posted by Nasa

Thank you to everyone who answered our call for feedback regarding what you want to hear on this blog.  I eagerly read all your comments and found a few themes on what you asked to see:

• Latest news about Windows Live Messenger: beta information, new features/releases, or even related Windows Live products.
  
  Perfect! While we can't post info about feature\releases until they are ready to go public, we will continue to keep our readers updated as soon as they are released.
  
• More about existing Messenger features.
  
  How-To topics like Ali's contact post, helped some of our users find bits of contact management they didn't know before.
  
  It's great to know that these posts are appreciated! Sometimes I wonder if we're telling readers what they already know or if we're really providing some value. We'll continue to look for features or tips & tricks which might uncover some new features. Feel free to comment on your ideas if you have a particular feature you'd like to know more about. Thanks to the few who already posted ideas to cover - like accessibility!
  
• What's happening behind the scenes: information about the team, tricky bugs, or funny stories
  
  I think this is a great idea. Since working on Messenger is part of our daily job, sometimes we forget to think about which aspects might be interesting to blog. But I'm sure there are plenty of fun insights we can give. For example, Daniel recently posted about where we work. We'll have to keep an eye out for some other interesting ones!

For folks who have specific questions about Messenger, features, or issues, ... there are a couple things I wanted to note:

• If you have general questions about Messenger, don't forget about the online help.
  
  For example, Deborah wanted to know how to delete a contact once they were added. This help topic provides the steps, or I talk a little about it in my blog entry about "Who's interested in me?" You can also find information such as keyboard shortcuts, if you are interested in accesssibility via the keyboard.
  
• If you want to report issues, or discuss topics about messenger, please visit our newsgroup. It's a good way to look at what other users might be talking about or experiencing and possibly get 1-on-1 support. 

Thanks again for all your input! We are listening and we'll try our best to keep you informed!

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If you have a comment on this post please comment! For other questions/concerns/discussion topics/rants/raves/etc - please head over to the Windows Live Messenger Newsgroup.

  posted by Wendy the Mighty

So there I was, trying to write a blog entry on the SuperCool™ feature set we call Voice and Video because I think it is neat and spiffy, when a thought occurred to me – and yes, a thought does occur to me now and again!! :P  My officemate HAPPENS to be one of the testers for the features, so I thought, "Hey!  He should write the blog!!"  And so, I give you my officemate..... Heeeeeeeeeeeere's Raghu!

See me, hear me.

Posted by Raghu

Over the past few years, the Windows Live Messenger client has evolved from being a little IM app to one with so many exciting features, that it’s impossible to describe every one of them in a single blog post. One of Messenger’s core feature sets that I’m going to describe in this post involves two Vs - Voice and Video.

But first, here’s a little story. It’s about my grandfather, who lives half way around the planet from where I am. Making conversation with him can be both interesting and challenging... interesting because he is a retired professor and has a lot to say about everything, and challenging because he has been hard of hearing since he was in his late 20s. When he talks to someone, he absolutely insists that they face him while speaking, because he catches some of their words by ear, and lip reads the rest. He’s learnt to listen with both his ears and his eyes.

The man recently turned 90, and I thought of calling him to wish him well on his birthday. That wouldn’t have been such a good idea though, because he finds it very difficult to hear anything over the phone. But hey! What if I used the video call feature in Windows Live Messenger to talk to him?

The day arrived, and a laptop had been set up for him. We fired up a video call window, and my webcam image was blown up to full screen on his laptop. He had a nice set of headphones, with the volume set to a comfortable level.

We spoke.

Now that I think about it, that video call was the first time in years that I had a long distance conversation with my granddad where he actually heard and understood me. For those few minutes, it sure felt like he wasn’t deaf... Windows Live Messenger had given him ears.

So where were we? Oh… Voice and Video.

Messenger Voice and Video comprises of a bunch of features, that all involve seeing and hearing your buddies.  Most everyone knows that you can send your webcam to your buddies, but these features go even further.  They are:

• Voice clip
• Computer call
• PC-Phone call
• Video call

If you’ve used messenger for a while (you have, right?!), but have used it primarily for text chatting, you probably want to start by setting up your sound and video devices. Messenger has built into it, a tool that helps you setup your speakers, microphone and webcam. We fondly refer to it as the “tuning wizard” (‘cause that’s what it used to be called back in the day).

