Google Talk Available Early

smash writes "Google's new IM service is already live. All you need is a Jabber-compatible Instant Messaging client (such as Apple's iChat, or gaim), and a GMail address." This should answer, at least in part, all of the speculation that has been flying around the net over the last couple of days. Update: Many users have been eager to let us know that Google Talk in indeed live.

Google tomorrow?

[Nuclear Elephant (700938)]

Stay tuned to Google tomorrow for details.

Er, is that one http://tomorrow.google.com/ [google.com] ?

Re:Google tomorrow?

[LiquidCoooled (634315)]

Some enterprising young PFY is going to run around the google campus tomorrow shouting off about all the hits to a new google subdomain.

Any number of PHDs will be fevorishly amending their projects to fit into this new domain.
The stock price is going to rocket based on yet more speculation of features and we will have even less reason to leave google.

All because you made a first post joke.

Congratulations.

Re:Google tomorrow?

[Stormwatch (703920)]

"Couldn't locate tomorrow.google.com"... whoa! You've slashdotted Google! I didn't think that was possible!

Re:Google tomorrow?

[MikeXpop (614167)]

It's not available today...

Re:Google tomorrow?

[kuhneng (241514)]

Hey, now there's a service I'd like to see from Google: search web sites from the future. That would put an end to all of this tiring speculation on what new service they'll think up next.

Come to think of it, they could incorporate the technology into other parts of the side. Why present a list of results when you can search the future logs to find out which result I'm going to click and take me straight there.

Re:Google tomorrow?

[kai.chan (795863)]

Er, is that one http://tomorrow.google.com/ [google.com]

Google Tomorrow's mission is to organize the future and make it universally accessible and useful. When you, a Slashdot user, visit tomorrow.google.com, you'll be able to find information about your future love and careers; search through more than three billion girls and find that you will be alone for the rest of eternity; then peruse the world's largest archive of future jobs -- that have all been outsourced to India dating back to 1995.

Re:Google tomorrow?

[DJStealth (103231)]

You can NOW DOWNLOAD GOOGLE TALK [google.com] Just got this message

[2005-08-23 23:13] gmail.com: The broken link has been fixed. Thanks for being our first users!

Re:Google tomorrow?

[Refrag (145266)]

They probably downloaded [google.com] it.

Re:Whats the point?

[mp3phish (747341)]

I don't see what your point it?

In my opinion, using jabber in a mainstream IM client (ie, one that is going to be used by joe schmoe and susy ann in jr. high keyboarding class while the teacher isn't looking) is a dramatic step forward.

Google is competing head on with the services that yahoo, aol, and msn provide. Only they are doing it using open standards, and allowing 3rd party clients. From my perspective, this is equivilent of Google putting the rest on notice:

"Look, we aren't going to let you rape your users anymore. We are going to do what you do... Properly."

I think this is a great step forward. Sure, you might think it is a waste of time in the long run.. and you might be right. But something like this NEEDED to be done in order to get the other IM services to play fair. Everyone already knows that the other services would have never opened their protocols without something like this coming forward. The rest will be required to follow suit or bail out of the business. (you may not see it now, but it is coming.. just watch)

Gmail

[bobsacks (784382)]

Any word on when Gmail is going to go public? Last I heard google news was waiting because of it's inability to create revenue because they were using other peoples news or some such. But the mail portion has adds and the like, so I guess it is able to make revenue.

Re:Gmail

[Malyven (774978)]

It may not be 100% public, but as far as I can see everybody has 50 invites, and it resets everyday.

Re:Gmail

[THotze (5028)]

Yes, and there's a good chance it will stay this way. Its probably the best way to make sure that spammers don't start getting gmail accounts.

Its a method of 'verifying' users by having other users verify them (by making the service invite-only.) Its more secure than say, having to enter the text from some obscured image (which can be done en masse by paying somebody probably something small.)

So yes, at this point, anybody who really wants a gmail account has one, but spammers have largely been shut out.

Wow!

[Will2k_is_here (675262)]

Ha! Begging for Gmail invites! That's so 2004.

Re:Gmail

[Kadin2048 (468275)]

I've played around with a "social networking" site (thefacebook.com) which used to have -- and perhaps it's back now, I'm not sure -- a really neat feature. It would give you a zoomable 2-D representation of your social network as an SVG file.

The SVG part isn't important (I was never really clear why they picked this format over any other vector format...) but the idea was pretty cool. With yourself at the center you could see who was near you in the social structure of the network, and who they were closely associated with, etc.

