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New Facebook 'Chit Chat' Allows Users To Stay Connected

In homes and offices around the globe, social networking is becoming more of a procrastination epidemic than a mere way to connect with friends and family. With constant status updates, videos, photographs, questionnaires, notes, wall posts, inboxes and a plethora of flash games, it really is no wonder that more important assignments and projects fall by the wayside.

Facebook is perhaps the most welcome distraction in the world and it comes with the perfect excuse: "I'm only online to have chat running in the background." As a race, we humans truly are sneaky.

While it may be true that Facebook is kept open in its own separate browser tab throughout the day just so that we can have the chat feature open, the unfortunate truth is that every other feature of the social networking site is dangerously interesting. Some have gone so far as to say that it is addictive. The solution to the problem? IM (instant messaging) clients designed specifically for Facebook chat. Chit Chat for Facebook is currently one of the most popular Facebook desktop applications around.

Chit Chat is a Facebook desktop tool that allows users to communicate with their contacts without needing to log in via their web browser. Small, yet effective, this application runs unobtrusively in the background and allows people to go about their daily business without causing too much of a distraction. Chit Chat's simple design comes in a neatly wrapped package that uses the tiniest fraction of your computer's CPU. This means that the rest of your more important programs run at optimum speed with no interference from the Facebook desktop application.

This chat application's user interface is basic and self-explanatory. A small side window notifies users when contacts are online and available for communication. A simple double click on a contacts name opens a separate chat window. All conversations are kept apart in tab form, so it is relatively easy to keep track of and switch between contacts. That being said, there is one downside to the user interface: aesthetically, it does border on unappealing. Perhaps a polished appearance is too much to ask for from a program that is designed to be simplistic and fully functional. This free Facebook tool is compatible with Windows Vista, Windows XP and Windows 7. This means that it runs smoothly and efficiently on all recent computers and laptops with virtually no glitching. These pros make up for its less-than-beautiful appearance.
While it may look drab, the chat application is marvelously well thought out. Users are notified when contacts log in or out. Small, inconspicuous windows flicker in the bottom left hand corner of your computer screen to notify you of the arrival or departure of a contact. There is no need to click between screens to check who is online which means that you can give your day's work the full attention it deserves. While chatting, Chit Chat informs you when the other party is typing a response and will also save a conversation history should you wish to keep track of your correspondences.

Another fantastic feature of this program is that you no longer require your web browser to update your status or post on a contact's wall. So if you need to wish someone a happy birthday, you can easily do so without logging into your Facebook account and spending an hour poking around to see what everyone else has been up to. While we might not want to admit it, Facebook weakens even the strongest constitution on the best of days.

The one small negative aspect of this Facebook tool is that it can take several minutes for the log-in process to reach completion. In this day and age, hardly anyone is capable of hanging around waiting for a connection to be established and unfortunately, Chit Chat tends to login at a snail's pace. This also means that it may take several minutes for the application to notify you of a contact's online/offline status as well.
Overall, Chit Chat seems to be an application that fulfills its objective: to facilitate communication between the user and his or her Facebook contacts. It might not come with a large variety of extras or a snazzy interface, however, if a simple and non-distracting Facebook desktop program is what you are looking for then this one is for you. Download now.