Google Talk
- For the word game, see Google Talk (game)
| Google Talk Google Talk Beta | |
| Developer(s) | |
|---|---|
| Stable release | |
| Preview release | Google Talk Labs Edition [±] |
| Operating system | Windows 2000, Windows XP |
| Type | Instant messenger |
| License | Proprietary freeware [[1]] |
| Website | talk.google.com |
Google Talk is an instant messaging (IM) and voice over IP service developed by Google. Google Talk beta was released on August 24, 2005 and consists of both a service and a client used to connect to the service. Unlike some other instant messaging services, Google Talk uses an open protocol for the IM part and it encourages the use of clients other than their own in connecting to the Google Talk service. As of the launch date, the Google Talk client is available only for Windows (2000, 2003, XP); users of other operating systems are provided with instructions for various popular Jabber clients, such as Psi or Miranda IM for Windows Me and below, iChat or Adium for Mac OS X and Gaim for Linux. However, any program capable of using the Jabber protocol is sufficient, although the voice over IP service only works with the Google client. Google claims they will release a specification for the voice extension in the near future.
After the rumor of a Google-branded "communications tool" service had been reported by the New York Times [2] and detailed by the Los Angeles Times [3] on August 22 2005, the subdomain talk.google.com was found to have an active Jabber server [4]. Two methods of logging into the server were discovered soon after and the ensuing response by eager bloggers revealed to numerous others how to login before the official release by Google. In the evening of August 23, many logged-in users using port 5222 to connect were disconnected and unable to log back in. Users using port 5223 to connect were still able to log in, and at 04:12:52 A.M. UTC those users received a broadcast instant message from gmail.com, an apparently official username used by Google to communicate with their user base, that stated "The broken link has been fixed. Thanks for being our first users!" Port 5222-connectivity was found to have been re-enabled.
Technical
Google has announced that a major goal of the Google Talk service is interoperability. Google Talk uses Jabber and XMPP to provide real-time extensible messaging and presence events, including offline messaging (though only through non-Google clients like Adium). However, at this time, Google Talk, unlike most Jabber servers, does not permit server-to-server communications, and as such, users of Google Talk cannot talk to users of other Jabber servers.
Currently, the service is open to anyone with a Gmail account. There are plans to federate Google Talk with alternative Voice over IP services EarthLink and SIPphone, but there not yet any details on when such federation might be completed.
Google claims that all messages (text and voice) will be encrypted in future releases[5].
Easter eggs
- The About window of Google Talk contains a barely visible coded message in light gray font that reads play 23 21 13 16 21 19 . 7 1 13 5. Turning the numbers into corresponding letters of the alphabet where a=1 and z=26, then the message reads play wumpus.game. This is a reference to Hunt the Wumpus which can be played in Google Talk. Add [email protected] to your buddy list and send it a text message of "play" to play.
Tips
- To make something bold, you must place an asterisk before and after the area you want to bold.
- *text here* will look like this: text here
- If you want to italicize something, you must place underscores around the area you want to italicize.
- _text here_ will look like this: text here
These two tips are a feature of the Google client, and not Jabber in general. They will not work with all third party clients.
Criticism, Reviews, and Bugs
Critics of the new service have pointed out that contrary to Gmail's philosophy of storing all information, Google Talk will not log more than 20 lines of text chat. (Third-party clients have their own logging options, and using one of these enables all previous conversations to be logged.) One blogger also reports the current logging appears to render in URL-friendly form, suggesting a possible integration with gmail's threading, searching, and history for Google Talk discussions.
Search Engine Watch also has argued that the product lacks the "wow" factor associated with the unveiling of other Google products like Gmail or Google Maps. Several critics have begun calling the product "underwhelming," though others predict various additional (impressive) features in the future of Google Talk.
There have also been several bugs reported in the Windows client for Google Talk, including e-mail message-notification unreliability, taskbar notification problems during conversations with more than one contact, and tab-sizing problems. Also it appears that using the escape key to close chat windows does not work if the window has been open for a moderate amount of time.
In diversifying into the IM world, Google has also been accused of rewriting the original company philosophy which, up until the release of Google Talk, has been to do one thing and one thing well.
A lot of people have been dissapointed that there is no Conference or Chat Room feature, so you can only talk to one person at a time. However, most hope that updates soon will change that.
See also
External links
