If you folks have been reading elsua for long enough you probably know by now how my main VoIP / Instant Messaging client at the moment is Skype. I use it on a daily basis and with the latest Beta 2.0 client even more so. However, and with all that said, I still have got a whole bunch of folks that I talk to every now and then who are using Google Talk and who seem to like it so much that it is impossible to try to convince them to use anything else. So I eventually gave in and got myself a Google Talk account.
You have probably read about a previous weblog where I was detailing my experiences so far with GTalk as a way to stay connected and be able to collaborate with my colleagues and although it is certainly not my default VoIP / IM client I still think it is an interesting option. Well, it looks like now it is even more than interesting option because they have just released Gtalkr. It hasn’t got anything to do with Google, apparently, but Techcrunch has got a nice overview of how it works, if you would want to read some more about it.
The reason why I mentioned earlier on that this new offering will make Google Talk even much more interesting is the fact that from now on I can just take GTalk with me wherever I may go, something that I just cannot do with Skype yet, at least, not that I know of. Indeed, Gtalkr is a Flash based offering that would allow you to access GTalk directly from your web browser. It would allow you to search for your IM chats (Quite handy), plus it would also allow you to take advantage from other Google related services, like GMail. It has got as well the possibility of using the extension API to create and develop your own stuff and you can see some examples as well with the incorporation from Yahoo! Maps (Which, by the way, does not seem to work with anything outside of the US), amongst other things.
Anyway, only thing I found that would need some further improvements from a fine beta release is the fact that it doesn’t seem to be working really well with Opera, whether it will take ages to log in and eventually time out, or whether some of the options just do not work (While I have been writing this weblog post I have not been able to show my picture or my list of GTalk contacts). But not to worry, folks, it is still a beta, so we are bound to find issues like those. Good thing though that it works well in IE and FireFox so I would still be able to use it while I am travelling to stay in touch with those who would need to know of my whereabouts.
Finally, one other thought. After reading this particular weblog post don’t think I am just coming back to IM, not really, after having written previously Giving Up on Instant Messaging. It is just that I may eventually get to use Gtalkr for those cases where I may not be able to access any of the VoIP clients I currently use, Skype being the main one. So a good choice, indeed, but not strong enough to make me want to change. How about you ?
Technorati Tags : Instant+Messaging, VoIP, Skype, Google+Talk, Gtalkr
