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Online chat is a generic term for what are now mostly known as instant messaging applications - computer programs that enable two-way typing to connect users to each other.
However, there are net
dating systems and other online services that do not use these applications to provide chat facilities, e.g. Delphi, often relying on HTTP-based protocols instead. Sometimes these are
called a chat room or chat page extending the
physical metaphors of 'sites' and 'magazines' which many web services
exploit.
Some of these systems also provide telephone voice mail access. These are
usually known generically as just chat systems.
A chat log is a record of a chat. Sometimes this is put on the web,
e.g. [1] .
The earliest online chat system widely used was probably the Unix talk facility. The earliest one in general use was likely the French Minitel. The concept took off with the Internet Relay Chat (IRC) protocol, which is considered an instant messaging
tool.
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