The Buddy List is a small window that appears at the right-hand side of your screen when you sign in, showing you which of your friends are currently online.

From your Buddy List, you can invite a group of friends to a chat room, or send an individual friend an email or Instant Message, all with the click of a mouse. It's an invaluable way of keeping in contact with family, friends, colleagues or other online acquaintances.

To create a Buddy List for yourself, just sign in, go to Buddy and click Setup, or follow our easy step-by-step guide.

Note: You can add someone to your Buddy List only if they are a member or are using the free Instant Messenger service. (If you have friends that do not use Instant Messenger, tell them about it.)

You can view your Buddy List at any time. By default, your Buddy List will also appear automatically every time you sign in. You can change this in your Buddy Preferences by unticking Show me my Buddy List at sign on.