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RadiusIM relies on its location-based features to differentiate it from other Web-based instant messaging services. It offers access to key IM services such as AIM, Yahoo Messenger, MSN Messenger, and Google Talk, and it lets you search for other RadiusIM users based on their location.
But before you can use RadiusIM, you have to register. Though the process isn't prohibitively onerous (you must supply an e-mail address, a birth date, a zip code, and your country), it does make the service slower to use the first time than some competitors.
After completing the initial registration, you can choose to have RadiusIM connect you to your IM accounts automatically when you log in. Like Meebo, RadiusIM has a nice, clean, ad-free Web interface. Your buddy list appears in a window on the right side of the Web page. Though you can move the window anywhere within the RadiusIM Web page, you can't undock it from the page. You can log on to any number of the services that RadiusIM supports at one time. Options include AIM, Google Talk, ICQ, Jabber, MSN, and Yahoo. RadiusIM groups your buddy list according to each service, which simplifies navigation.
Messages appear in pop-up windows on the page and can't be undocked, which might frustrate some users. You get a time stamp on messages, but the service doesn't provide a typing indicator to let you know whether your contacts are responding to your messages. (The service plans to add this feature in a future release.) You can elect to be notified via an audio alert when messages arrive, or you can download a desktop notifier that sits in your system tray and flashes when a new message reaches you. The pop-up message window also flashes when a message comes, but this can be difficult to see if you've minimized the window to work on something else.
With RadiusIM you can add and delete buddies from your buddy lists, and you can create customized away messages that are automatically saved for future use.
The location-based services unique to RadiusIM constitute something of a mixed bag and are available for use only with other registered RadiusIM users. When you log on, you can see how many users are in the vicinity. The idea is to let you locate your friends so that you can meet with them in person if they're nearby. A map window highlights your approximate location--RadiusIM says that locations are blurred within 0.25 mile of the actual location for safety--and you can see photos or icons of other local users. I was told that 104 registered RadiusIM users were within 9 miles of me, but when I checked, I found that most of them were offline.
Because I don't know any other RadiusIM users, I couldn't connect with any of my buddies. The best I could do with my AOL contacts, for example, would be to send them an IM or e-mail invitation to join the service. The location-based service would have been more useful if RadiusIM had a greater number of registered users.
Also, because RadiusIM sets your location based on the zip code you entered at registration, if you use the service from somewhere else, you'll have to change your location manually at that time.
If you want to make new friends in your local area (and you're willing to accept the security risks that accompany meeting people online), RadiusIM shows promise. But until more people use the service, its location-based features have limited utility. And despite its clean interface and relative ease of use, RadiusIM's registration process--brief though it is--may hold you back.
Liane Cassavoy
