Apple is Building iMessage into OS X Lion's iChat

[iMat77]

Great!

Apple Please strip the video part in iChat and add that to FaceTime. So one app does one thing. And iChat is going to be for messages and FaceTime for video (with FaceTime devices and iChat friends). So both won't overlap. It would e great (iChat not available on iOS) it would male a heat communication tool. Please don't forget document sharing or at least viewing in FaceTime and you have 2 winners. And a happy customer

 

[Mr. Gates]

They gotta do something right ?!?!

With that Win8 blow to the crotch, Apple must be feeling a little queasy

 

[AppleInLVX]

If you don't care about video or audio, look into Textie. It's free.

Thanks!

 

[NAG]

I hope they also update iChat into more of a system service (sort of like the FaceTime app). That way you don't have to explicitly launch iChat to get messages.

 

[stridemat]

Integrate iChat, iMessage & FaceTime and I think we have a winner.

 

[alexbasson]

How will iChat know I've read a message?

This begs the question, though: how will iChat know I've read the message?

Before you answer, "The same way iMessage on the iPhone knows, dummy", consider that the iPhone is a one-window-at-a-time system. If a message arrives and then you activate iMessage's window (i.e., launch the app), it can reasonably assume that you've read the message. In other words, the time you read the message is the same as the time it appears in the window. No problem.

On the other hand, though, on my Mac I may have several iChat windows open at one time while also having many other windows open from other apps. A message arriving will immediately appear in its iChat window. That doesn't mean I've read it. So the time it appears in the window is not necessarily the same as the time I read it.

So... how will iChat know when, or even if, I've read my new messages?

 

[mmomega]

Psst....

This is already working as per the latest builds of iOS and Lion.

I've tested sending to iPhone from iChat and from iPhone back to iChat and it works perfectly.

 

[Middling]

Buried in the framework of OS X Lion's iChat, are two new properties (highlighted below):The "timeDelivered" and "timeRead' fields indicate the tracking of delivery and read receipts for instant messages. These features, however, are not supported in any of iChat's native messaging protocols,

You are mistaken. XMPP has had such features since 2002 (XEP-0022), replaced now by XEP-0184 as jtara says.

This could be no more than Apple trying to fill in the blanks in their standards support, though it would be nice to have a universal app handling video/audio chat and texts across Linux, Mac OS X, Windows, Android and iOS.

I don't see Apple providing the solution though, especially as they've yet to fulfil their promise of publishing the specs to Facetime that they made when it was first showcased more than a year ago.

 

[kyjaotkb]

(iChat not available on iOS)

AIM has an official app, though.

But anyway, I think it does not make any sense not to include Facetime, iChat and iMessage in ONE app called iChat (to integrate into everyone's usual workflow), with compatibility with Gtalk, AIM, Jabber, etc.

Maybe in iOS it's better to have separate apps but on the Mac, it looks like an incoherent way of giving people options to communicate. More confusing than anything else.

 

[adambadamh]

Apple Please strip the video part in iChat and add that to FaceTime. So one app does one thing. And iChat is going to be for messages and FaceTime for video (with FaceTime devices and iChat friends). So both won't overlap. It would e great (iChat not available on iOS) it would male a heat communication tool. Please don't forget document sharing or at least viewing in FaceTime and you have 2 winners. And a happy customer

Why have two apps to start with? If I am messaging/chatting with someone why should I switch apps if we decide to switch to video. iChat has had video for years and no one was complaining, in fact it still does work really well, better than FaceTime IMO. I was kind of surprised they made FaceTime a separate app when they did and not just make it an account you can add in iChat.

The only difference to me that I can still recognize as a valid excuse for not fully integrating is that FaceTime and iMessage, unlike tradition IM clients, are meant to be always connected (like a phone) as oppose to a service where you are only available if you are signed in.

 

[Cougarcat]

So... how will iChat know when, or even if, I've read my new messages?

