Do you want to read it?' You always have the option to ignore an IM and even to block a particular screen name from ever sending you an IM again. If someone IMs you who isn't on your Buddy List, you'll get a message saying that ' has sent you an IM. You can save IM conversations from the File menu by clicking on 'Save Window.' You can also open the conversation later and pick up where you left off.ĪIM will notify you with an alert tone when you receive a new IM. When your buddy replies, you'll see his or her response under your message like a conversation. The text that you entered will appear in the top half of the IM window. When you're finished typing, either hit the enter key on your keyboard or click the 'send' button in the bottom right corner of the IM window. Simply type your message into the white text box near the bottom of the IM window. Once you've opened an IM window, it's easy to send a message.

Now that you have your account and software set up, it's time to start sending instant messages. Those that are offline are listed at the bottom in a group titled 'Offline.' The contacts that are online are listed under their group headings.

Your Buddy List tells you which of your contacts are online and which are offline. You can also enter more information about the person, including his e-mail address and mobile phone number. When you want to add a new contact to one of these groups, go to the Edit menu and select 'Add Buddy.' You'll then be asked to choose a group for the contact. You can add new groups of your own by going to the Edit menu and choosing 'Add Group.' The default Buddy List groups are Buddies, Family, Co-Workers and AIM Bots (automated Buddies for movie times, stock quotes, et cetera). When you open AIM, you'll see a main window featuring your Buddy List broken down into different groups. Your Buddy List is the organized list of IM contacts stored in your account.

AIM will then give you the option of adding these screen names to your Buddy List. AIM will automatically search your Yahoo! Mail, Hotmail and Microsoft Outlook accounts for contacts who also have AIM screen names. The first time you open the AIM software it'll ask if you want to search your existing e-mail contacts for buddies.

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