Digsby update is faster, lighter and more LinkedIn

[Jeff]

A new update for Digsby has been released, with support for LinkedIn and a much-improved memory footprint.

The update to the popular multi-network instant messenger and social networking tool was released today, and I'm impressed. I've been a fan of Digsby since it first came out earlier this year. My only complaint has been the memory it uses. It was -- to put it politely -- a bit of a hog. This new beta is the result of several months of code optimization, bug squashing and even a few new features, and the results are great.

To compare, I checked the memory footprint of the last version of Digsby (build 15142) and it was using 92MB of RAM. The new version of Digsby is using only 49MB of RAM -- a significant improvement. This alone is reason to upgrade, or to check it out if you haven't already.

The Digsby update also adds support for the LinkedIn social network for professionals. Of course, Digsby already supported MySpace, Facebook and Twitter.

I asked developer Steve Shapiro what was next for Digsby. "We worked hard to optimize the code on this version, making Digsby more efficient and faster. Now we're ready to focus on the Mac and Linux versions."

"We're also ready to begin adding more features, including support for more social networks and group chat," said Shapiro.

There's still no public dates on when we'll see versions for the Mac or Linux, but for Windows users, Digsby is a fantastic product. It's free, with no advertisements, and great connectivity.

The update for this version requires you download from the Digsby site. This is because the update size is bigger than the installer, and there are bugs with the previously released updater component that would cause it to fail.

Check out Digsby:

• Official announcement from the Digsby blog
• Official Digsby website
• Direct download link (15.2 MB; Windows only)

[MrOats]

I was a big fan of Digsby when it came out as well. But a few months ago, I got tired of all the space it took up and all the bugs in it...So this is great news.

I Will definitely download the update! :)