Likely when you make the window or tab active. Haven't used iChat in a while, but that's how Adium does it with IMs.

 

[kyjaotkb]

I hope they also update iChat into more of a system service (sort of like the FaceTime app). That way you don't have to explicitly launch iChat to get messages.

so you get annoyed by unwanted messages upon tuning on your laptop

 

[scottlitch]

Apple really should integrate iChat, FaceTime and iMessage into one app for both iOS and OSX. I vote for the iChat name across platforms as chatting can be done in text or video.

 

[iZac]

They'd be stupid not to!

I also wish FaceTime and iChat just merged into each other.

 

[profets]

Apple really should integrate iChat, FaceTime and iMessage into one app for both iOS and OSX. I vote for the iChat name across platforms as chatting can be done in text or video.

+1

I always wondered why they didn't take advantage of an existing messaging client like iChat even back when facetime launched.

 

[maturola]

Facetime should go away

I think Facetime should go and be integrated as part of iMessage/iChat

 

[paul4339]

And a Windows desktop client. Seriously, if they want this to have real legs Apple needs to think beyond just their own platforms (think iTunes).

For windows, I think I'd rather have iMessage features accessible over web (perhaps using my apple cloud account) vs another Windows desktop client.

.

 

[kyjaotkb]

For windows, I think I'd rather have iMessage features accessible over web (perhaps using my apple cloud account) vs another Windows desktop client.

.

that way they'll never make even a dent into MSN's installed user base

 

[rwilliams]

This sounds great, but unfortunately, most of my friends are not using iOS devices, so I'd still have to carry some kind of texting plan. I would love to find a way to get rid of it altogether, but that seems unlikely unless I can brainwash everyone I know into buying something running iOS.

 

[3460169]

wow i totally called this..or said they should do this

cross platform chat program.

this is going to be big for apple

iChat and iMessage are cross-platform?

I can get these on Windows? Linux? Android?

Oh wait -- you mean across iOS and OS X platforms. I see what you did there! BTW, props for predicting the inevitable!

 

[Benito]

I hope this really is happening and happens soon. When I'm on my computer it would be so much easier to use it to send or read a text message than taking my iPhone out of my pocket.

 

[H2SO4]

iMessage + Google Voice Text = Goodbye texting plan (I will not miss you).

Actually I'd suggest that the carriers will catch on, and quite quickly too. They'll reduce the texting plans and try and recoup the money by increasing the cost of the data plans.

 

[Kaibelf]

Why? You have a smartphone. Find one of the free apps like TextFree that give you a phone number and have your non iOS friends use that phone number to text you.

That's what I've been doing to get free texting (since I absolutely refuse to pay for texting. I like it but it's not worth the prices the carrier asks). I suppose though I have no idea how much data those apps use (I don't pay attention as I am on grandfathered unlimited. But I suspect not too much cause with my data use I probably could get away with the 2 GB plan).

Yeah who needs an integrated, elegant solution when you can use a third party option with a special separate number just for people who are tech savvy to text you at that number under certain circumstances. They'll certainly remember to use the duplicate contact for texts only..... Sounds simple!

 

[DrDomVonDoom]

And a Windows desktop client. Seriously, if they want this to have real legs Apple needs to think beyond just their own platforms (think iTunes).

They could, but I don't think they need to. Think BBM, it was hugely popular, especially with the business crowd, and it didn't have cross platform of any kind, that I know of anyway.

If iPhone is shaping up to be the next BlackBerry, except far more then BlackBerry could every dream of, then iMessage will be the all in one solution for many companies. The ability to text from your iMac I don't think will drive sales of hardware, but then again the iPhone drove its sales from the ability to create your own internal business apps in the corporate world. Those businesses who run a Mac ecosystem will be happy ^-^

 

[Dorv]

While they're at it, I'd love to see Apple make an iMessage app for Android.
Seriously.

I'm sure they will as soon as BlackBerry releases a BBM app for iOS or Android.