Google Talk facts for kids

Google Talk was a computer program made by Google. It allowed people to send instant messages to each other and even make voice calls over the internet. Think of it like an early version of apps you might use today for chatting and calling friends! It worked on Windows computers and also had a version you could use in your web browser.

Google Talk was built using a special system called XMPP. This system helped different chat programs talk to each other. Google Talk was first released in 2005. It was a popular way for many people to connect online before other chat apps became widely used.

What Was Google Talk?

Google Talk was a free service that let you do two main things:

• Instant Messaging: You could type messages back and forth with your friends in real-time. It was like sending quick notes to each other.
• Voice Calls: You could also talk to people using your computer's microphone and speakers. This was known as Voice over IP (VoIP), which means making calls using the internet instead of a regular phone line.

How Did It Work?

Google Talk used your internet connection to send messages and make calls. When you typed a message, it would quickly travel through the internet to your friend's computer. For voice calls, your voice was turned into digital data and sent over the internet, then turned back into sound on the other end.

The program was simple to use. You would sign in with your Google username and password. Then, you could see a list of your friends who were also online and start chatting or calling them.

The End of Google Talk

Google Talk was a useful tool for many years. However, as technology changed, Google started to create new and improved ways for people to communicate. Over time, Google introduced other services like Google Hangouts and later Google Chat. These new services offered more features, like video calls and group chats, which Google Talk didn't have as easily.

Because of these newer and better options, Google decided to stop supporting Google Talk. The service was officially discontinued in 2017. This meant that people could no longer use the Google Talk program or its web version. Users were encouraged to switch to the newer Google communication tools.

Even though Google Talk is no longer around, it was an important step in how we communicate online today. It helped many people connect and showed how useful instant messaging and internet calls could be.

Images for kids

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  A screenshot showing the Google Talk, Labs Edition preview release

See also

In Spanish: Google Talk para niños