What is ICQ?

From Green & White Gazette April 2000
Written by Bryan Wong

ICQ - the Widely Popular Messenger

The truth behind how the Internet has gone widely popular within so short a period.

Not that Internet usage has finally penetrated its way into households as some experts put it. In fact, what has really found its way and established itself firmly is ICQ.

This widely popular messenger on the Internet is the actual reason why many people get internet access established at homes. Just like addresses, phone numbers, everyone now needs an ICQ universal identification number ( UIN ). Friends chat on ICQ, business advertisements are sent throughout the network, users enjoy interacting with strangers from all over the world.

Now let us take a look at this program and see what it has to offer users.

One reason ICQ has been such a hit is its user-friendly interface. Simple mouse clicks and pull-down menus provide lots of useful functions such as the message command, the URL transfer command, the contact list transfer and the file transfer. Users can even view information of others or let others know how they feel by typing on personal remarks in their info section.

More sophisticated users may have tried using the card sending function, or the voice message function, allowing users to transfer a recorded sound file as a message.

ICQ does offer a brand new form of communication between peoples. And with its user- friendly interface and various functions, it is no wonder that it has become one of the main reasons why people have Internet at homes. As the already huge user base of ICQ gets larger and larger, ICQ is sure to become more and more important in our daily life. But be warned that ICQ is a great potential network hazard as it provides a very easy way for hackers to invade users' computers.

Information Technology>>