I just purchased 123flashchat hosting (cam/audio/text) for my forum. Which has different clients (html, for phone, ipad,etc) and can very easily be turned into live support chat.
You probably won't need the audio/cam, so it would be 30$ a month for 50 max connections. There is 10 person free edition though.
Has anyone used ResponseQue?
Just use Skype with a seperate account, simple.
Skype is a good option, many companies are doing this now.
MSN has a nice chat tool you can use (last i checked... 2009 now that i think of it...)
and lastly, IRC.
MSN is unreliable and platform dependant, IRC could do, but then again you need a server and all.
Skype is widely used, a lot of people already have it installed, supports all platforms, you can make buttons which immediatly opens skype and calls from a webpage and there's no need for an external server so no extra ruckus.
Actually, the only time i've had issues with MSN is when using third party clients. This snippit was from microsoft, and worked very well.
IRC you can get a free channel from some places, but you are right, it's not ideal.
Skype quality has dropped a craptonne in the last 4 months, i don't know why. I don't think this has to do with MS owning it yet, but it's just terrible.
I'm surprised none of you have mentioned ClickDesk - it hooks straight up into Gtalk/Skype and is ridiculously easy to set up and use. Check it out guys.
Well Kayako is the best. It's the most professional live chat software.
And as there's a saying.... Quality comes at a price.....
No idea why this was bumped, but I feel no one mentioned this important titbit.
None is better the one that isn't 24/7. If you do not have staff to man it, do not do it. It's annoying to see live support online 3 hours a day...
I have just recently started to use 123flashchat for my Audio/Video chat room and i absolutely love it!!