Yahoo Messenger vs Skype

From what I've seen so far in internet cafes and people I know, they use Yahoo Messenger as their primary internet messenger to chat with other people. Yahoo Messenger is also the first internet messenger i used since it was the one I saw in internet cafes. So before we get on with Skype let me show you the list of features of Yahoo Messenger and they are as follows:

• Send text messages in real time
• Join a chat room
• Share photos
• PC-to-PC calls
• PC-to-Phone calls
• SMS text messaging to cellphones for free
• Webcam
• IM conferencing
• File Transfer and many more plug-ins

As you can see from these features, they are useful and easy to use. Yahoo Messenger is also used by many people in their homes. Especially here in the Philippines where the use of Yahoo Messenger is very rampant. So it is very applicable if you have a lot of chat mates here in the Philippines. It's user-friendly but you could get lost if you're a newbie. You can download Yahoo Messenger for free here: http://messenger.yahoo.com/download/.

Just click on the button. You can even download a local version since it is available in certain countries and here in the Philippines. If you have friends in other countries, you might want to try Skype since it is more commonly used there especially in the US.

Skype

A lot of people, including me, have the notion that to use Skype you need to pay a certain amount to avail of it's services that's why most people don't bother to explore Skype even further. This notion made me regret and tell myself, "Why did I just know about this now?". Skype is for FREE! It gave me better experience than Yahoo Messenger the first time I used it. It may not be the fanciest of all designs but it is worth it because of the services it can offer you. Skype is for free download at their website at: http://www.skype.com/download/skype/windows/.

Again just click on thebutton and you're set to download.

So why do I think that Skype is better than Yahoo Messenger? Here are the features:

• Has all the features of Yahoo Messenger mentioned above
• The Plug-ins are endless and cool although some of them are useless and full of errors
• Has a more professional look than Yahoo Messenger
• Easier to understand and more user-friendly
• The best part I like about it is that you can share your screen to the person you are chatting to. By sharing your screen I mean you can let the one who is chatting with you see what you are currently seeing on your screen. So if the other person is watching a movie, you can watch that movie with him or her. This is most important if you want to troubleshoot for somebody. They can show you their screen and there you can give them instructions on what to do next. It saves time and effort on the part of both persons. You can even select a part of your screen that you want to share, that's how much freedom you can have with Skype.
• Skype is used best when you want to exclusively chat with another person like a business meeting or a personal conversation.

It will always be up to the user on what he or she really wants to do. So try both out now, who knows, you could enjoy one more than the other.