I never used the service long or heavily enough to develop a very robust social network (and not enough of my friends used it to make a very good model of the real world) but this is not so with email. Practically everyone I know, with the exception of a few older or particularly Luddite relatives, I've emailed at one point or another.

It would be neat to have a program that scanned your email archives (with Gmail this wouldn't be too hard, since all mail is retained in the archive unless manually deleted) and constructed a social network from it. If I were going to design it, I'd make "closeness" be the frequency of emails, and the angular separation between two people who both talk to a third based on the number of shared keywords in their emails. That way you'd end up with all your business associates off in one direction (say all radiating away from you within a few degrees of each other) but your family, with whom you probably use few words in common with your business emails, in a different direction entirely.

If the program could scan people's emails recursively -- assuming they were all on Gmail and had suitably large archives of email -- you could create a pretty neat social model that would actually be reflective of the real world.

Of course, the privacy issues surrounding something like that would be gigantic. People get all creeped out by Gmail scanning emails and then presented targeted advertising...I doubt they'd tolerate a system that scanned all their archived email in order to produce a graphical model, even if it was semi-anonymous.

Re:Gmail

[bahwi (43111)]

Hey, shut up. It's the only exclusive club I can get into these days(and I still had to buy my invite!). Now I can laugh at all those 100meg hotmail users. Losers.

Re:Gmail

[_Splat (22170)]

Not exactly.. it's similar to how a bank doesn't have enough cash to pay out every account at once... they assume that most people will only use a small fraction of their space, and only allocate that much. If everyone decided to fill up their Gmail accounts all at once, there would be trouble.

huh?

[keyvoh (750388)]

What is a google?

Now spy on your friends!

[IIDX (873577)]

Use the power of google search to find juicy tidbits in other's google talk conversations!

Re:Now spy on your friends!

[Indianwells (661008)]

Exactly! Google will now have a reocrd of: 1. Your web searches 2. Your email 3. You im conversations If google were the government would you be afraid?

Eh

[Trip Ericson (864747)]

Google Talk is great, but what I REALLY need is 'Google ShutUp' to make the irritating people I know go away while providing them with targetted, text-based ads.

OK

[The Bungi (221687)]

Check this one - nn to the next round of breathless speculation about what Google will do.

Will they release an office suite?
Will they release a browser?
Will they release a line of refrigerators?
Will they purchase Oracle?
Will they purchase Uruguay?
Will they hire Stallman?
Will they hire Ballmer?
Will they hire Peter Griffin?

I sure as hell don't know, but I'm sure I'll hear about it constantly on GashDot. Um... I mean Slashoogle. Er, that is... Slooshdot. Eh, fuck it.

Re:OK

[big tex (15917)]

Will they hire Peter Griffin?

That would be freakin' sweet.

Google spellchecking

[flibble-san (700028)]

I wonder if they will add Google-style spellchecking... omfg lol rofl - Did you mean "I'm a sad script kiddy?"

Made Clear?

[Azarael (896715)]

The reasoning behind google sponsoring so many people to work on GAIM for summer of code? Maybe they will release a gaim based client?

smash's world: I'm almost slashdotted right now!

[sootman (158191)]

(Thirty-odd comments and the site is little slow. Just in case...)

I'm on Google Talk right now.
Google Talk = Google's new IM service that they're announcing tomorrow.

All you need is a Jabber-compatible Instant Messaging client (such as Apple's iChat, or GAIM), and a GMail address. Digg this, NOW!

WELCOME SLASHDOT!

Server: talk.google.com
Username: [e-mail] **OR** [e-mail] (pick one)
Password: yourpassword

Note: If you can't login, try to turn off 'Secure Messaging' or 'Encryption'... etc.

-- TRILLIAN USERS: Someone just told me that they got it working with Trillian, but I can't verify this. Just go to Trillian's plugin page on their site and download the Jabber plug-in, install it, and configure a new connection as below:
"server : talk.google.com
port : 5222
Use legact SSL for connection : not checked"

How to set it up with GAIM on Windows/Linux, or Adium on the Mac:
-- For iChat, just enter the information above.
1. Add an account, select "Jabber" as the protocol.
2. Your screen name is everything before the '@gmail.com'.
3. Server is 'talk.google.com' as listed above.
4. Click "show more options" and make sure "use TLS if available" is checked. Leave "Force old SSL" and "allow plaintext..." unchecked for now. Connection port should be 5222, connection server should be blank... if not just 'talk.google.com' without the quotes.
5. Ta-da! Just login and you should be good-to-go.