To launch the tuning wizard, click “Tools -> Audio and Video Setup”. You’ll see the above dialog pop up. Click “next”, and in each of the following 3 steps, select your preferred speakers, microphone and webcam and set the sound levels to the optimum level. For example, if you have a sound card and speakers on your PC, and also have a USB headset plugged in, you could set the sound card as your default windows sound device (for all your windows sounds), while you could use the USB headset when you make a voice or a video call on Messenger.

Note: In the first step, the little checkbox that says “Click here if you are using headphones” is used to a turn a feature called “echo cancellation” on or off. If you’re using speakers, there’s a chance that your buddy’s voice will get rerouted back to him/her through your microphone, and that can sound ugly. So messenger can detect the sound going into the microphone and cancel the echo, so all that your buddy hears is your own sweet voice.

Voice Clip:

This is kind of like using Messenger as a walkie-talkie. You press a button (and hold it pressed), speak, and release the button. Voila, your voice is recorded and sent across the wire and your buddy hears it a few seconds later. The screenshot below shows where the voice clip button is located in the conversation window. If you’re not a mouse person, the F2 key will work just like the voice clip button. This feature is particularly useful in 2 cases:

• If you’re chatting with multiple buddies at a time and want to send short voice messages to more than one of them, this is a really nifty feature to use.
• If you have a buddy who’s away and want to leave a quick voice message, simply send a voice clip, that your buddy can listen to when he/she returns, even if you have logged off by then.

Computer call:

In the conversation window, there’s a nice big button at the top that looks like an old-school telephone receiver. Click on it, and here’s what you might see:

Let’s start with the “Call Computer” option. If you click on it and your buddy’s PC has a microphone and speakers, he/she will hear a ring-ring sound, just like a real phone, and once your buddy answers your call, you can speak to each other just like it’s a telephone, except the sound quality is closer to CD quality than telephone quality. With this feature, you can answer, reject and hang up calls just like with a real phone. Oh, and did I mention this is a free call that you can make to any Messenger User around the world? :)

PC-Phone call:

If you click on any of the other options under the “Call” button menu (call home / call mobile / call work / call a phone), the Windows Live Call phone dialer will be launched. If you have your buddy’s phone numbers saved in your address book, they’re readily available in messenger for you to call. Simply click on any of those numbers to be connected to your buddy’s phone. There are more ways in which you can access this feature – through right clicking your buddy, or by clicking “Actions -> Call -> Call a phone” from the main window or conversation window.

Note: This is a paid service, for which you can sign up by launching the dialer and clicking the sign up link. PC-Phone service is provided by Verizon in the US, and other partner companies elsewhere in the world.

Video call:

And finally, the granddaddy of the Voice and Video features (no pun intended on the first part of this blog :)). Next to the phone icon in the conversation window is a Video call button. This works just like computer call, except this time, you can both see and hear your buddy. Cool no?  And guess what? It’s free too!

 

There, you’ve read about so many cool new things you can do with Messenger. Now go try them out!

[Wendy:]

Thanks, Raghu!  Voice and Video rocks!

And a quick note before I sign off for today - if you want to read more on Voice calls, Ali did a SuperCool™ post on webcams and video calls for the holidays if you want to revisit and take a quick peek. =)

-Wendy the Mighty
got Messenger?

Posted by Ali

I was talking with some friend's lately about what our favorite feature is in Messenger and what feature we wish Messenger had.  Personally I  Video Call, because I can use it to keep in touch with my friends and family on the east coast, who I miss.  Video Call is awesome because we can stay close by virtually seeing each other all the time, it is much cooler than a phone call , and it is free   For the feature that I wish Messenger had, I could tell you, but then where's  the suspense!   You will just have to wait until our next release to find out. 

Now that we have comments turn on, I want to hear from you!  Please answer the following, I will post on the results in my next entry.

• What is your one favorite Messenger Feature?
• What one feature do you wish Messenger had?

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If you have a comment on this post please comment! For other questions/concerns/discussion topics/rants/raves/etc - please head over to the Windows Live Messenger Newsgroup.

posted by Nasa

When I sit down to write new posts for the MessengerSays blog, I often wonder ... what do our readers really want to know about?

