StarDestroyer.Net BBS

I've been looking for a MSN-compatible IM app, since all the ones I've tried so far have in some way been...insufficient. I'd like to know if anyone knows of a client that would fit my requirements -

- Low resource usage
- No ads or banners
- Stable
- Supports file sharing
- Decent emoticon support
- Clear notifications (when a contact comes online or sends a message while the app isn't focused)
- Log function


So far I've tried

- MSN Live Messenger : Does everything I want it to do but the GUI is hideous and it's stuffed with tabs to various MSN services that I'll never use. Not to mention the unremoveable ads.

- Trillian : works great, but it won't display custom emoticons or "personal messages" (the ones under the username; some of my contacts use them as general messages)

- IM2 : crashes. Incessantly.


So, any recommendations ?

Gaim is open source, and lightweight, it can be downloaded here, and theres a portable usb key version for dl here

Looking good so far, thanks.

Gaim doesn't support Personal Messages AFAIK, although there may be plugin for them.

Manus Celer Dei wrote:Gaim doesn't support Personal Messages AFAIK, although there may be plugin for them.

Meh, I can live without it.

Bounty wrote: So, any recommendations ?

Miranda IM

Hmm... I use Gaim for an hour and for the first time since my botched graphics driver install last year, my computer BSOD's. Something to do with calihal.sys, which is supposed to be a 56k modem driver I don't use...

Why would the program access a modem driver(assuming you have broadband)? Try and see if you got any modem related stuff installed somewhere.

His Divine Shadow wrote:Why would the program access a modem driver(assuming you have broadband)? Try and see if you got any modem related stuff installed somewhere.

Actually, I'm not sure it's Gaim's fault, I just noted the coincidence.

I've got a modem and driver preinstalled from HP (notebook, you see). I've never used it, though. Malware and virus scans come up clean, so it's probably not an intruder posing as calihal.sys. Very odd.

EDIT : HP's site says calihal.sys is an audio driver that's been known to get corrupted and trigger BSOD's over time. I reinstalled it, fingers crossed

I also Highly recomend gaim ... Just avoid the beta of version 2 its very buggy and I personaly hate how it behaves.

Thats the one I've been using. What's wrong with how it behaves ?