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 Awaiting possible Windows Live Messenger Final leak
Awaiting possible Windows Live Messenger Final leak

dwergs says ( 10 Jun 2006 ):

 

We just learned from Messer Nitemare that TheHotFix is going to leak the final version of Windows Live Messenger today (around 5:00 PM PST to be precise). As we told you on Wednesday, Microsoft is aiming for a full release next Friday, so it's perfectly possible that they will be leaking at least a penultimate version. We'll try to keep you posted, but if the weather's as great for you as it is over here, I hope you'll understand that we won't be watching the web like a hawk for this leak ;)

UPDATE: No leak of the "magic" 8.0.0800 build so far. But bluff or not, the finished and official version of Windows Live Messenger is pretty damn nigh.



 Talking to Yahoo! Messenger contacts, but to what extent?
Talking to Yahoo! Messenger contacts, but to what extent?

dwergs says ( 08 Jun 2006 ):

 

windows live messenger yahoo messengerAs the marriage between Windows Live Messenger and Yahoo! Messenger is quickly approaching (its short ideas.live.com appearance even led some of you to believe it had arrived already), more details about the level of integration are leaking through. Here's what we can already disclose to you:

- You will only be able to exchange text messages, no files (so no Sharing Folders either), no Winks, no audio/video, etc.

- You will be able to check each others statuses, but "Away" still shows as "Online" in Yahoo! Messenger. Therefor, you have to set your status to "Busy" if you want to show as "Away" on the other end. Ah, the logic! ;)

- Group conversations (ie. more than 2 participants) are not supported.

- You will not be able to verify the e-mail address of a Yahoo! contact, so make sure you add the right one.

As you can see the compatibility is strongly limited in this first stage. Especially the absence of file transfer and voice chat features, in this day and age, is a serious handicap that will not convince most active users to stick to just one of both programs. But at least "we're talking"!



 Yahoo!-enabled Live Messenger makes ideas.live.com debut
Yahoo!-enabled Live Messenger makes ideas.live.com debut

dwergs says ( 07 Jun 2006 ):

 

A non-Beta version of Windows Live Messenger is now listed at ideas.live.com:

"Now you can use Windows Live Messenger to talk to your friends who use Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Just sign up by clicking “Try it” below, and you’ll be on your way to having all your IM friends in one place. The world’s most popular IM network just got even bigger."
Some "frequently asked questions" from the program page:

How do I start sending messages to friends who use Yahoo! Messenger with Voice?

windows live messenger yahoo! messengerOnce you sign up for this feature, you can add Yahoo! Messenger contacts to your contact list in the usual way. Under “Contacts,” click “Add a contact” and enter your friend’s Yahoo! e-mail address. That’s it!

Can I really talk to anyone who uses Yahoo! Messenger?

Eventually, yes, you will be able to talk to anyone who uses Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. But for now, your Yahoo! Messenger contacts will need to have the new beta version of Yahoo! Messenger with Voice in order to talk to you.

For the moment the Try it button doesn't seem to do much, but that will probably change soon.

UPDATE: As Khyshen and messer27 have noticed, Microsoft removed the Windows Live Messenger - Talk to your Yahoo! contacts references from ideas.live.com again. I bet we weren't supposed to blog it yet ;)



 WC2006: World Cup Tux by Rolando
WC2006: World Cup Tux by Rolando

dwergs says ( 07 Jun 2006 ):

 

More World Cup 2006 stuff as promised. Here's the tasty World Cup Tux Display Picture set, sent in by our pal Rolando and only available through Mess.be's totally free CustoMess software. The set includes the famous Tux penguins (originally CrystalXP's Overlord59) wearing the actual soccer shirts of each of the 32 participating teams (two versions for Spain, by the way).

Feel free to contribute your own World Cup 2006 material just like Rolando. Read more.

>> Download World Cup Tux to your MSN or Win Live Messenger via CustoMess.

>> Should friends ask you where you got them, send them to Mess.be or the CustoMess download link at Download.com.



 Final Windows Live Messenger release on June 16th?
Final Windows Live Messenger release on June 16th?

dwergs says ( 07 Jun 2006 ):

 

German tech site WinFuture seems rather confident that the final version of Windows Live Messenger will be launched on June 16th.

The Messenger team doesn't usually communicate release dates, but in case our German neighbours are right we'll have our hands on a new (Y!M-enabled?) version by the end of next week!

[Reported by: Stef1337]



 Not running out of Windows Live Contact Cards, it seems
Not running out of Windows Live Contact Cards, it seems

dwergs says ( 07 Jun 2006 ):

 

We told you about the free Windows Live contact cards a bunch of times but here's some extra news again. The contact card designs for the French campaign have been updated and are now available at a new link. Each day until the 30th of June, 1116 sets of cards will be available on a first comes first served basis. The French site also has a Do It Yourself page where you can design and print your own cards at home.

While these cards are only available at a handful of local sites, it seems like the Dutch company printing them is sending them out worldwide. I can't promise that it'll work for everyone, but the trick is to enter your city AND your country in the city field (that's "Ville" in French or "Stad" in Dutch).

I also found out about another, non-Windows Live but Godfather game related contact cards campaign that is currently running in the UK, The Netherlands and Belgium. Not the kind of cards I'd hand out to hit on girls, but nevertheless nice to have.

>> Get free Windows Live contact cards in France, Germany or The Netherlands.

>> My personalised Windows Live contact cards: screenshot #1 & screenshot #2.

>> Free Godfather game contact cards in the United Kingdom, The Netherlands, Belgium (French) and Belgium (Dutch).



