July 2005
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79 Reads
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39 Citations
Online
The advantages of Instant Messaging (IM) over Web-based chat are discussed. IM is faster than the Web-based chat, as it requires fewer characters thereby speeding up the process. Training someone to use an IM program takes about 5 minutes whereas training for Web-based chat takes much longer, anywhere between 2 and 10 hours, depending upon the technical competency of the user and complexity of the software. Most IM have few or no computer requirements, on the part of either users or librarians. Web-based chat on the other hand, have extensive requirements for both users and librarians.