How to see your available online contacts in Yahoo! Mail.

You can instant message with anyone in your contacts list who’s currently online. Currently, it is only possible to chat with other Yahoo! users.

To see who your available contacts are:

1. Be sure that you're signed in to Yahoo! Messenger in Mail.
   Tip: The yellow bolt icon () to the right of Online Contacts on the left side of the Yahoo! Mail window means you're signed in. If the bolt is gray (), click it to sign in.
2. Click the triangle to the left of Online Contacts to display all available contacts.

The icon next to each contact’s name or ID shows their availability:

• Available: They are available to chat.
• Idle: They are online, but they haven’t used their computer in a while.
• Busy: They are online and can chat, but they prefer not to be disturbed.