TechnologyCrowd

Over the years I have created various e-mail accounts as well as the addition of various social networking accounts.  Some of the e-mail accounts are old and barely used, but I have had them for years so I am not ready to delete them, but checking them all on a regular basis can be a pain.  It can also be time consuming to log into Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, Linkedin for updates.

That is where Digsby comes in, it allows you to manage all of your accounts and contacts in one place.  I was able to remove my Gtalk and Windows Messenger that I used to update me when I received e-mail on those accounts.  I was also able to add the POP3 mail accounts from my Internet provider and website.  You get popup messages when there is a new e-mail and you can click on the items for a preview to determine whether you want to read the whole message right away.

It also eliminated the need to login to Facebook, MySpace and Linkedin.  There are several preference settings and you can view news items and updates as a popup and click on them for more information.  This has been a hug time saver for me since you can see the message and determine whether you want to respond without having to check the website.

When I first began using Digsby the Twitter functionality was fairly basic, but they have made several updates based on feedback from users.  It is promising to see that they are continuing to enhance the software and taking feedback from users to heart.  I now manage my two Twitter accounts through the system which has a built in URL shortening and I am very pleased with the functionality.  You can even update statuses for multiple accounts and social networks all at once with the option to checkmark accounts to include.

Another feature that I am not a big user of is the ability to have multiple chat accounts since I don’t spend a lot of time chatting.  If you have chat contacts all using different networks, you don’t have to login to each one to be online, you just connect through Digsby and you can see them all in one place.  If you chat a lot or have contacts on multiple platforms this is excellent functionality.

One issue that came up and resulted in a lot of feedback from users is how they are able to offer the software for “free.”  The installer provides an option for adding a Digsby Ask Toolbar, which does not need to be selected for installation.  The other revenue producer for the company is an option to allow you to contribute unused CPU power to sponsored grid computing projects.  I personally do not have a problem with this since it happens when your PC is idle and the projects support beneficial research projects for things such as help Conquer Cancer, Discovering Dengue Drugs, FightAIDS@Home, and The Clean Energy Project.  This does not have to be turned on for the install, if you would like more information before installing there is a page on the site for more information.

Overall I am extremely pleased with the software and looking forward to future enhancements as social networking continues to evolve.  This has allowed me to save time but having everything in one place.

Disclaimer:  I want to be up front with the fact that I am an affiliate for this program and get commission for anyone that downloads after following these links, but this recommendation is my true opinion of the software that I currently use every day.  I had planned on writing a review before I knew that the affiliate option was available, when I was researching the additional features I came across the option and thought that it made sense to apply if I planned to recommend it anyway.