Another user reports the following:
"weird, I've never sent you email from my gmail, and now that you're on my buddy list on google talk, it autofilled your email address, and alias on my gmail"
-- The "/me" command works too, even on iChat. "/me says hi" translates to "smash says hi" or whatever if you're not familiar!

Feel free to IM around with fellow GMail users just by adding their addresses to your list! I'm not sure how long this is going to work, but let's make the best of it.

UPDATE: I'm online right now, give me a hollar if you're able to login! I'm talking with someone I added to my list. :)

Great

[dtfinch (661405)]

Now I have yet another account with no buddies in Gaim.

IM Client - Mac OS X

[nighty5 (615965)]

I've been using http://adium.sourceforge.net/ [sourceforge.net] for a while now, it totally rocks.

GoogleTalk + Dark Fibre = Internet Phone System

[Spinlock_1977 (777598)]

Google Talk ... and all that dark fibre Goggle has been buying up? This isn't just about instant messenger - Google is building the next voice communications network! With their new WiFi hotspots - it could be wireless voice communications (at least if you're in a major center).

Bee-bee-boo-boop "Picard to all phone companies: You are being replaced."

Re:GoogleTalk + Dark Fibre = Internet Phone System

[Momoru (837801)]

I'm not sure how Google gets away with being so clandestine, yet people think they are not evil. It reminds me of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate factory... If Google is such a great open non evil company, how come their employees don't have public blogs like all those at MS? (In fact they fire the one person that had a semi famous blog) How come they are one of the most opaque companies on wall street in telling their shareholders what's going on? How come all their projects are so top secret despite the fact they end up just being another jabber knock off? I understand things like their search algorithim should be kept secret, but cripes why all the mystery?

This (may) sucks

[Krunch (704330)]

It looks like talk.google.com users can't talk to external Jabber users (like thoses using jabber.org for example). I really hope it's not a feature and that it will be fixed when they'll announce the new service. If it's not the case it's not that better than MSN, it's just leaving a monopoly for another one. Nice to see they use an open protocol but it would really sucks to have a closed Google Jabber network.

Another thing some people might have noticed is that reverse DNS for talk.google.com is toolbar.google.com. Now have a look at JEP0151 [jabber.org].

Virtual presence on Web pages (also sometimes known as co-browsing, while co-browsing can also mean something different) makes people aware of each other, who are at the same Web location at the same time. The basic purpose of a virtual presence system is to show names, icons, and/or avatars of people who are on a page or a set of pages and to let them communicate.

Closed network

[Nurgled (63197)]

According to the Google Talk developer page [google.com], Google is only planning pre-arranged peering with a set of providers. Their goal, it appears, is to reduce spam and other abuses by ensuring that all clients are connecting through trusted services.

While I see their point, it does seem like a bit of a cop out. "Service choice" doesn't really mean much unless I can choose to use my own service and still inter-operate. A truly open system should allow anyone to play, not just the big boys.

Getting around the "Not Allowed" message

[by Anonymous Coward]

You can still log in to the server! You just need to fudge it a little.

In Gaim's "Server" field put in gmail.com.

But, in the "Connect server" field put in talk.google.com.

Now, connect :cool:

There goes Philosophy point #2

[wombert (858309)]

From http://www.google.com/intl/en/corporate/tenthings. html [google.com]

Google does search. Google does not do horoscopes, financial advice or chat.

(Guess they better remember to update that page when they make the announcement...)

And the real burning question - When can I get my Googlescope???

Re:There goes Philosophy point #2

[Barrakketh (302427)]

From the same page:

"* Full-disclosure update: When we first wrote these "10 things" four years ago, we included the phrase "Google does not do horoscopes, financial advice or chat." Over time we've expanded our view of the range of services we can offer -- web search, for instance, isn't the only way for people to access or use information -- and products that then seemed unlikely are now key aspects of our portfolio. This doesn't mean we've changed our core mission; just that the farther we travel toward achieving it, the more those blurry objects on the horizon come into sharper focus (to be replaced, of course, by more blurry objects)."

There is a review online check it out !

[pedrobeltrao (748670)]

http://www.downloadsquad.com/2005/08/23/googe-talk -review/ [downloadsquad.com]

Developers!

[GraZZ (9716)]

The Google Talk developer's page [google.com] gives a good overview of Google's short-term plans for GTalk, such as partnering with Earthlink and Sipphone (or federating as they call it)

"It's like the Federation of Planets on your Star Trek program."
"Ohhhhhh"

clue to easter egg in client? "play wumpus game"

[sp1der (909763)]

In the Google Talk client, in the icon tray, select About. Notice on the bottom light grey characters on the which background. They read: "play 23 21 13 16 21 19 7 1 13 5" Using a=1, z=26, it translates to: "play wumpus game" Not sure what to do with it, just thought it was interesting that it was there. Investigating...

