I've never been a particularly big fan of Yahoo! products and so I tested Yahoo! Messenger with more than a little trepidation.

Whenever a product is specifically designed for Windows users and is then finally rolled out for Mac, the results can be less then impressive - and so it seems with Yahoo! Messenger. First the good points. The interface is fine. There's nothing that makes it stand out from other Instant Messenger interfaces but it's clean and not cluttered with ads or banners. My main problem is that I have hardly any Yahoo! contacts but fortunately, this latest version finally adds support for MSN contacts.

To add an MSN contact, you have to CMD-click on the main interface and select 'Add new contact'. I thought this could have been made clearer and it only allows the adding of contacts one-by-one - not entire accounts, which is a real pain if you've got lots of contacts. You can also add LCS and Lotus Sametime contacts, although who on Earth uses those nowadays I have no idea.

Overall, using Yahoo! Messenger is a frustrating experience. For instance, I was pleased to read it apparently iSight support (unlike the basic version of MSN Messenger for Mac) but to my dismay, it simply doesn't work. There's also a possibility to phone people as with Skype by purchasing Phone Out credit but I really don't see the point of this unless the rates and plans are more competitive than Skype, which they're not.

Yahoo! Messenger will only really appeal to Yahoo! die-hards that have a Yahoo! account and haven't yet discovered the pleasures of Adium.

Download Yahoo! Messenger 3.0.2.235554 in Softonic

Nimbuzz can log you in directly to MSN, ICQ or Yahoo! and allows you to chat, send files to other users or start conferencing with friends. Social networks like Facebook , MySpace or Twitter are also supported by the client .

After installing Nimbuzz, you need to create a new account or log onto a pre-existing one. With the help of the setup wizard, your login information for service providers such as Skype, Google Talk, MSN, ICQ, Jabber orAIM. You'll quickly be notified whether your login has been successful or not.

Nimbuzz imports contacts from the respective messenger services. You can then send messages, photos or files to one or more friends through the Nimbuzz menu as well as make phone calls. However, this feature is one of the most unreliable, and you may find it difficult to establish a connection.

Nimbuzz is an interesting free chat client for Mac but is still a little rough around the edges.

Download Nimbuzz 1.2.0 in Softonic

I use Adiumfor Instant Messaging on my Mac simply because its flexible, powerful and ridiculously easy to use.

However, Trillian is another option for those seeking to connect over multiple networks. Trillian has been available on Windows for quite some time now, but the developers have now released it for Mac. Firstly, note that it only works on Intel-based Mac, Mac OS X 10.6 or later so PPC users or those on older OS X versions are out of luck - at least for now. You also need to sign up for a Trillian Astra Account which is quite lengthy and annoying.

Once you've got through the registration however, the biggest problem you will have is adding a new IM network. It should be as easy as clicking the "+" symbol in the client window but its not - this only allows you to add a new contact or a new group. As a result, I found it impossible to add any of my favorite IM networks such as MSN and Google Chat. Try to access the Help file and you get the message "Help is not available for Trillian".

Apart from that, the interface of Trillian is at least very simple. However, there is no support for video or audio and I can't see any reason why anyone would really want to change from Adium to this - not at this Alpha stage anyway.

Download Trillian 1.1.0.6 in Softonic

Adium is already a popular instant messaging application for Mac offering as it does access to multiple protocols and accounts. You can use it to connect to AIM, MSN, Yahoo!

, Google Talk, Jabber and other chat services all at the same time, meaning you only need one chat program open for all your different accounts.

Simply connect your portable device and run the program directly from it: all your profile and account info are stored on your device, meaning there's no need to set-up your client on each new machine you use.

Download Portable Adium 1.3.2 r40 in Softonic

There are tons if image effects applications out there that can add new and unusual effects to your images although few that are as cool as Q@mera.

Q@mera consists of over 150 original retro 3D effects that can be applied to both still pictures and video. There's absolutely everything here from cheesy 1980s video effects to vintage camera emulators. All images are created in high definition PNG format with alpha level channel transparency. In the free version, you can apply these effects at will although if you upgrade and get a license, you can integrate the effects into messenger clients such as Yahoo and Skype but not Adium or Gchat.

You can combine retro effects to come up with some truly original filters and images that few others will be able to recreate. However, remembering what kind of combinations you used to achieve the effect is tricky but you can use Command+B to bookmarks the complete set of settings which you've used. However, some of the effects are clearly dubious in quality - many just look like variations on colorfully pixelated effects that almost obscure the image completely.

For those of us who can't get enough of PhotoBooth, or who bought a Mac before the camera came built-in, Q@mera is still a lot of retro fun.

Download Q@mera 1.100 in Softonic