Making the Switch: Trillian to Meebo (Part 1)

Not so long ago, before apps started moving in the Cloud, consolidation was the name of the game. Dorks like me got excited about any single application which did the job of multiple other apps. This was never more pronounced than the coalescence of chat clients. I used to simultaneously run AIM, MSN Messenger, Yahoo Messenger and ICQ just to keep in touch with various friends across all the clients. Then came GAIM and Trillian, apps which allowed all the clients I used to be accessed through one (mostly) intuitive interface. I never cared much for GAIM or Pidgin (though I know people who swear by it), but in Trillian, I believed to have found the only multi-chat client I'd ever need. Unfortunately Fortunately for me, I write for a blog about cloud computing and that compels me to assume the role of guinea pig and try web alternatives to traditionally installed apps.

I first heard about Meebo quite some time ago, but never really though much more about it, I used it barely long enough to create a master account and have a few conversations when other chat options weren't available. Now though, I've decided to give it a real go. I'll use Meebo exclusively for a week and write about it again. If the benefits outweigh the problems, I'll stick with it, uninstall Trillian and move that much closer to life in the cloud.