I have the opportunity to convert a bunch of people away from SMS

I have the opportunity to convert a bunch of people away from SMS.

SMS sucks, Whatsapp also sucks because it's still tied to a carrier phone number.

What's the most worthwhile platform-independent messaging application right now?

Telegram and Wire are the best options

telegram needs a phone number, wire is the only choice

The only truly free answer is to use OTR over XMPP. Something like ChatSecure for iOS and android, OTR over XMPP is available for mac, windows, Linux, I name it.

The other suggestions have proprietary server side code or are just complete black boxes. Don't trust the shills, op.

I'd rather use SMS than have to use half a dozen chat apps for my different friends

Let's pretend that you can force your friends to all use the same thing.

Good joke, you'll end up using every app listed in this thread at once

>Whatsapp also sucks because it's still tied to a carrier phone number.

The value of a network is equal to the number of its participants squared.

Stay buttblasted.

Tox.

What's wrong with SMS?

IRC

requires phone carrier service, high latency, inconsistent cross-platform presentation, lack of receipt confirmation

>Whatsapp also sucks because it's still tied to a carrier phone number.
Whatsapp is great because it's tied to a phone number, no extra account creation needed.

You lose the phone number or service and you're screwed, you can't just log in with an account on any device

That is why you transfer to a new number before that happens dumbass. Also it has 2factor email verification now.

Wire. The end.

>requires phone carrier service
I have that anyway.
>high latency
I haven't tested ist, but I'm sure it's "fast enough".
>inconsistent cross-platform presentation
Text is text.
>lack of receipt confirmation
Fair point.

Whatsapp

If you're not using whatsapp already you're retarded.
Tell me how underage are you and why you don't have a personal phone number.

Depending on your service or circumstances, you don't always have the option to transfer a number.

You're also excluding anyone who doesn't have cell phone service to begin with.

Requiring the number also sucks for use with non-phone devices. Whatsapp thought it was an acceptable solution to use a phone as a relay to a web client.

>anyone who doesn't have cell phone service
Kids?

>>high latency
>I haven't tested ist, but I'm sure it's "fast enough".
>>inconsistent cross-platform presentation
>Text is text.

it's common to have group messages appear in different orders for different participants depending on their carrier, location, or client. there is no sequence verification.

poors.
but they can eat a dick, right?

Everyone just uses WhatsApp here. Which is nice, you don't have to use godawful SMS anymore like a fucking caveman and don't have to have a bunch of messaging apps.

The SMS app is basically a 2FA app now

If you're poor why do you need a messaging app then?
Texting your other hobo friends?
Only literal kids and manchilds don't have a phone number

regardless of your contempt for particular demographics, you should be understand the principle of why a number-based system is inferior to a generic user account

Its not, that's just your opinion.
Phone number is better for me.

>beautiful unique numerical ID
>shitty naming system
Ok

Signal obviously

>go register for some website
>my name is already taken

Beautiful. I wonder if I could get my name if I sued the site.

Facebook Messenger - it can run anywhere, even on the desktop!

what really grinds my gears is jewgle could have solved this shit a decade ago by making an imessage equivalent the standard and just shoved it down the normies throats like they did with chrome, and even ifags would be using that right now instead, but no, google keeps releasing half-ass retarded shit like google chat/talk, hangouts, android messenger, allo, duo, probably 3 more abortions I never even heard of, if they could stick to at least one goddamn name for the thing maybe people would give it a chance but at this point I wouldn't even bother trying to convert my contacts to a google messaging platform because I know it's just going to get abandoned and replaced with some other crap in a year

reminder that any """privacy software""" that demands you real identity as a precondition of using it is a pure fraud

this includes your telephone number which you paid for with a credit card

IRC
Stand up and unreality server on Debian Jessie.
They make IRC clients for phones, pc, Mac... Literally everything

You think you have it bad, my fucking normie friends all use iMessage. I had to spend 4 dollars on Cydia on my oldass iPod touch to get remote messaging app that lets me use my desktop browser to remotely use iMessage on my iPod that needs to be charging 24/7 because the battery is almost done for.

I don't care how many gooks are monitoring our conversation my friends fucking deserve it.