Tuesday, June 20, 2006

WLM 8.0 [updated]

//Updated and edited

Did you really think that I would waste my time writing "Windows Live Messenger" in the title? :D
Well, so MSN Messenger 7.5's replacement has been released today. And with a new name - Windows Live Messenger. "This is the same Messenger you know and love, only better," says Microsoft. I wanted to try it out.
I knew that it was being released today, so I headed off to the download site to get it. And god! it was one heck of a download at 14.6 MB!! I mean, v7.5 was no more than 8 megs, but fourteen! Anyhow, with a not-so-very slow ADSL connection, it downloaded pretty fast, starting at this speed:




So, well then, I proceeded to install it. The first thing was that they had changed all the Messenger logos in the installer (you see, having never tried the beta version, everything was new to me). After that, you notice that all the systray icons have changed too, for glossy, somewhat better ones. The login page no longer sports the display picture (at least, not for me, it didn't). The entire blue look of the old messenger (starting from v6 I think) has given way to a new, cleaner, streamlined Vista-like feel - and I like it!


The Login Page


The Main Window



There are many new features, too, like making phone calls (think Skype and Google talk). But as far as I gathered, I have the non-US edition (at least that's what the installer said) - I'm assuming phone calls 'n' stuff is only in the US. Then there's shared folders (share a folder with your contact), Offline chatting (not tried it yet :) ), and more. You can even search your contact list, and even change the color scheme of the main window, to suit your mood or visual style. Oh yeah, and it creates a new group called "Non Instant-Messaging Contacts", which contains all your hotmail contacts.

Get it now: Windows Live Messenger 8.0

Update: I tried out the offline chatting thing....it's pretty nifty - contacts recieve the messages when they sign in; that's pretty useful, especially if your connection gets disrupted or something. But I don't know if it's backward compatible.
Update: Soon, we'll be able to chat with Yahoo users on Windows Live Messenger!


-- Sahil

19 comments:

Anwita Khaitan

Hey!! My first comment here....yeh I am in the midst of downloading WLM right now.....
Man ur ADSL speed is wicked!!!:D:D.....
Anyway, somehow I think that 7.5 looks better.. this whole aquamarine theme doesnt go down well with me.. nevertheless.. it looks god in its own right....
OK DOES OFFLINE CHATTING MEAN WHAT I THINK IT MEANS??? woohoo....:D:D
Keep posting!

Anwita Khaitan

And in case anyone starts getting ideas... "My first comment" does not refer to the fact that I was the first to comment on this post **rolls eyes**... what it actually means is that this is my first comment on this blog...
Just to clear that up:).

[\\Kartikeya//]

lol...neways ya even i get that speed only for 2 SECONDS!!!!and den it drops slowly but surely....
i downloaded WLM 8 like 2 months back but i uninstalled it cause it doesnt support msn plus(hint hint!)
neways i have left chatting :(:(...so delete me from ur contacts list if u want...but DONT BLOCK ME!

Shayeri

WLM rocks!! no doubt! but it is stil yet to support MSN+. I need MSN plus, since I almost always exceed the time limit of 2 hours set by my mother. So I had to get MSN 7.5 back again, but i believe, soon they'll upgrade MSN+...hopefully.

The offline chatting, as in yahoo is probably the best. though i havn't tried out the "sharing files". i have both the messengers on my computer for the moment...:D

Oh and my WLM DOES have the display picture on the sign in window. :S

DigVJ

well...u kno msn ppl should have kept a live update so dat ppl dont hv to download the whole 14mb.Dat would have taken much less time.

blog.sahil.me

yeah, but they've changedit so much that I guess for this one at least,we would anyway have had to download the whole thing even if they had an update, which they don't........uh, great, I've got myself confused again......!

blog.sahil.me

yeah, i'm sure MSN+ support will be coming soon, i mean the official wlm 8.0 was released only yesterday.....

@karky: i guess you had the beta of wlm 8, right? that was sposed to have loads of bugs, so i hadnt downloaded it......anyway, why have you stopped chatting??

[\\Kartikeya//]

ya i treied out the beta....and diggi wlm 8 is very different frm the previous versions so live updates cudnt have done the work
@sahil:i don realy noe why i have left chatting but i will blog atleast! actually i gess it was cause i had becum addicted to it...

[\\Kartikeya//]

hey sahil! no offense but the earlier comments layout was better...this font aint that good..

blog.sahil.me

which comment layout? haven't i had this popup thing since the beginning? could you explain (plz)?

[\\Kartikeya//]

nono not that...see i have added the feed naa...so in the bookmarks i click on the latest post...so the post is followed by the comments...and wat i am sayn is that if u don mind..can u pls change the font style to the earlier one??

arjun

hey yar i cant damn install it it keeps saying invalid drive B:|
i cant even set the required drive

crap
i realy need help
i decided to get it after you left the messages

arjun

o yay
its working my bro somehow managed to corrupt the windows directory for that comp switch on (it became ok after a restart)
anyway thnx i knew you would have tried doing smthn
i think

blog.sahil.me

oh achha......those comments on the itempage.....well, you know, i don't quite know what the font was since i never set it.....but don't worry, i am going to be changing it soon :D

[\\Kartikeya//]

btw why have u removed the shoutox??

blog.sahil.me

no i haven't!
it's there!

blog.sahil.me

@karky: i have been doing up the comments on the itempages....since it is still in progress, they look horrible....so plz bear it for some time ok :D

[\\Kartikeya//]

hehe ok sure! though this is better than the previous one(greyish wala)but the first one just rocked!!!!
PS: I CANT SEE UR SHOUTBOX!!!!!

blog.sahil.me

hey, karky, could you please tell me what the first one looked like? coz i have no idea...i think i have already said tht i had applies no style to it...so whatever you must have seen would be the default.
anyway, i'll have a look at the shoutbox, though it is there on the main page

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