Why does everybody use ICQ
 

Old, lame crashes 10 times a month and all programs still use this fucked up piece of shit.

PROGRAMOWNERS!! -> MSN OR YAHOO PLEASE

I use it becuase everybody else does

I agree, ICQ sucks, but it seems to be an industry standard for whatever reason.

Despite its flaws. ICQ has been the main messanger of choice for almost a decade. We just can not one day up and switch unless we absolutely have to by force. Not only do we have a shitload of contacts within it. We also have litterally years of history files that many of us still use.
Other programs have came close to ICQ's functions I will admit. None seem to hit it on the mark and gather them all into one application like ICQ does.

I hate ICQ. The new 5.04 is bloated so I've switched back to Pro 2003b but it disconnects all the time. Piece of shit

I think the main reason is because (I think) it`s the only IM software where you can receive messages when you are offline (most of the time). I know MSN can`t do that,dunno about yahoo.
I use Miranda and haven`t had any stability problems.

never had any major issues with ICQ since '03

:smokin

Yeah, ICQ sux a lot. But what should we use else ? Messenger ? Nah, same piece of crap and then B.G got another hold of us. Skype ? Nah, then we will get Ebays useless ads in the back. Can anyone smart person create a SIMPLE client that works without any crap.

READ&VOTE

have a nice weekend everyone.

Jabber is the open source darling of IM protocols.You can even set up your own server easily. Never tried it but I`ve heard good things about it.
Meanwhile I just use Miranda for all IM networks.

I don't really have ANY problems with it, it has all the functionality you may need... and it works quite smoothly too, I don't see what the bitching is about... (oh, and I use Trillian to connect to the icq network, in case that makes any difference)

Its called gaim.

Google Talk maybe? http://www.google.com/talk/

I have serious issues with Gaim. I haven't tried any of the new betas but the developers don't give a fuck if file transfers or direct connect works at all. Also, there's been a bug forever where font sizes don't display correctly.

I use icq because I've been using it since the days when powwow started to fade from popularity. It does what I need it to do, so I see no reason to change.

because everyone already has it from before, so if you want to talk to someone, they are probbly on icq lol

Just use another client... I use Gaim and it works like a charm (for icq,msn, yahoo and aim)

Simply because everyone uses it and it's like a domino effect, but I have not experience crashing problems

is ICQ the very first instant messaging software?

if not one of the firsts

Jabber is hit and miss on a daily basis, I found.
Yahoo is full of guys who ask for webcam every 30 seconds.
MSN doesn't allow offline messages.
I've had my ICQ number for years, and it works perfectly in my Trillian, so I'm happy with it. Why change?

I dunno about smart....

but .... well you'll see...

I use msn...

cuz it's oldskool :)

Skype's text messenger beats the shit out of ICQ.

use icq lite if you're having problems with icq.

Trillian Pro

Bingo :thumbsup

Msn beta now has an option to send messages to offline people, and they will receive it when they sign in.

Because I have a low number

it works fine for me