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When someone thinks of social chat programs, they think instant messengers. But there’s more to social communication programs than IMs. There are lots of different types of communication programs such as chat rooms, IMs, blogs, video chatting, social networking websites and more.
Instant messaging and chat rooms are some of the most popular communication methods on the Internet. They allow the users to chat with one or more other people at once, instantly sending messages back and forth. IMs like Yahoo, Google Talk, MSN, Skype and Trillian are popular and all of them have similar features including a “buddy” list to add contacts to. Some of them even support chatting between different programs. Video chats are usually included with IM programs, but there are specialized programs like Skype which can chat with anyone world wide. Almost all of them are free download software.
Blogs might as well be an Internet phenomenon with how popular they are. Everyone has a blog of their own, even businesses. Blogs can be about anything, but the most popular subjects seem to be about social networking itself. Businesses keep blogs to send out updates about their software.
Social websites like MySpace, Facebook and many dating sites are used for networking and communication. These sites combine instant messaging, private messaging and blogging and are known as social networking sites. The website ties users together so when they post a single update, it has a wave effect — going out to friends and then friends of friends and so on. Businesses use social networking sites to quickly spread word of their software.
Social communication is vital for a lot of businesses and has been a huge part of keeping in touch with not only new clients, but other businesses. The Internet isn’t limited to your neighborhood or your country — its limit is anywhere in the world where a satellite can reach.
