Article note: It's an interesting history, and I certianly do have fond memories of AIM, both the interpersonal kind and the "OSCAR doesn't support encryption" kind.
It's also interesting that it completely ignores IRC in its telling.
It ought always to be remembered, that literary institutions are founded and endowed for the common good, and not for the private advantage of those who resort to them for education. It is not that they may be enabled to pass through life in an easy or reputable manner, but that their mental powers may be cultivated and improved for the benefit of society.