Tonight I went out on a limb and tried one of the Jabber based clients for instant messaging and news feed reading, and I have to say I'm very impressed. I went with the Gush distribution, and as I understand it, it is a very stable and reliable release. And so far, I must say it reflects that.
I've added some of my favorite news feeds, and it's a great display and system for viewing and adding them. It's also (so far) a great way to keep track of your sites, and communicate new ideas. I think it's going to be an excellent way to communicate within a team, and I'm going to try to get a member or two of the Effuse and Affectus to try it out. (Hint, so go install...)
If you're ready to contact me, or already have it installed in any form, please feel free to add me as my identity is jezz@2entwine.net. I'm really excited to have the opportunity to try this thing out on it's full potential!
Update: I put the wrong identity, I missed an 'e'. Thanks Wes!