Messenging Messenger Part - 2. Review on Yahoo Messenger

Carrying on from where I left yesterday, I am presenting my analysis of Yahoo messenger. For those who may want to read my previous review for the sake of continuity, here is the link: https://mouthshut.com/review/MSN_Messenger-75526-1.html

The verdict I got from the comments posted on my last review is that Yahoo! Rocks! It is the baap of all messengers. There is nothing that can compare to it. Well indeed Yahoo is good, but umm… err… with a pinch of salt, because it is not all sugary sweet as it used to be many blue moons ago. Maybe that can explain the 2 stars that I gave to it.

I was introduced to Yahoo Messenger by my brother (again), as he thought it would be a nice idea to do some voice chatting in an attempt to cut down the costs of the sky high long distance calls from India to the Middle East some years ago. So one fine morning, when Internet traffic was supposed to be low, I downloaded Yahoo Messenger and configured it. Ah! No crash landings till now (I thought). So later that evening, I sat down to chat with my brother. We chatted for like an hour or so when he asked me to enable voice. I quickly got my microphone ready, clicked on a few options and started yelling HELLO? HELLO? KYA MERI AWAAZ SUN RAHE HO? HELLO? But to no effect! Now what do I do? I frantically read thru Yahoo’s help sections, try out everything possible but ultimately end up with a one way voice channel, wherein I could hear him but he could not hear me. Darn Yahoo! (Today I think of Skype whenever I think of making calls on Internet).

Cut to… 2005. Yahoo! has evolved. It is cool and fundoo. I have downloaded a new version already and it rocks on my computer. No crash landings either. It is fantastic. Yahoo! Messenger even integrates with my cell phone. I can login from my cell phone and start chatting, albeit with a rider. Each SMS costs you a handsome amount of your pocket money. So why is it that my friends see me as I’m on SMS ? It is because at least I can exchange a few messages from my friends without going online. It helps me whenever I am on the move.

But then one fine day last week, I was on the homepage of Yahoo when I saw a ‘new’ sign flashing above the messenger link. The curios Anuj was eager to click on it. I resisted. The curios Anuj went bonkers. I still resisted. The curios Anuj then beat the hell out of me, and he clicked on the link. The curios Anuj saw a new beta version of Messenger, with an option of worldwide Internet calls too. This time the curios Anuj convinced me and I started downloading it. Now what? Simple yaar, I patiently waited for about half an hour as the 8MB setup was downloaded. I kept my fingers crossed through that half hour as I feared yet another crash landing.

My experiments with the new Beta version Messenger now begin. Following the successful download on the setup, I began configuring it. The smart Anuj in me told me to select the ‘Custom’ option for that allowed me not to download a few add-ons that Yahoo has now started adding compulsorily. Few minutes later, the messenger is setup and I am ready to login. With my fingers trained to enter my id and password in a whisker, I was logged in moments later. Phew! No crash landings till now (I think again). Now what? I see a new look of the messenger. I go to Preferences to customize it. A new version, it must be coming with new skins (I think to myself). But darn! No new skins, it still has the same old 3 skins of Indigo, Maverick Blue and System. I chose Maverick Blue and the colors change instantly. And incredibly, instantly I notice that the messenger is working slower. I brace myself for a crash landing, but it never comes.

So the preferences are in place now. What now? I look for an online contact. Eeeks! Sneha is online, but I don’t wanna talk to her now! I quickly set the stealth settings to be permanently offline. Phew! What a relief (I think). I click on my cousin Hemant to send him an offline message, but lo and behold, he replies me instantly. Ah! Now I understand, he was invisible. A new chat window, looks cool. I want to send Hemant some new snaps. What do I do? Simple, all I need to do is drag and drop the picture in the chat window. Sounds easy? Hehe, here comes the rider. Hemant is using an ‘older’ version of Yahoo so I cannot share the snaps with him. Darn Yahoo, I am yet to email him the snaps and he has been killing me since yesterday.

There are some new options available… like Call Computer. What does it mean? I didn’t try it. Maybe it is a new term for voice conference between two persons? I dunno, I can’t say for sure. Then there is an option like Call Phone. What is that? An Internet telephony call? Again apologies, I didn’t try it. Darn Yahoo!

I am still inquisitive. What’s still new in Yahoo? I try and somehow locate the Chat button. I pick a chat room and before I can say Hello, I am smacked by at least 10 windows giving dead links to porn sites. What’s new about it? The older Yahoo too had this problem. The new thing about this beta version is that you have a Report as Spam link built into it. So if you want to ignore someone on chat, or report those ‘bots’, you must click the Report as Spam button. Big deal? No, it isn’t a big deal because I notice that the ‘ignore’ button is gone forever. Now I understand finally, Yahoo is twisting its words to make us believe that they are improving while actually they are not going any further to counter ‘Spam’.

Few minutes later, I had it enough. Why? Because the voice function is automatically enabled in the chat room, even when I don’t have my microphone ready. I have to go thru its top menu to disable voice. Darn Yahoo! (I think to myself again). This was a turn off for me, coupled with the fact that the new beta version was working slower on my machine. I had no qualms in uninstalling it and going back to the previous version. Phew! No crash landings in the entire saga!

Moral of the story: All that glitters is not gold (The messenger link on Yahoo’s homepage still glitters and I took it for gold). But then this is just a glimpse of what is to come and hit us pretty soon.

My take on the story: Keep the runway spic and span. Brace yourself for some crash landings!