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 Reminder: Make a difference and win an Xbox 360 + games
Reminder: Make a difference and win an Xbox 360 + games

dwergs says ( 27 Oct 2007 ):

 

This is just a quick post to remind you all that in the next couple of days (ending October 31st), four games and one Xbox 360 will be randomly given away among those who join Microsoft's i'm Initiative via this link, download Windows Live Messenger 8.1 from there (but no need to install it if you're already using it) and follow these exact instructions we posted before.

Over 600 people have currently entered the contest, so I think you still have a fair chance to win! I'd really like to see one or more of these prizes go to a Messer.



 Updated: Microsoft SharedView Beta 2
Updated: Microsoft SharedView Beta 2

dwergs says ( 27 Oct 2007 ):

 

Microsoft SharedView, the collaboration software which integrates with Windows Live Messenger, has recently been updated since its first Beta released back in May. The second beta-version (8.0.3328.0) is easier to use and has improvements to the sign-in and join experience. It also sports group chat to send messages to others in the session, and performance improvements. There's only an English version available at the moment.

"Connect with up to 15 people in different locations and get your point across by showing them what's on your screen. Share, review, and update documents with multiple people in real time. A Windows Live ID (Passport, Hotmail, or MSN) is required to start sessions, but not to join sessions."
>> Find Microsoft SharedView Beta 2 at get.live.com.
>> Download Microsoft SharedView Beta 2 from Microsoft Download Center.
>> Read the Microsoft SharedView Beta Frequently Asked Questions.



 Two cats out of the bag, one cat named "New Messenger Build"
Two cats out of the bag, one cat named

dwergs says ( 25 Oct 2007 ):

 

Forgive me the confusing subject of this post, but here's a funny incident that I just experienced on Messenger. A Microsoft employee, who I shall leave unnamed, asked me if I had "Mess Patch for Windows Live Messenger 8.5.1302.1018".

*Busted!*

*Busted two-fold!*

1) Microsoft employees actually use Mess Patch (at least this one).

I asked why and the reason was rather shocking, if you can take a hint ;)

2) A new build of Windows Live Messenger 8.5 is probably arriving soon.

I asked where (s)he got version 8.5.1302.1018 from and the answer was http://get.live.com/wl/config_all. Personally, I'm unable to retrieve it from there at the moment, so there's a chance it's an internal build.

For now, just stay on the lookout and get in touch as soon as you spot a new build!



 Windows Live ID creation enabled on mobile phones
Windows Live ID creation enabled on mobile phones

dwergs says ( 25 Oct 2007 ):

 

In all the excitement of porting Windows Live services to mobile devices, the good people at Microsoft temporarily lost sight of the starting point of it all: the creation of a Windows Live ID itself. In the past, newcomers to Windows Live or those who wanted to create a unique Windows Live ID (formerly known as Passport) for use on their Windows Mobile phone or PDA, were having a rough time completing the procedure because of both software and geographical limitations.

But this week at long last, the Windows Live ID team has released a simple, three-step process for account creation which has been specifically designed for built-in mobile browsers. It's available in 33 languages and in about 70 countries, and will also be integrated in the client-based services such as Windows Live for Nokia.

Phil Holden from Windows Live Mobile Services comments: "We think this is an important step in delivering a great end-to-end solution in the 'mobile first' scenario where we know many customers in countries like China, India, Brazil that their primary computing device is the mobile phone."

>> To create an account on your mobile device, you can either browse to https://mid.live.com/reg, or go to http://mobile.live.com, select a service (eg. Hotmail) and select "Get a Windows Live ID".

>> Screenshots over at Live with Phil.



 imo.im adds web-based video chatting
imo.im adds web-based video chatting

dwergs says ( 24 Oct 2007 ):

 

This morning I ran across the public alpha version of yet another web-based IM aggregator which connects to MSN (Windows Live), Yahoo! Messenger, AIM and Google Talk. imo.im, which was launched merely half a year ago by an ex-Google engineer and his brother, offers limited functionality (like most new IM clients). But where it outshines its peers is in the video chat feature added last week.

Like Meebo's file transfers, video chats do not actually take place in the conversation window of the invitee but instead in the browser and at a temporary URL. No downloads are required because the webcam sessions are all web-based, except maybe for Flash 8 (or higher) if it hasn't been installed yet.

imo.im

It only works when an imo.im user invites someone using Windows Live Messenger, not the other way around. Still, it's worth mentioning because it's the first web-based IM client I have used that even touches video chatting. Note that imo.im also allows you to have a three-way video conference in a single browser window if person A and B both initiate a webcam session with person C. Standard multi-network group chatting (via text) was available before, but has been temporarily removed for improvements.

>> Give imo.im (alpha) a try!



 MSN Quickbot translates, calculates, etceterates
MSN Quickbot translates, calculates, etceterates

dwergs says ( 23 Oct 2007 ):

 

Flashboy last week submitted a homemade Messenger bot, called MSN Quickbot, that'll come in handy if you have foreign contacts on your list. The new bot translates from English to Russian, German, Spanish, Portuguese and French, and vice versa (eg. !en-ge Don't mess with the Germans). It's also capable of reporting about the weather and local time in major cities (eg. !weather San Diego), or the latest news from CNN (!news) and BBC (!news2). Geeks will be pleased with the 1337-translator (eg. !en-le I am a total hunk), mathematical expressions calulcator (eg. !calc (5^3-2.7)*2 + cos(5)^2 - (ln(e))^10)) and the md5-hash calculator (eg. !md5 mess).

>> Add bot@techie.com to your contact list (funny enough, MSN Quickbot is a bit slow in adding).

>> Check out these screenshots: #1 and #2.

>> Find the full command list over at the MSN Quickbot homepage.

>> Join our forum discussion about MSN Quickbot here.



 Windows Live for Nokia on E-series, in 8 more countries
Windows Live for Nokia on E-series, in 8 more countries

dwergs says ( 22 Oct 2007 ):

 

I noticed a few additions to the Windows Live for Nokia offering since I last checked a month ago.

It's good to see that the first E-series devices have appeared in the compatibility list: the Nokia E90, E65 and E61i. Note that Windows Live Spaces is not included in their case because these phones don't come with the Nokia Online Share client.

Furthermore, the 30-day trial has appeared as WinLive in the "Downloads" folder in eight more countries: Australia, Austria, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland and Thailand.

>> For further info visit the promotional website: WindowsLive4Nokia.com.



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