HOW THIS SIMPLE TECHNOLOGY
CONTINUES TO BRING MORE
OF US TOGETHERThe very notion of being able to instantly send a
message to someone located on the other side
of the world – or even just the other side of one’s
home or office – would have seemed nigh-on
inconceivable to most of the world’s population
not so long ago.
And of course, instant messaging is a concept
that only became mainstream a few decades
ago, within easy living memory for many of
us. However, the concept has also come so
far already in terms of what it represents and
makes possible for so many people. Indeed, it
continues to develop in remarkable ways – and
as we shall see, offers scope for an enthralling
future, too.
A SHORT HISTORY OF THE HUMBLE
INSTANT MESSAGEBefore we go any further in exploring what
instant messaging now is and where it has
the potential to go in the future, we need to
establish where it has come from.
Naturally, the starting point in explaining the
history of instant messaging depends on what
we define instant messaging as essentially
being. But if we define it as being basically
about messages being sent and received by
someone in a different location within, at most,
minutes, rather than the weeks that it formerly
took to send messages by train and horse,
there’s no doubt that the first ‘instant message’
was the first telegram.