IMing, Meebo, and all that Jazz

I'm not sure that I really get IM. It seems that the demands of being right there all the time and responding immediately make IM more like the "old fashioned" telephone than the newer, more convenient, email environment. With email, you don't have to interrupt or be interrupted, but you can send off a message when it is fresh in your mind and the person you are sending to can reply at their convenience.

That being said, I can see how a Meebo gadget could very well be a useful service point for the library to offer its patrons during hours that we are staffed. Patrons who need an immediate answer may well appreciate this method - a little less personal than phone or in-person contact, but still right there.

I've embedded a meebo gadget into the Administration home page on our library Intranet. I'll be interested to see how long it is til someone finds it. Now all I have to do is remember to log in to Meebo every morning (and log out again when I leave...) The next tool I need is some sort of universal tool that logs me in to my network, my email, the supervisor's in/out board, Meebo, etc. all in one swoop. And then grabs me as I walk out of the door and makes sure that I log out of all of them. Ideas anyone?