Introduction
Google Talk is an instant communication feature that you can access through your Gmail or Google account. Keeping in touch with friends, family, and business partners is simple through Gmail email accounts, but now communicating has become even easier. You can send a quick message to your best friend or let your boss know that you're running late through Google Talk. The best part about this feature is that there is no software that has to be downloaded to your desktop. It is run entirely through the Google website for faster and easier communication in real time. Google Talk also offers a software version of the program that can be downloaded to your computer, if you so please.
Step 1
Sign up for a free Google and Gmail account that you will use to access Google Talk. You can use your new account as your primary email address, or just use it for chatting purposes. Simply navigate to the Google sign up page and enter in your information, current email address, and password that you would like to use. Click the button to create your account after you have finished filling in the required information.
Step 2
If you are using your Gmail account to access Google Talk, simply head to your Gmail page. On the left side of the page, there should be a chat box, where you will see your contacts. If you are not signed in to the chat program, click on the little arrow next to Chat and hit the sign on link. If others are available to chat on Google Talk, you will see a little green icon next to their name. Just click their name to start chatting with real time instant messages.
Step 3
If you are using another email address that is not Gmail related, you can customize your Google Personalized Homepage to add the Google Talk gadget for easier navigating. Just go to Google.com/ig to start customizing your Google homepage. Click on the add gadgets button to add Google Talk to your page. Now, by simply going to this Google page, you will see your chat box and be able to start conversations with ease.
Step 4
Add your friends to Google Talk so that you can chat with them whenever you are both online. On your Google Talk gadget, there should be an add button, where you can type in your friend's email address or Google Talk username to add them to your contact list. You will now be able to see when they are online and offline. When the green button appears next to their name, they are available for instant messaging through Google Talk.
Step 5
There are tons of fun features that Google Talk allows you to use. If you'd like to share a video with someone through Google Talk, you can paste the URL and a video preview will be shown right in the chat window. Photos can also be shared in this same way.
Tips
If you would like to have all of your conversations saved, use Google Talk with a Gmail email address. These chats will be archived in your Gmail account and can be located and read during your convenience.
