Trillian Astra beta goes public, multi-protocol chat for everyone
The application has been in private testing for what seems like forever, but a few months ago the company started giving out beta invitations like there was no tomorrow. So removing the "private" label was probably just a formality.
Trillian Astra is available for Windows 200, XP, Vista, or 7. The company is working on Mac, iPhone, and web clients, but those aren't available to the public yet. You can sign up to be notified when those versions are available at the download page. Or you could just use Pidgin or Adium.
[via CNet]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
coolcapnc said 1:09PM on 6-10-2009
I do love Windows 200, haha.
I took a look at the features and decided to stick with Digsby as some of the premium features of Trillian Astra are free for Digsby.
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rTwelve said 3:02PM on 6-10-2009
I access Facebok on my Windows 200 computer. ;)
GameDrop said 1:17PM on 6-10-2009
I tried the beta, and the fact that you need to have an Astra account, and that you need Astra running (required, see the screenshot) is unacceptable.
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Zerbe said 1:28PM on 6-10-2009
Was great back in the day.
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marm0laid said 2:21PM on 6-10-2009
They want you to pay to use certain features after a set amount of time (I think it was 20 or 30 days).
Yes, they want you to PAY for a mother effing product that is in ALPHA.
Read that again. ALPHA.
What happens if I pay for the pro version, and when the product goes final.....wait, lets just say it goes to BETA, and I am not satisfied with the way the "pro" features are developing. Do I get my money back? No.
No company should be charging you to use a product that you are HELPING THEM DEVELOP. Yes, by using the alpha version, we are helping them. And they want us to pay for a product that isn't finished. It's epic how ridiculous this is. Not saying I wouldn't pay for the pro features when the product is final, because I liked them a lot for the brief period I could use them, but there is no way in an ice cold hell that I am going to pay for something before I see what the finished product looks like. Cerulean Studios is a joke.
Stick to Pidgin.
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Josh said 4:16PM on 6-10-2009
I agree with everything you said. But I do have to point out that Trillian Astra has been in Beta for like... a year and a half. It was just private. They are opening it up to the public now. So it is, and has been, in beta and not alpha like you said.
mko said 2:44PM on 6-10-2009
An article about multi protocol im clients on Windows without Miranda?
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stupidongpinoy said 2:46PM on 6-10-2009
Ok. I just test this and this is not recommended for those who uses magnifying glass just to read. The interface is good but tiny and I can't do a minimal look with this new interface like what In do in digsby. I love the video quality in Yahoo on that but I don't like the integration of facebook with it. After an hour mesmerizing it's interface, I go back to digsby. Trillian Astra is way too far to be a replacement for digsby
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marm0laid said 3:02PM on 6-10-2009
This should not be a reason not to use Astra. My comment above discusses the real issues. If you have trouble reading the text, there IS a minimal view as well as a few others. And the font/icon sizes can be increased. Doesn't sound like you spent enough time with the software to make a fair judgment.
stupidongpinoy said 9:24AM on 6-11-2009
can't chat on facebook on astra. I still feel it is incomplete. for so long, I thought this is as good as digsby but it's still so far. I think it is better looking in XP than in vista
aanidaani said 3:24PM on 6-10-2009
Trillian was popular ten years ago. It's so bloated and crippled (unless you pay for pro). Pidgin (www.pidgin.im) or Miranda (www.miranda-im.org) are far better options for multi-protocol support.
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marm0laid said 3:27PM on 6-10-2009
No. It's obvious you have not even used Astra. It is not bloated whatsoever. It is actually quite good. The problem is that they want you to pay for features in an ALPHA product. Not cool.
Why are so many people spreading misinformation about Astra?
Actually try it before commenting next time. Thanks.
Richard said 8:08AM on 6-11-2009
I tried Pidgin a while back and it needed a hell of a lot of configuring and additional plugins to get it to something resembling Digsby.
Whilst I appreciate the Pidgin is more flexible and open, quite frankly it's far quicker and easier just to go with Digsby - even with its flaws.
NyaR said 4:11PM on 6-10-2009
I liked the alpha in terms of features, but it lacked skins. Why they want to make it look like a mobile phone is beyond me. Id perfer something that looks like the rest of the OS....
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HalfAzn said 1:35AM on 6-11-2009
I'm liking it so far. I looked at the purchase page and the highlighted features for the pro version didn't even seem that important to me...integrated history viewer, ability to change theme colors, video chat, multiple sign on locations.
I think once my pro trial runs out I'll still be happy with the basic version as long as ads don't start popping up or anything.
I really like the way it handles tabs and the new iChat text format.
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