What was it?
The IM client that defined late-90s/2000s chat. Buddy lists, away messages, door slam sound. AIM bots and chatrooms.
What happened?
Verizon-owned Oath shut down AIM after 20 years. Servers went dark December 15, 2017. Decades of chat history gone.
Migration Guide
Discord, Telegram, Signal, iMessage, or any modern IM. Nostalgia: jabber.org via Pidgin.
Timeline & context
AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) shut down in December 2017, 9 years ago. It sat in the design category, where Soft.xyz tracks 7 discontinued products in total. If you are still running it in production, the migration path above is the shortest route off it.
FAQ
Why did AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) shut down?
Verizon-owned Oath shut down AIM after 20 years. Servers went dark December 15, 2017. Decades of chat history gone.
What should I migrate AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) to?
No drop-in replacement is tracked yet — check the design category for current options.
Is there a free alternative to AOL Instant Messenger (AIM)?
Not among the tracked alternatives.