Instant messaging, which we use now to send a quick text to a friend or family on a handheld device, used to be on large computers and was only available to the government.
Instant messaging was invented in 1971 for governmental chat use in emergencies. Invented by Murray Turoff, originally created for IM for (EMISARI) Emergency Management Information System and Reference Index for the Office of Emergency Preparedness. Its first use was to allow communication among different government officials to facilitate the anti-inflation wage and price controls of the Nixon Administration. This system is connected to a teletypewriter terminal that is in turn connected to a central computer.
But before it was strictly for government, there was (CTSS) Compatible Time Sharing Systems created in 1961 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology 1961. It started as ppl in the college sending messages to each other, then expanded to people from all different colleges by 1965.
Another chat software was available (UNIX). Founded by Kenneth Tompson, Dennis Ritchie, and others at AT&T, allowed people to chat with each other, but only if they were on the same computer brand.
Once open to the public, the top Instant Messaging system wars started.
1994 PowWOw, created by John McAfee's company, was a chat for Windows devices made by a company, Tribal Voice Inc. This was considered the first social network and "pushed the boundaries of the early dial-up internet era."
1996 ICQ emerged as an Israeli company, Mirabilis, made by developers Yair Goldfinger, Arik Vardi, Sefi Vigiser, and Amnon Amir. ICQ, meaning I seek you, is a cross-platform system allowing people of all different systems and devices to communicate. After their release, it grew dramatically with millions of users around the world. It was the first available personal computer compatible with Microsoft, Windows, and Apple devices.
Later, ICQ was bought for $287 million in 1998 and merged with AOL American Online. By the 2000's it was the largest network provider and worth $125 billion
Instant Messaging became the main way of communication in 1990 due to battles between commercial ventures.
2000 was the start of multiple IM systems and multiple versions, depending on the computer or device.
Then, in 2006, Instant Messaging was linked to social media via Myspace, then Facebook, and Facebook Messenger in 2011.
Originally, a system for government communication has transformed into a space to connect with family and friends. It allows people to communicate in real time instead of having to wait for a person to be free to talk or whenever you see them again in person
and different social media apps to stay up to date with people in your community but also across the globe, uniting everyone.
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