MacBook Air Portable Genius, 4th Edition

Sending Instant Messages

OS X Mountain Lion includes the Messages application to enable you to exchange instant messages with other people who are online. Note that if you correspond with people who are also using the Messages app and you are all logged in with your own Apple ID, the messages are through the iMessage system, which means they’re exchanged through Apple’s servers, so no charges apply.

Sending read receipts

The first time you open Messages, you must run through a short configuration process to set up your account. This process involves signing in with your Apple ID and deciding whether you want Messages to send out notifications that tell people when you have read the messages they send to you. Such notifications are called read receipts. Here’s what happens:

1. In the Dock, click Messages. The first time you do this, the Welcome to Messages dialog appears.

2. Click Continue. The iMessage Setup dialog appears.

3. Type your Apple ID, type your password, and then click Sign In. Note that if you don’t have an Apple ID, you can create one here by clicking the Create Apple ID button. In the dialog that appears, type your name, the e-mail address you want to use as your Apple ID, and the password you want to use. You must also choose a secret question and specify your birthday. Click Create Apple ID to complete the operation.

4. If you want other people to know when you have read their message, select the Send read receipts check box (see Figure 6.9), and then click ...