View source for Status message (instant messaging)

{{redirect|Away message|the Ari Lennox extended play|Away Message}}
[[File:Saved statuses.png|thumb|Status messages saved in [[Pidgin (software)|Pidgin]] 2.0]]
A '''status message''' is a function of some [[instant messaging]] applications whereby a user may post a message that appears automatically to other users if they attempt to make contact.  A status message can tell other contacts the user's current status, such as being busy or what the user is currently doing. <ref>[http://help.yahoo.com/tutorials/ms9/mess/im_status2.html Setting Your Messenger Status] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081019142234/http://help.yahoo.com/tutorials/ms9/mess/im_status2.html |date=2008-10-19 }}</ref> It is analogous to the voice message in an [[answering machine]] or [[voice mail]] system.  However, status messages may be displayed even if the person is present.  They are often updated much more frequently than messages in answering machines, and thus may serve as a means of instant, limited "publication" or indirect communication. Generally, the available status is denoted by a '''green dot''', while the busy status is denoted by a '''red dot'''  on most of the instant messengers.

Whereas answering machine or voice mail messages often have a generic greeting to leave a message, status messages more often contain a description of where the person is at the moment or what they are doing. Because most instant messaging [[Client (computing)|clients]] indicate to users when their online contacts are away before they send a message, more often than not away messages are meant to be read in lieu of sending a message, rather than a response.  Away messages are not to be confused with ''idle messages'', which is an automatic reply to a message when the messaging client has determined that the replier is not at his or her computer.

In the [[Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol|XMPP]] protocol for instant messaging, the status of a user is signalled by an element called ''presence''.  This provides a variety of functions, including the option to subscribe to the status so that the recipient is continuously updated with changes in status.<ref>{{citation |url=http://media.wiley.com/product_data/excerpt/37/07645495/0764549537.pdf |title=Introduction to Instant Messaging |publisher=Wiley}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Finger protocol]]

==References==
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[[Category:Internet culture]]
[[Category:Instant messaging]]

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