Ayttm is an instant messenger program, supporting various protocols such as MSN, Yahoo, AIM, Jabber, and more. It is a fork of Everybuddy, and initially aims to address its problems. It should not segfault when you use it, and should be almost instantly usable by your mother. Almost useless prefs should be hidden, reserved for "advanced" users, and things have to work without wondering what this or that will produce.