Re:clue to easter egg in client? "play wumpus game

[sp1der (909763)]

After a bit more investigating, you can add the gmail user, er bot, [e-mail] and type "play" in the chat window to play the classic wumpus game.

Re:clue to easter egg in client? "play wumpus game

[onosendai (79294)]

rumor has it - invite [e-mail], then IM it 'play'

Re:ugh, throw it on the heap...

[urdine (775754)]

Why, friendly google adwords, of course! Talking about baseball? Why not visit espn.com? Or better yet, Baseball on eBay. 1000s of Baseballs for Sale!

Re:ugh, throw it on the heap...

[OpenGLFan (56206)]

Encryption? Like, good SSL-based encryption? Do you know how many people use AIM or Yahoo Messenger without encryption? Do you know how many use it with their university or coffee shop's unencrypted wireless service?

Google, if you're listening, please please please make authentication and encryption the default with your new messaging service! Please! I'm stuck on campus all day, and I've got non-tech friends who refuse to use GAIM with GAIM-encrypt!

Re:ugh, throw it on the heap...

[DA-MAN (17442)]

Encryption? Like, good SSL-based encryption? Do you know how many people use AIM or Yahoo Messenger without encryption? Do you know how many use it with their university or coffee shop's unencrypted wireless service?


If you RTFA, you will see that talk.google.com requires TLS to connect. TLS is basically SSL, with negotiation for clients that don't support SSL. However without enabling TLS you will not be allowed to connect to Google Talk Server.

Re:ugh, throw it on the heap...

[atomm1024 (570507)]

True, but that doesn't actually protect your conversations from Google. People connected between your Internet connection and Google's server won't be able to monitor your conversations, but Google itself will, which is just as undesirable. Another reply has already mentioned Off-The-Record Messaging, a good solution for existing systems.

Re:ugh, throw it on the heap...

[TLSPRWR (711680)]

If you RTFA, you will see that talk.google.com requires TLS to connect.

Don't you dare use me to connect. I have limited enough bandwidth as is.

Re:ugh, throw it on the heap...

[batkiwi (137781)]

STANDARDIZATION. They will be the FIRST IM service to use the IETF messaging and presence standard.

Remember the days back when Prodigy users couldn't email AOL users, and you coudln't email either from a university "internet email"

That is where we are now with IM.

Imagine if back then someone was whacky enough to make an email client which required an account from every major provider in order to email your friends, rather than simply everyone moving to the official smtp and mime standards.

That is where we are now with IM.

Google having an IM service should give the critical mass necessary to jabber for other IM services to investigate, and finally use it (at least bridged).

I yearn for the day when I have only 1 IM ID. People who like yahoo can use their client and YIM ID, people who run their own jabber server can use whatever client they want, etc. Hell, they can even run propriatary video conferencing/etc which require their own software for all I care as long as I can do simple messaging with anyone on any service.

Re:Consolidation

[humina (603463)]

And google's jabber won't accept connections from other jabber servers making it a closed network. Think aim only running an open protocol. This just means that gaim doesn't have to reverse engineer anything. It's still not open to the jabber community.

Re:Meh

[mattyohe (517995)]

All it is is proof that google has a public jabber server.. One can assume they will be releasing a client anyday now... Let them at least... ANNOUNCE the product before you judge it.

Re:can't get on

[Ratbert42 (452340)]

Just use "me" as the username, without the @gmail.com. I got on with GAIM just fine.

Re:gmail icks me

[SumDog (466607)]

The reason for their distribution pattern is a little to prevent abuse, a little to create a community network and to be honest, it was a really good beta testing idea.

It prevents spammers auto-registering a ton (if someone starts to invite a bunch of spam bots, you can easily trace and break the propagation chain) and prevented the server from being overloaded during the initial run.

From a Computer Science and Social Engineering standpoint, it was/is a good setup. Get over it.

Re:Kopete

[dJCL (183345)]

Used my gmail address for username, same pw.
On the second Tab I checked the first 3 boxes and set the server to talk.google.com with port auto set to 5223.

I had an error with qca tls on connection, but an apt-get install qca-tls later I was online.

Now if only all my contacts would get over to google messenger we would be set...

JCLoony [is at] gmail [you know the rest]