络) as you. If your friend is using AIM, and you are using MSN, you cannot talk to each other. This makes IM less useful than it should be. Imagine if you couldn’t send an e-mail from hotmail to yahoo. However, things look like they’ll change soon.
In general,
the future looks bright(未来看好) for IM. Lots of programs also allow you to have voice conversations,
video conferencing(视频会议) – this means you can see the other person using a
webcam(网眼;网络摄像机) – and also let you
swap(交换) pictures, music and other
files(文件).
So, perhaps we’ll all soon be asking someone’s age, sex and location (ASL), and laughing out loud (LOL) when they say something funny. See you later! (CU L8er)
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本帖最后由 aben_ben 于 2007-4-8 08:28 编辑 ]
