I just started using GoogleTalk instead of AIM. Well actually, I’ve been using Pidgin to connect to my many AIM screen names as well as my Google, MSN, and Yahoo accounts. (I got Skype a while back, too, but never really use it. The only person on my list is my dad, who I can talk with on the phone if not in person.)
The one thing I really like about GTalk is that my chats are logged in a centralized place, so no matter if I talk with someone on my desktop, my laptop, my G1, or someone else’s computer, I can find records of it later very easily in GMail. I know some people also tell me not to trust the cloud, and that I’m not secure with Google, but I’ve committed to them already. Hopefully they will continue to “do no evil.”
One thing I really want to see, though, is better integration. Actually, this can be broken down into a couple of points. GTalk should be better integrated with other Google apps. For instance, in Google Contacts, I can add pictures for every person I know, even if they did not add their own picture to their Google profile, or even if they do not have a Google profile at all because they use another e-mail service. These pictures will pull up on my phone when I try to call people, but not on GTalk when I try to chat with them.
The other form of integration I want to see is better integration with other IM protocols. In Google Contacts, I can add IM screen names for my contacts through several protocols, but I can’t talk to them. GMail will now let you log into an AIM screen name and talk to your AIM contacts that way, but that’s more of a quick hack than true integration, the way other Jabber clients allow.
I’m hoping these features get added on soon, but I doubt it… the desktop client for GTalk hasn’t been updated in ages, and it seems like the Google team is focused on making various web widget forms of it, and making it pretty rather than functional. I mean, it’s nice, but I don’t really need more emoticons, thanks.