an interesting question was posed to me yesterday. it got me thinking and so i figure i might as well pose it to you, my internet reader:will we ever outgrow aim?
as a kid, most of us outgrew walkie talkies, knocking on neighbor's doors asking if they wanted to come out an play, etc. in college, some of us even abandoned the phone. we have all abandoned the land-line phone in favor of cell phones, seeing them as an unnecessary $20/month cost.
but aim? i still use it. i still communicate with many of my best friends through it, even after college. in another sense, it's a great informal way to stay in touch with people that you don't feel the need to talk to all the time once you get into the real world. old roommates, fraternity/sorority brothers/sisters, high school friends and the like. i've even been known to virtual drink with people via aim from time to time. sad? haha maybe, but it's better than drinking alone.
a lot of people still communicate a lot of their emotions through their profiles. in college, it was like reading peoples minds without actually having to see them. you could tell when somebody was happy, mad, upset, in love, etc. i myself had a relationship or two, or three... start with "im flirting" if you will. you could tell if somebody was home, out, etc. they don't call it profile stalking for nothing.
will we outgrow it? do you see yourself as a 40-something sitting down and im'ing old friends? surely it will be supplanted by some new technology. but, if we haven't outgrown it in 10 years, how much longer do you think we will hold on?
4 comments:
i am going to start phasing it out as soon as i get the apartment.
Andy will phase out anything given the opportunity, so his comment doesn't really count.
This is a great question, because we now have a very viable aim competitor - gchat. The major difference between the two instant messaging programs is related to what you pointed out in your entry - on gchat there isn't much space to write out your anniversary date or share your feelings through colorful profiles.
Regardless of the missing profile/share your feelings space, I do think it's only a matter of time before people switch over to gchat completely. Google has created a one stop shop for email, messaging, calendar organization, memo review, talking, and probably other really cool stuff soon too. Right now, some people keep both gchat and instant messenger open at the same time, but juggling the two programs might become annoying.
Basically, in answer to your question, I think we'll outgrow AIM really soon (1-2 years), but not instant messaging, because like you said, virtual drinking is better than drinking alone.
hmm i think you're right. i do find myself using gchat more often every week.
the only problem is, i've got plenty of friends without gmail accounts.
what then?
are they expendable friends? if so, cut your losses
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