If Yahoo Messenger didn’t exist, people would seamlessly switch to MSN or AOL without a second thought. Yet, as this messaging program still reigns as the “undisputed king” in Vietnam, even a single day of system issues can leave many feeling “too frustrated to work.”
Although there are no official statistics, Yahoo Messenger (YM) has long been regarded as the most popular online communication tool among Vietnamese users. Some use YM out of habit, logging into their accounts unconsciously as soon as they turn on their computers, even when busy.
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The notification above has driven many Yahoo Messenger users crazy. |
In the past month, Yahoo has implemented several significant overhauls for its services, including changes to the homepage interface, enhancements to Yahoo 360 to avoid being labeled as a “blog service for beginners,” and an upgrade of Yahoo Messenger to version 8.0, which is now integrated with Windows Live Messenger.
These changes have had a noticeable impact on the stability of the services. Yahoo 360 has been updating new information erratically and somewhat “spontaneously,” while Yahoo Messenger has faced frequent disconnections.
“I had an important appointment and couldn’t log in. By the time I managed to get in, I was disconnected every five minutes, losing all my messages,” a member named Someone lamented on the Tin3k43 forum. “I usually don’t chat much, but when YM has issues, I realize just how dependent I am on this service.”
The most common issue recently has been Yahoo Messenger frequently reporting errors related to incorrect ID and password entries, causing many users to worry about potential account information breaches. “There might be a need to study the impact of YM on the work efficiency of Vietnamese people. From my personal experience, even when I chat on multiple windows, I still work much more effectively than on days when Yahoo is unreliable,” blogger Mira complained on Yahoo 360.
Agreeing with this perspective, Fozd, another blogger from Yahoo 360, expressed his frustration: “I couldn’t log in all morning. When I finally saw the YM icon light up in the corner of my screen, I was almost in tears from happiness. I called a few friends to chat, but no one answered. When I did receive a message, YM automatically logged me out and I couldn’t get back in.”
In light of the “half-alive, half-dead” situation over the past few days, many people have started seeking alternative temporary solutions, such as using Google Talk integrated within Gmail or signing up for Skype. Additionally, users can log into Windows Live Messenger to chat with friends on Yahoo Messenger; however, these two programs still do not support data exchange (file sending) with each other.
