Just one more thing about Pidgin before I move onto other subjects for a while. I really like the buddy pounce feature where you can be notified when someone comes back online again. Unlike normal notification systems on IM programs, this buddy pounce program is tailor-made for one specific contact only and ignores everyone else. Which is perfect if you are waiting for a specific person to make an appearance online and you don’t want to sit there all day staring at your computer screen, drumming your fingers impatiently, muttering “come on, come on….”

As you can see, you can opt to be notified when the specific user does a variety of things, not just sign on. When they do the desired action, you can then specify what you want to do back and how you want to be notified that they’re doing what you want to be notified that they’re doing. I’ve even attached Han Solo’s blaster noise to each pounce so I can be sure not to miss the notification when it comes in later.

But each pounce is only a one-off deal so when you’re notified, the pounce expires and you have to set it up again for next time. But I find it completely invaluable for being told instantly when an online contact, who’s doing their level best to avoid me, tries to sneak online without me finding out - even the ones that owe me money!

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2. Pidgin IM plugins, hotkeys and shortcuts
3. Cleaning up your IM contact lists
4. Featured Early Adopter Download: Integrate Skype IM into Pidgin
5. AIM’s Smarterchild is my new know-it-all chat Gmail buddy