New York Times: I.M. Generation Is Changing the Way Business Talks

As I've been saying, voicemail is dead. Sun's Tim Bray even says internal e-mail is dead (I don't agree atall -- not in a global company where people are asychronously available...doesTim not sleep?).  Still, instant messaging is taking over.Nowa generation of office workers who grew up with instant messaging has gainedcontrol. They have made I.M. the new black, the latest trend in informationtechnology. Along the way, they have changed how the corporate world conversesand have built a series of new communication applications. Hmm,I thought Yellow was the new black...The article includes coverage of LotusSametime customers such as Intellicare:"One of ournurses answers the phone when you call your doctor in the middle of thenight, and 97 percent of our nurses work from home," said Jeff Forbes,chief information officer. "The nurse can fire off an I.M. to an expertand get a response back without having to interrupt your call." Inconclusion, the Times says it, too:[C]orporations arebuilding new applications on top of instant messaging, taking advantageof the fact that private I.M. networks are insulated from the outside world.The process is reminiscent of when corporate intranets were first built,in the mid-1990's. These private areas on the Web were created as applicationson top of the Web protocols. All of which means the end could benear for business voice mail, as more and more companies adopt instantmessaging.I'm coming thisclose to changing my IBM voicemailgreeting to say "don't bother leaving me a message here, I only checkit once a week.  Need me?  E-mail, IM, or call my mobile."Link: NewYork Times: I.M. Generation Is Changing the Way Business Talks>