4 ms·
Instant does mean synchronous, as in instantly, immediately. And that is because when it was invented asynchronous communication is by default, as users cannot
by signatoremo 4y ago
Instant does mean synchronous, as in instantly, immediately. And that is because when it was invented asynchronous communication is by default, as users cannot afford to be online all the time. So instant is the feature. You may argue it has changed, but it is false to dispute the original intent.
- inetknght 4y agoNo, synchronous means synchronous. Instant means instantly, sure. But that does not mean synchronous. You can send an instant message. That's instant. It does not mean the recipient must, or even should feel that they must, reply immediately. You won't know if the other person has read your message and decided to reply or not. That's not synchronous at all. A voice conversation, on the other hand, is synchronous. You know when the other person has decided to leave the conversation or simply to not reply. That is synchronous. > You may argue it has changed, but it is false to dispute the original intent. I am not arguing it has changed. I am stating that it simply isn't what you claim it to be. That might be how you use it but that doesn't mean that everyone should feel obligated to.
- auggierose 4y agoYou can also send an email instantly. So, obviously, in this context instant means synchronous, and not just immediately, otherwise there would be no point to put it into the name as a differentiating factor compared to email.
- Izkata 4y agoNowadays it's usually instant, but back when I first got online and me and my friends used AIM, email would often take several minutes and occasionally hours to arrive.