ICQ will stop working on June 26. It’s encouraging users to migrate to a messaging app from Russia-based VK, its parent company.

I stopped using ICQ in the very early 00s. I didn’t know anything of it still remained.

  • Chozo@fedia.io
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    23 days ago

    I had no idea ICQ was even still operational. Good on them for making it as long as they did.

    I was never an ICQ user, but it’s always sad seeing such long-standing icons of the internet shut down.

    • Billiam@lemmy.world
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      23 days ago

      it’s always sad seeing such long-standing icons of the internet shut down.

      A reminder of how much fun Web 1.0 was, not the walled-gardened, enshittified, corporatized, ad-riddled rage baiter it is now.

      • bassomitron@lemmy.world
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        23 days ago

        I always said way back in the early 2000s that once corporations figured out the internet, it and society in general would be very screwed. Their early attempts at trying to make things go viral and create engagement were laughably bad. Then they hired a bunch of psychologists and sociologists, bought up everything, and the rest is history.

        • rottingleaf@lemmy.zip
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          23 days ago

          That’s the same with one armed conflict that bothers me much. In the 90s there it was called “blood vs oil” by one charismatic man (who also correctly predicted how it’d go further, though), and, well, then “blood” won, and “oil” looked miserable - evil, dishonorable and defeated, all at the same time. But in 10 years they figured it out completely, in 20 years applied that power in every area they needed (mostly not military), in 25 had a big military victory, and now the situation really sucks from the looks of it.

      • A_Random_Idiot@lemmy.world
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        23 days ago

        Man, I am so sad now.

        I miss the original internet. Back when it was a place for nerds and geeks, before commercial exploitation and SEO and Adpocalypse

      • aesthelete@lemmy.world
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        23 days ago

        The early version of what’s now Microsoft’s game suite in Windows was one of the coolest things I’ve seen on the Internet. It was a virtual gaming village where you could go sit at tables and play chess or checkers or cards with people from around the world. It worked 100% fine on 14.4k dialup.

        Microsoft bought whatever that was and completely ruined it, just like they ruin everything else they buy.

        • Murdoc@sh.itjust.works
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          22 days ago

          That just reminded me of something I tried that was similar, I think it was called Visual Chat? It looked like a 2D cartoon, but each person controlled an avatar and could move around and talk to each other, go to other rooms, change expression, gesture, etc.

          Microsoft bought whatever that was and completely ruined it, just like they ruin everything else they buy.

          It’s like the Midas touch: they make it shiny, expensive, and of little use.

          • bus_factor@lemmy.world
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            20 days ago

            You probably mean Comic Chat. It was actually just an IRC client, and I think it’s still usable (but frustratingly ineffective) today. But there is a website where you can convert IRC logs to it, I think.

    • db2@lemmy.world
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      23 days ago

      Good on them for making it as long as they did.

      They didn’t though, it was sold to a Russian company many years ago.

  • Altima NEO@lemmy.zip
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    22 days ago

    Two wtf here.

    One, icq was still online? I stopped using that one aim got popular and everyone had it.

    And two, vk owns icq??

    • rottingleaf@lemmy.zip
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      23 days ago

      It had. This thing only has branding in common. A different protocol, a different set of features (no contact directory), and while they had the old database of everything, they deemed a good idea to not preserve it, so old UINs don’t exist.

      • CAVOK@lemmy.world
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        23 days ago

        That’s a shame, I still remember mine. Weird how you can remember 7 random digits from 30 years ago…

    • cantrips@lemmy.world
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      22 days ago

      ICQ may be going away but that message sound effect will continue living rent free in my brain until I’m dead.

      • Piranha Phish@lemmy.world
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        22 days ago

        I’ve heard that exact sound used on some computers (lottery maybe?) in gas stations in the US. I’m not sure why they picked that exact sound, but it’s definitely distinct and recognizable.

  • MystikIncarnate@lemmy.ca
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    22 days ago

    Okay, can we all acknowledge that ICQ died when they nuked pretty much all of the accounts for no good reason?

    While it’s true it’s shutting down, it was effectively dead for years. This is just the death rattle.

    • ultratiem@lemmy.ca
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      22 days ago

      Yeah I stopped around the same time. But I didn’t know they were run by VK. That’s interesting.

      • bus_factor@lemmy.world
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        20 days ago

        They were acquired recently.

        Mirabilis created ICQ. AOL bought Mirabilis in 1998. Russian investor DST (which soon became Mail.ru and later VK) bought ICQ from AOL in 2010, probably because Russians were among the few nationalities still using it. Russians were over 25% of the hits, and it was the biggest instant messenger in Russia at the time. They also own VKontakte, hence why they’re directing people there.

  • paddirn@lemmy.world
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    23 days ago

    I remember downloading almost the complete catalogue of Sega Dreamcast games through ICQ, along with plenty of rooms where “A/S/L?” was a common greeting.

  • machinin@lemmy.world
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    23 days ago

    I met an interesting Argentinian girl through ICQ. A co-worker ended up getting their inbox filled with large attachments from an overseas office with fast internet. We were still on dial-up. We just had pop3 access, no online front end. I stayed in the office over night to download the files so the connection wouldn’t be interrupted by someone else accessing the line. To pass the time, I downloaded ICQ and started chatting with the Argentinian girl. She introduced me to this song.

    Great memories.

    • 👍Maximum Derek👍OP
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      22 days ago

      Those are protocols, so the servers/services that run than can come and go. XMPP, which was at least inspired by ICQ, will probably be around forever, similarly.

      • rottingleaf@lemmy.zip
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        22 days ago

        OSCAR is a protocol too. And there were ICQ servers to run locally back then too. There also was some “ICQ for business” or similar.

        I’ve also learned yesterday that people responsible for Escargot (MSN server) have another project, NINA, for AIM and ICQ.

        So maybe these things will be reborn.

        They seem to aim for implementing all of the AOL suite functionality. Maybe after they achieve that we’ll see Xtraz and contact directory from ICQ working again. If that happens, I’m going to cry for a few hours. EDIT: or weeks.

  • snowday@sopuli.xyz
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    22 days ago

    I wonder how many old accounts I have from my childhood floating around, long forgotten, created well before the days of using a password manager

  • Johannes Jacobs@lemmy.jhjacobs.nl
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    22 days ago

    knock knock knock in the middle of the nicht because i forgot to turn off my speakers, and the whole household would wake up 😂

    Oh wauw! I think ICQ 98b was the best version ever! Then everyone switched to MSN, and down hill went the internet (for me anyway)