Status options should not appear if no IM accounts are set up

This is now consistent in the specification.

For the text field: "The broadcast field should be present if you have at least one broadcast account set up." There is no specification that it should be disabled (though I guess it would be nice to disable it whenever you have no Internet connection). It is irrelevant whether Gwibber happens to be running.

For the IM status items: "Each item should be sensitive only if at least one of the accounts you have set up in Empathy supports that status, regardless of whether Empathy is currently running."

Okay, but in the case of no accounts set up, what is the rationale for graying out one and removing entirely the other?

Oops, disregard last comment. I saw the rewritten specification now and it says that removal is the case for both.

It is not the case of the current implementation, though. Will this land for Lucid?

I changed the description. It is now clear the Gwibber is following the specification (except for Bug #549000), while Empathy is not.

wow, this would remove clutter and add constraint guiding the user towards setting up his accounts properly.

I also suggest, once the IM Setup is completed, to replace the account configuration link on the bottom of the Me Menu with an ON | OFF toggle for IM.

guess i gotta change my mind on this!
Presence is not only relevant to the web, to IM, but also to the local system.

e.g.:
Once i'm set to busy, the local system should adapt its notification behaviour to that.

Windicator example:
i'm watching a movie in totem, at some point i decide to go "busy", so that nothing will pop-up in my face while enjoying the movie, so i touch the Totem Presence Windicator to make me "busy".

Presence control belongs independent of IM.
IM can be a client of Presence ( Me Menu ), but it should not be able to render Presence controls inactive..

The concept of "Me" extends beyond IM and twitter.