With clients for iOS, Android, BlackBerry, Windows Phone, Web, and even BlackBerry Playbook (!), software maker Shape claims that its IM+ is the most widely used instant messaging software in the world. Now you can add Windows 8 (and 8.1 and RT) to that list. Part of the app's success is that, in addition to so much platform support, it works with every IM protocol you've heard of—including Facebook messages, Skype, Gtalk, ICQ, Yahoo Messenger, AIM, Twitter—and several you probably haven't heard of, like mig33, Fetion, and Mamba.
So what do you look for in a messaging client? I already mentioned two of the biggies—wide service and platform support, but there are lots of trappings that can make IM more useful, productive, and enjoyable. Things like chat history saving, contact list sorting, photo and file exchanging. Voice, video, and group chat are further icing on the cake. IM+ offers some of these, with even more window dressing like custom backgrounds, sounds, and a plentiful selection of emoticons.
Setup
IM+ is available at the Windows Store in both a free and a $4.99 Pro edition. The latter simply removes all advertising, though what I saw in the free edition wasn't obtrusive, though some will prefer a pure IM experience. I tested on a desktop and a Microsoft Surface Pro. When you first run IM+, you're asked to allow it access to your personal data and to run in the background. If you say no to either, the app is pretty useless, so just go ahead and give it permission. A third permission bar asks if you want to "share data between devices" which is a convenience for people with PCs, tablets, and smart phones—most of us. I did have to enable the accounts when installing the app on another device, however.
Then you'll want to choose to set up an account from the 19 services offered, by clicking on their colorful tiles. I started with AOL Instant Messenger, an old standby when it comes to IM. Skype has long been a difficult nut for IM clients to crack, but IM+ had no trouble connecting me with my Skype chat contacts, as well as my Facebook, AIM, and Yahoo Messenger accounts (though I don't really use that last one much).
Interface
The IM+ for Windows 8 Interface is a bit odd, though I see that the reason for this is that the company wants to make it work well with touch. An example of this oddity is that from the main page, you can't see your IM services unless you swipe to the right. And at the bottom are "Show More" text links, which really just open a more standard-looking IM interface. The Settings panel should let you manage your messaging accounts, but it doesn't. And when you do get to the account page, you have to invoke the app bar (by right clicking or swiping from the top or bottom of a touch screen) to see the Add account + button—this should just always be showing on the accounts screen.
A couple of desirable IM options let the app "Show status on the lock screen" and "Pop up notifications" so that you can see an incoming message when you're doing something else on the tablet or PC. The app also does well when you're taking advantage of Windows 8's ability to display a split app screen. I've always liked running IM in a thin side window on Windows 7 and before; being able to have it available as a sidebar to your main activity makes a lot of sense, and I found that I could interact in IM+ this way with aplomb.
A couple more nice options are noteworthy: You can set the app to silent mode, which will be much appreciated by folks around you. A choice of background patterns and four font sizes allow for some customization of the interface. You cannot, however, sort contacts by history—meaning that the people you chat with most appear first.
Using IM+ on Windows 8
After a smidgeon of acclimation, the IM+ interface is a cinch, with the main pages showing tile areas for Chats, Contacts, and (after a swipe or mouse-wheel spin) accounts. The more standard "show more" view has a left panel that you can switch between showing lists of your contacts, current chats, and favorites. The large center area, as you'd expect, is where your conversations are displayed.
In addition to text chatting, IM+ lets you add from an amusing selection of emoticons, and attach files and on-the-spot shot photos or video messages. A permission bar appears telling you that the data will be uploaded to IM+'s servers, but no third parties will get access to the data. When I snapped a photo in a chat, my recipient had to launch a browser window to see it, rather than just having it inline in the chat.
To start a group chat, you simply hit the circled + button at top right in a chat. Unfortunately, you can only have groups within the same service—you can't mix AIM and Skype contacts, for example, though this is the way most IM clients work. You can always add more participants and see who's included via buttons. And you get all the same attachments and emoticon options as with one-on-one chat.
A couple of things you don't get are audio and video chatting, which IM+ clients on other platforms offer. But Shape notes that more features are in the works for the Windows 8 app, so perhaps we can hope for audio and video in a future release.
Getting the Message
For touch tablet users, IM+ fills a much needed void in the Windows 8 "Metro" and Windows 8 RT world, as a universal instant messaging client. Its abilities to run effectively in the background and in a side window add value for any Windows 8 user. Group chat and file attachments are other plusses that outweigh a somewhat quirky interface to earn IM+ for Windows 8 a "Good" PCMag rating of 3 bullets. For a more powerful communicator, check out Skype for Windows 8.
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