[Wocky] Buddy Authorization

[Jonathan Reed]

I understand that one of the big selling points of jabber is 
"individual privacy" and that they want it to be like meeting in real 
life, so both people are aware of the interaction, but I find it 
rather frustrating that each time I add someone to my buddy list (or 
I get added to theirs) I have to deal with the authorization, or 
'handshake' as the jabber docs call it.

Is there a setting on the server for this?  Or is the idea that I 
should only use my 'buddy list' for people whom I want to authorize 
(and monitor their status), and if I wish to chat with someone not in 
my buddy list, I should simply open a new chat directly with that 
person and bypass the list entirely?

This seems like it might be difficult to migrate from the AIM mindset 
(or even the xzewd mindset, if you will), where your buddy list is 
more like an address book so you can quickly start an IM with 
someone.  In the Jabber world, it seems like it's more of a trust 
relationship.  I understand the concerns obviously (online stalking 
by knowning how long someone is idle, etc), but in the Zephyr world, 
zlocate and finger provide that information pseudo-anonymously, 
perhaps our Jabber server should be configured the same way?

-Jon
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Jonathan Reed

jdreed at mit.edu
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