And whereas most online chat and communal surfing programs are limited to one or two operating systems, sometimes only Windows, ICQ supports most clients to some degree, including Palm and Windows CE handhelds. AOL probably understood the power of instant messaging before the rest of us. It bought Ubique, the pioneer, in September 1995, when the idea was still permeating through the web, then sold it again, in May 1998, to IBM's Lotus Software division. Just a month later, AOL took over Mirabilis, the developer of ICQ, swapping a loser for a winner. It was a smart move, and one that will be hard for any start-up to overcome.
Success breeds success, of course.
But if you do take up communal surfing, don't be surprised if you keep bumping into Israelis.