in-house network program

[rapierdragon]

Kind of hardware and software related:

I have two computers connected via an ethernet LAN switcher. The switcher then connects to an ADSL modem and out to my ISP (Bell Sympatico). The two computers are roughly 80 feet apart (multi-floor townhouse. One in basement, one in upstairs bedroom).

I'm looking for some sort of LAN chat program. Something small and preferably free that works similar to hotmail instant messaging, but without having the need for both computers to connect to my ISP or to a server. Mainly it'll be used for chats or short messages like "going out for a smoke, back in five". It won't be used for file-sharing or printer-sharing.

I am not looking to set up one my two computers as a server, nor am I looking to install a third computer to be a server for the other two.

Whatever the program is should run on both winXP and win98se (because one computer is running XP and the other is running 98se).

Recommendations please?

Matt Shokoff
matsho@sympatico.ca

 

[riser]

Off hand I'm not aware of anything that would work how you want. Either way, you're going to need a server somewhere for the connections to get established.

Skype might be a good alternative for you.

Go out to google and type "lan instant messaging" and you'll see a list of things to choose from.

 

[shadowspank]

Get rid of the crappy computers and get two macs and fire up ichat it will let you see eacther on the network with out an isp also if you really need to keep the crappy computers that you love so much you can get Trillian pro but it cost money. found at http://www.ceruleanstudios.com/ it also supports what you call a serverless im solution both use Rendezvous Protocol.

Here is some light reading http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1744264,00.asp?kc=EWRSS03119TX1K0000594


enjoy most people dont know about ichat and Trillian but you will love it.

 

[sturm]

you might look at using the messenger included with xp. This is not MSN Messenger.
Although using that could open you up to some exploits and spam.

 

[folken]

Trillian will probably be the best way to go if you dont want to install a server on either of your computers. It would be $25 well spent, lol.
If you dont mind installing a server on one of the comps (to avoid any cost) then you might want to give teamspeak a try. It is mainly for voice but it has a simple text chat built into it as well. The server is tiny and non intrusive, it could operate completely in the background.

 

[riser]

You're younger eh?

Generally speaking, people just don't throw away what they have and go out buying a bunch of new equipment. They work with what they have.

I'm not a big fan of Macs. I don't really see them as being all that great over the standard PC.

The only reason I see colleges using them is that they don't have to do much and they don't need to upgrade them as often. Along with a lower learning curve for the dumber people in this world.

 

[Sando]

Winpopup? I know it used to be a mini program included with Windows 98 that lets you send messages over a network, but I'm not sure what's up with it at the moment.

Also, I don't see quite what your problem with using a "normal" (internet based) IM program is. You shouldn't be worried about bandwidth or being offline if you have ADSL through a router.

Google talk and windows mesenger are both quite unobtrusive, and ideally suited for the the task, though i'm not sure about installing them on Windows 98

 

[choknuti]

You can try these. They will run on a local network without having to access an outside server:

http://www.freedownloadscenter.com/Best/tcp-ip-chat.html

Net meeting could suite your purpose too.