I too like the differences between email and instant messaging. I don't want convergence. I want people to choose an appropriate channel for communicating with me. I want phone calls to interrupt me (unless I'm ignoring them), texts to interrupt me in a lightweight, ignorable way, IMs to interrupt me in a less-ignorable way when I'm logged in, and email to be ignorable until I check my email. Colleagues know I check my work email pretty consistently when I'm working and not at all otherwise. My friends have a rough idea when I check my personal email, but they know I'm inconsistent.
I like that each mode of communication has a different flavor. You can't unify chat and email because the etiquette and expectations are different. An email means something different from an IM that contains the same content.
I think most people will agree with us on this, too, even if they don't articulate it - they may not be able to because they never considered this kind of hybridization. I think people will say "it feels wrong" or just "lol wave sux." Or it will just generally
There is a real place for large, threaded, time-delayed packets of info. Email is great for this in many ways. I want to see innovation that expands on email's strengths.
I like that each mode of communication has a different flavor. You can't unify chat and email because the etiquette and expectations are different. An email means something different from an IM that contains the same content.