AIMing well, yet missing the mark
“Watch out for the man with the ax standing behind you!” — I stifle a scream in response and quickly turn around to reveal an empty hallway after my 2003 best friend frightens me through the computer screen. This happened every time we talked on AIM too late into the night. With its massive console, monitor, and external speakers, my family computer sat at the end of a long, dark hallway, allowing my bestie to continuously scare me at the end of our important conversations about homework, teachers, and who was secretly kissing backstage at drama club. This is how we became best friends: gossiping over AIM. AOL Instant Messenger: the introduction to social media and an instantly connected life.
While AIM wasn’t the first messaging service, it was the first wide-spread social messaging platform that led to the “real-time” online lifestyle in which we live today. I remember rushing home after school to see who was active on my Buddy List. I chose my Buddy Icons with pride, and my Screen Name was the true expression of my soul: PinkPrincess4404. (I…I can’t believe I just admitted my screenname and expect to ever get a job again.) I used the program to connect with everyone I knew, in all situations. Even when the towers were hit on September 11th, the first thing I did was run to my computer to make sure my New York friends were safe. We didn’t have to wait for an email reply or to see if someone would answer their phone. AIM gave us what we now take for granted — the ability to instantaneously communicate with people all around the world.
AIM supplied many tools that are currently used today. Firstly, the lingo. Acronyms like LOL and JK are still a part of everyday vernacular. If you had to step away for a second, it was BRB, but if you were leaving, it was TTYL G2G. If you didn’t want to sign off completely, you could put up a creative away message (see example), the precursor to the OG Facebook status or the modern Tweet. Away Messages even remind me of the “I’m driving” feature programmed into iPhones to let friends know we will respond later. Buddy Lists are still seen on Gchat (now Google Hangout), Facebook, and Instagram. Mark Zuckerberg even said that he fashioned Facebook Chat after his AIM experience. AIM made us comfortable with Bots (remember SmarterChild?), which led to programs such as SIRI and Alexa being part of our lives without question. This list goes on: AIM even had voice chat before Skype, and was the first to add stock & news tickers. It was the dominant messaging program of the 1990s & 2000s, and the model for today’s systems.
The most significant concept that AIM brought us was our generational ability to be comfortable behind a screen. With the computer in front of us, we saw our relationships grow beyond the schoolroom or the workplace. This anonymity gave us permission for emotional intimacy — the idea behind modern-day dating apps. It was also, unfortunately, the beginning of anonymous bullying and trolling, an issue many platforms, such as YouTube and Facebook, are still trying to manage.
If AIM was at the forefront of so many ideas, then why is it not active today? Why in the 2000s did AIM users comprise 52% of the online messaging market, and by 2011, less than 1%? It was ultimately put to rest in 2017, and we can learn a lot from its fleeting success. The most obvious lesson is that if you don’t stay up with the times, you will fall behind. It was interesting to learn that AIM was originally made in secret from its parent company, AOL. The popular for-profit internet service never fully supported the development of AIM, a free messaging system. The company didn’t understand that making the platform available to all was ultimately the best marketing strategy; free was the future. Where would we be today if Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok all required a monthly fee? Definitely not in the world of millionaire influencers and viral videos. AOL also denied AIM the ability to work with outside developers. It was up to the original innovators, Barry Appelman, Eric Bosco and Jerry Harris, to keep up to date with the times, proof that collaboration is the only way to move forward. AIM’s major misstep was never truly figuring out a way to go mobile. With everything on our phones, text messaging essentially took its place as the preferred rapid-fire messaging service. AIM couldn’t keep up.
Although the blue and yellow running man and thrill of signing online is only a nostalgic memory, we must be grateful for what AIM gave us. From language to our obsession with keeping in touch, we would not be where we are today without this first immediate messaging service. The AIM chapter of my life will always hold a special place in my heart, imaginary ax murderers and all.
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