AIMCC Technote 7

Stored IM


Q: What is Stored IM?
A: Stored IM is a feature that allows one to send IMs to buddies who are offline. The IMs are stored on AOL's servers until the recipient signs on and retrieves them. This feature is sometimes called Offline IM.

Q: How do I configure Stored IM preferences?
A:


Q: How do I receive stored IMs?
A: Depending on how your client/plugin is designed, you will generally want to request stored IMs shortly after signing-on or on demand. To request stored IMs, call IAccSession's get_Property(AccSessionProp_StoredImManager) to get an IAccStoredImManager*. Then call IAccStoredImManager's DeliverIms(NULL,...) to request all stored IMs. In the future it may be possible to request individual stored IMs.

Incoming stored IMs are routed just like standard IMs, via BeforeImReceived and OnImReceived events. It is recommended that clients/plugins clearly distinguish stored IMs from standard IMs in UI. You can tell a received IM was stored by calling IAccIm's get_Property(AccImProp_Flags) and testing AccImFlags_Store.

OnDeliverStoredImsResult fires when the request is complete.

Q: How do I send a stored IM?
A: Sending a stored IM is similar to sending a standard IM. To make it a stored IM, call IAccIm's put_Property(AccImProp_Flags) with flag AccImFlags_Store set.

Q: My attempt to send a stored IM failed. Why?
A:
Q: Should my client/plugin automatically send an IM as a stored IM if an attempt to send a standard IM fails or if the recipient is known to be offline?
A: It can, but keep in mind it can be counter-productive to store IMs such as "Are you there?"


rev. 2007/05/21