What is a Chat Client?
A chat client is a software program designed for use in online chat rooms. It might also be associated with Instant Messaging (IM) programs, though IM programs are designed to use while cruising the Web. This makes standard IM programs more akin to a plug-in than a fully featured chat client. What IM programs and a chat client have in common is that they both allow real-time communication between people who are online at the same time. As soon as a participant types a message and hits “send” in a chat client or IM program, the recipient sees the reply inside his or her own chat client or IM program. However, similarities end there. While an instant message communication is usually between two people who are cruising the Web, a chat client makes use of a separate network designed to allow numerous people to talk to each other in real time. Using a chat client, a participant can discuss one of countless subjects with dozens or even hundreds of other people. Various “chat rooms,” each wit
