Perhaps the most frustrating aspect of instant messaging is the sheer number of different services and clients that are available. While there has been a degree of convergence over the years, there is still a high chance that if you want to be able to communicate with all of your friends, family and colleague through instant messaging, you’re going to need to have a few clients installed. This might not be the case if you try out Miranda NG, though.

Out of the box there is support for a fairly impressive range of chat protocols – IM, GG, ICQ, IRC, Jabber, MSN and Yahoo – but this lit can be greatly expanded through the use of plugins. Amongst others, it is possible to add support for Facebook chat, Twitter, Skype and XFire.

Miranda NG

Available in 32- and 64-bit varieties, Miranda NG is a portable app that can be run from a USB drive. Development may have stalled with the apps predecessor Miranda IM, but this new branch is being constantly updated.

But it is not just protocols that can be added through plugins – there are a raft of other features that can be bolted on. Just as with any IM tool worth its salt, there are also a number of skins available that enable you to personalize the look of the app.

You can find out more and download a free copy of the chant client by paying a visit to the Miranda NG review page – there are 32- and 64-bit versions available.