Instant Messaging becomes a mini social network

Lately my chat client has become somewhat of a business, social, friend, acquaintance network.I've been contacted by friends, business associates, potential colleagues, colleagues, family, bloggers, writers, journalists and marketing people via my Instant Message.

This is made all the simpler when I'm using my Macbook Pro as I use Adium which pulls in most of my IM accounts in to one simple to use application.

I am not stating that Facebook is dead, MySpace is a goner or that Blueworld is history. What I am stating is that I am in control of my IM and I like it.I like that I am not obligated to talk to people, and there are a lot of people, on my IM client. I can set my status to "Buggeroffleavemealoneorillthrowsomethingatyou" and people laugh. I also love the integration between my twitter client, Twhirl and my IM client.What integration? None technologically. But person to person IM and twitter work fantastically together. I post something on twitter, vague, true, false, rumour or opinion and within minutes I have 5 people on instant message asking me about it. I then choose whether or not to engage, how long the conversations last and that's that.I know that traditional social networks allow for this scope of choice; whether one is available or not. But for some reason it just seems different when it's more personal, more instant and over messaging only.I don't want to see how many friends this person has, how many pictures they've been tagged in what zombie ate them or what groups they have joined. I want to know they are either available, away or unavailable. Select the person to talk to, discuss, get in and get out.IM allows me to do this on my terms and think I like that.

A brief conversation with Mushypeasontoast

MushyPeas chatted to me today on gmail, this is what transpired:Nicholas (Jabber status): not. bovvered. ye. no. but.Peas (Jabber status): is addicted to cappuccino.Peas: but you look bovveredlook at your faceNicholas: yePeas: youre clearly bovveredNicholas: butnobutPeas: ye no ye no ye noNicholas: yeHAHAHAHAPeas: did you just tell me my dad needs a crane to get out of bed in the morning?Nicholas: HAHAHAHAno butPeas: did you just call my muvva an alcoholic?Nicholas: ye, butPeas: are you disrepsectin me?Nicholas: no butPeas: are you disrespectin my family?Nicholas: tha' is wicked badno butPeas: that is well shamefulNicholas: ah, peas, you making my day!! :)Peas: no dude, YOUR status just made my day!And then a brief interlude of normal conversation and straight back innit:Peas: watch the one when she's in french classits by bestNicholas: Ah, that is hilarious!!!do you shave your armpits miss?Peas: "you use razors miss? in frenchland?"hahahahaNicholas: hahahahaPeas: suis-je bovvered?Nicholas: BWHAAHAHAHAHAclassicPeas: est ce vous disrespectez ma famille?Nicholas: HAHAHAHAPeas: est ce que vous appllez ma mere une pikey??NON. JE SUIS PAS BOVVEREDNicholas: oh dude, stopcan't. take. the. chav.Peas: in fact, Im gonna go watch it RIGHT NOW