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Odigo Unites Instant Messengers

Alternate instant messenger now interacts with AOL and ICQ.

By Paul Heltzel, PCWorld   

I took a look at Odigo 2.5--a free beta--with particular interest in how easily I could use existing AIM and ICQ buddy lists.

First I downloaded a 56KB file that launches the process by asking which plug-ins to install. The choices are AOL, ICQ, and Internet Explorer 5.5 (which I don't use). The installer then downloads the necessary components. The final damage was about 6.5MB for my configuration, but the installer should save time when downloading future upgrades.

Easygoing Interface

Odigo is decidedly casual. Like AIM and ICQ, the interface is a small, floating window. The main view appears like a radar screen, displaying icons that represent Odigo users. You can pick your own icon, and you can choose to display a mood icon for your friends to check. Mood options include indifferent, fabulous, and angry.

To connect with current AOL and ICQ pals, you can import an ICQ or AIM buddy files from your hard drive. Or, you can type in individual user names and Odigo will automatically add them to its list. I had some trouble importing my AIM buddy list, but it was easy to manually add users from either of the services.

I no longer have ICQ on my hard drive, but I used Odigo's Find People feature to type in the e-mail address of an ICQ-using friend. His number came up in just a few seconds, and I quickly added him to my list.

One of my favorite Odigo features is the capability to chat with users as you surf the Web. As you jump from site to site, Odigo tells you whether others are also viewing the page. You can drop them a line or post a message that other Odigo users will see when they view the site. Pretty slick.

Now if only I could talk to my friends on Yahoo Messenger....