Instant messengers are a popular way for people to keep in touch over long distances and have been growing in use as the internet has become more and more populated. Unlike phone and email, using an instant messenger allows users to have a live conversation electronically, while leaving them free to do other things, from running around packing for a trip or working with another computer program. Some of the most popular instant messenger programs are Yahoo! Messenger, AOL Instant Messenger and of course, MSN Messenger. The latter of which has recently gone through an update which makes it much more customizable and user friendly.



MSN Plus is the newest edition of MSN Messenger and has been updated significantly since the previous versions of the program. The first of these features is the ability to use tabs to organize conversations. Similar to the new Internet Explorer and Firefox tabs, each conversation would be in a separate page within a single window. By clicking on the different tabs at the top of the window, a user and switch easily between conversations. Now a user can have many conversations open without taking up his entire desktop with a separate window for each conversation.

The QuickTexts feature allows users to set up a shortcut phrase to enter a much longer message. Now when a user wishes to contact a friend not currently in his friend list he can simply type in one word as a shortcut to a full introduction. So now typing ‘brb' could send the message ‘be right back.' Along the same lines is the custom sounds feature. This feature allows for a user to add a sound to the conversation without an accompanying visual. The user can upload her own files, so she could even record her own voice as a custom sound.

As with the older forms of the messenger, users can create a personalized status complete with an automatic response feature. Added onto that however is a timer that allows for the switching of the status message. The new feature allows for much more personalization when it comes to the user's status updates and auto responses. MSN Plus even allows for a user to be signed into multiple accounts simultaneously, opening up many possibilities. Now a user could have a personal account open to talk to friends and have a professional one open for business reasons. The new logging feature will keep track of not only all of the user's conversations but will also record when contacts sign on and off allowing the user to refer back to conversations past or get an idea of when his friends are online.

These features and others allow for much more freedom and customizability in the already strong MSN Messenger program. The new MSN Plus is easier and faster to use, making it one of the best messenger programs available today. If you are looking for a strong, versatile messenger, then MSN Plus has what you need.