 WC2006: Play the Messenger Cup 2006 game
WC2006: Play the Messenger Cup 2006 game

dwergs says ( 06 Jun 2006 ):

 

MSN in Italy has launched its own MSN Messenger-branded soccer game that you can play against your contacts. Normally, this game is available to Italian users only but like before, we extend it to the entire world via our Messenger Games launcher.

messenger soccer gameYou have up to three tries per time-limited turn to kick the ball into your opponent's goal using marble-like pawns. The controls are similar to most online pool or snooker games, and in a way it also reminds me of another MSN Messenger game called Pegball*. "Hai vinto" means you've won, "pareggio" is draw and "hai perso" means you're a big time loser.

If your country is not listed at the beginning, why not play with Messico? Oh, and let's all together spam the game ranking table with our URL, ok? :p When you finished a game, just enter www.mess.be as your name and hit salva. Note: The ranking page gets updated only a couple of times per hour, so it takes a while for the score to increase.

*Speaking of Pegball, apparently the link in our Messenger Games launcher was broken due to Sporkle moving all their games to a paysite portal. I've fixed this and added all their other new games as well: Yahtzee, Monsters Backgammon, Tic Tac Turbo, Reverso, Rooms, Coast to Coast and Donnie's Disc o' Darts. Apart from jeg hedder dwergs I don't know any Danish, but I believe they offer you a free five day trial for all games from the first time you launch the portal (correct me if I'm wrong, Morten or any other DK people reading this).

I also discovered another Italian football-themed game on Messenger called Gimme the ball, but it was retired last year. The Adidas-sponsored dexterity game is still available as a single-player game here, but it's not half as much fun as Pegball.

More World Cup 2006 Messenger mania coming up.



 3 days, 3 hours and 3 minutes till the World Cup 2006!
3 days, 3 hours and 3 minutes till the World Cup 2006!

dwergs says ( 06 Jun 2006 ):

 

We're exactly 3 days, 3 hours and 3 minutes (and that on 06/06/06!) away from the start of the World Cup 2006 in Germany and if you live in one of the participating countries, you're probably completely immersed in the soccer mania already. Although our home country Belgium is not in the competition, we at Mess.be will not ignore the event. On the contrary, expect a lot of World Cup 2006 related news in the next couple of days, even weeks. Expect hot soccer related custom emoticons, display pictures, games, and so on.

Of course, we can use your help! We created World Cup 2006 Display Pictures and World Cup 2006 Emoticons categories with a decent amount of material already, but we're always looking for more! Create images from scratch, or modify the standard Messenger emoticons and DPs. We're going to create a World Cup 2006 special just like we did for Euro 2004, so take a look for inspiration. We're especially looking for country-specific emoticon sets (like holland emoticons sweden soccer emoticons england emoticons), so show support for your team, upload flag-coloured emoticons and avatars to Mess.be and share them with hundreds of thousands fellow Messers!



 Sony Ericsson Music BOT, a waste of contact list space
Sony Ericsson Music BOT, a waste of contact list space

dwergs says ( 06 Jun 2006 ):

 

sony ericsson chat bot on msn messengerMany years after the first Messenger bot saw the virtual daylight, the big guys have finally discovered the marketing potential of these friendly little robo-buddies. But what on earth was Sony Ericsson thinking (or MEC Interaction, the marketing firm they hired) when it built the Sony Ericsson Music BOT? Granted, it offers an okay gig guide for the UK but when asked about the w810i Walkman phone that it is supposed to promote, it returns me nothing but a website link ("for more information")? Shouldn't the bot be at least raving about the product? Or answer my questions about its storage capacity, built-in games, etc? Seriously, I've seen washing powder ads that were more inspirational than this. An excerpt from our conversation:

dwergs says:
what phone should I buy?
Sony Ericsson Music BOT says:
What phone should you buy? I have no idea.

So, if any Sony Ericsson PR people are reading this, next time you want to waste a lot of money, my PayPal address is donatemess.be. I'd be happy to post a hyperlink to your product page in return.

>> Add the Sony Ericsson Music BOT (...or not).



 What the devil is so strange about today's date?
What the devil is so strange about today's date?

dwergs says ( 06 Jun 2006 ):

 

devil display picture avatarToday is June 6th 2006, or 06/06/06. Looks familiar? Yep, today might just be the day that Satan leaves his warm and cozy hell hole to make an appearance on Earth. Or maybe not, because we all know the real Antichrist died on April 30, 1945 (Google that, I'm not linking to that monster).

To put emphasis on this odd date, you can put the blue-eyed li'l devil emoticon to use and add its (6) code to your Messenger display name or Personal Message. Or you can use one of our many alternatives throughout your conversations today:

>> From our massive emoticons collection: devil emoticon devil emoticons 666 emoticon devil emoticons devil emoticon devil emoticons beast emoticon satan emoticons devil emoticon

>> Since his former nickname was DeViL, the red horned creep is present in much of Apothix's work, including the My Mood 2Day Display Pictures set, the Blue Tone and the Glasson emoticon sets. All available for free and through one click via CustoMess for MSN & Windows Live Messenger.



 Yahoo! Messenger integration real real soon now?
Yahoo! Messenger integration real real soon now?

dwergs says ( 05 Jun 2006 ):

 

In April we predicted the Yahoo! Instant Messenger integration to go live by the end of May, after a month or so of internal testing. Messers Max Shanly and Zephyrus pointed me to a blog post by program manager Leah Pearlman in which she mentions that she only saw a fully functional Yahoo! enabled version last week. So our previous estimation was a little bit off, but I bet it's going to be a June thing.



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