CompuServe Information Manager (CIM) was CompuServe Information Service's client software. The program provided a GUI front end to the text-based CompuServe service that was at the time accessed using a standard terminal program with alphanumerical shortcuts. After CompuServe was purchased by AOL in 1998, CompuServe began providing CompuServe branded versions of the AOL client software known as CompuServe 2000 and CompuServe 7 and its protocols as a way to access the service. However, it remained possible to connect to WinCIM via HMI, which became known as the "CompuServe Classic" service.