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| Instant Messages are a great way to get someone's attention to invite him or her to join you in a chat room, ask a quick question, or just start a conversation. Each Instant Message is a private, person-to-person communication. Unlike email, Instant Messages are live interactions between two AOL members-you can only send these messages to someone who is already online. The only delay is how long it takes to type your response and send it. |
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| To open an Instant Message window, click the People icon and choose Instant Message from the People menu. (You can also press Ctrl+I to accomplish the same thing.) |
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| The Send Instant Message window opens. Type the screen name of the person to whom you're sending a message in the To text box. To see if your acquaintance is online before you send the message, click the Available? button. |
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| A dialog box opens, informing you of whether the person is online (you can't send Instant Messages to people who aren't online). Click OK to close this box. |
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| Type your message in the text box. Click Send. |
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| Your acquaintance will receive the message in an Instant Message window listing you as the sending party, and will probably write you back. To respond to an Instant Message, click the Respond button (click Cancel if you do not want to respond to the message). |
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| The window expands, opening a text box for you to type your response in. When you finish typing your response, click Send. You can continue exchanging messages with your acquaintance by entering your responses in the text box and clicking Send. |
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