You may have noticed some changes to your GMail lately. First was the introduction of “Group Chat” functionality, allowing you and several of your coworkers to bitch about your boss to each other via the Internet instead of the water cooler. Then came the new emoticons, which I generally dislike as they are cheesy and just plain ugly in my opinion (with the exception of the monkey…try him out –> “:(|)” … he’s my favorite). Finally, there has been the added option of color-coding emails, which I have yet to try out, but am excited to see how quickly I turn my inbox into a virtual pile of Rainbow Brite vomit.

Today, GMail has outdone themselves, ending months of patient waiting by AIM nerds everywhere, as now your AIM buddies can be incorporated into your GChat friends. Please, stop your thunderous applause friends. I know you’re excited. I, too, have been anxiously awaiting the moment when my two friends who still use AIM in any capacity can be reached through my Gmail.

In case you’re wondering how to get your little AIM buddy list appearing, simply go to your Settings tab and click on the Chat settings. There should be an option now to set up your AIM list.

And yes, in case you were keeping score, Google is still planning to take over the world.

[Thanks, Mashable!]