Now that comments are enabled, I thought it'd be the perfect opportunity to ask:

• Which topics do you find most useful?
• Which topics would you like to see us blog about?
• Anything else you'd like to see on this blog?

Drop us a comment and let us know your thoughts!

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If you have a comment on this post please comment! For other questions/concerns/discussion topics/rants/raves/etc - please head over to the Windows Live Messenger Newsgroup.

 posted by Nicole

MessengerSays turned off comments last August. We decided to do this because the comments section was getting used more for newsgroup type communication than actually comments on the blog topic so we pointed people to our newsgroup instead. We have gotten some comments recently about our lack of comments and we would like to know what you think. Of course you cannot comment on this post, so we have setup a poll to track your opinion.

Should comments be turned on for MessengerSays?

• Yes please
• No thanks

I will post again when we have closed the poll.

If you want to create a poll on your Space check this Polls Gadget out.

March 19 Update:

The results are in:

• Yes please [turn on comments] - 342 votes - 82%
• No thanks [keep comments off] - 76 votes - 18%

Thanks to everyone (all 418 of you) who voted. We have turned comments back on.

Things to note:

• We will not be responding to all comments
• We will delete inappropriate comments (if you see any send us mail Subject = Comments, To = messengerbloggers @ hotmail dot com)
• If you need help with a Messenger problem - check out this post for the best places to go for help and feedback

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If you have a comment on this post please comment! For other questions/concerns/discussion topics/rants/raves/etc - please head over to the Windows Live Messenger Newsgroup.

Posted by Ali

Happy Spring!  In addition to springing forward one hour and checking my smoke detector battery, I like to clean and organize my contact list.  One benefit of working on a cool product like Windows Live Messenger is that I have many different types of people in my contact list.  Friends, Family and Coworkers.  In order to keep it all straight I can organize my contact list in 3 ways with 2 different views by clicking on the arrows icon to the right of the add contact button.

Sorting

Now I will go through the 3 ways to sort your contact list

1. Sort by status - This allows you to sort your contacts by their presence status, Online, Mobile or offline.  This is what it looks like when I do this to my contact list.

And what are those icons anyway.  = Online, = Mobile, and = Offline.

2.  Sort by groups - This is my favorite setting because I can create as many different groups as I want to and add people to as many different groups as I like.  The default groups are Family, Friends, Coworkers, and Other Contacts.  As you can see from my list below I have a lot of custom groups.  For the groups that I want to show up at the top of my list, they are sorted alphabetically, I add a . in front of the name.  For example .Messenger Dev below.

 You will notice that only my online contacts are showing up in my Friends group which is expanded above, this is because I went to the contact menu and chose to group mobile contacts and offline contacts together.  This means that all Offline and Mobile contacts get put in a separate groups when these contacts log into Messenger and their presence is changed to Online then they move into the appropriate group.   

You will also notice that I have it set up to Group non-instant messaging contact together.  This is because I chose to "Show all contacts" in Messenger.  This means that contacts that I add in Hotmail to my address book are also available in Messenger.  I love having a global address book!!  This is the same as choosing Show all contacts in the arrows menu mentioned above.  You will also notice that in this menu, I also have the option to show only Messenger contacts or only Online contacts in my contact list. 

3.  Sort by recently updated spaces - I like to use this option when I have been away for awhile and I want to catch up on what is going on with my friends.  When I choose this option, my contact list looks as follows:

Views on my contacts

As I mentioned above there are 2 ways to view your contacts in a list. The regular way which means that your contacts will looks like this:Or, you can choose  Show contacts' details

and your contacts will look like this:

Other Contacts Options

The last thing I will blog about, since this is probably information overload, is that you can also decide how you want to view your contacts. 

There are 3 options.

1.  By Display Name - This is the name that you contact has given to themselves.

2.  By First and Last Name - This uses the information about this contact that you have stored in your address book.

3.  By Email Address - This is exactly what it sounds like, all of your contacts show up as their email address.

OK, that is all for now.   Happy Spring Cleaning!

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If you have a comment/question/concern/discussion topic/rant/rave/other - please head over to the Windows Live Messenger Newsgroup. 

 Posted by Daniel

A few days ago I've got a new camera and I was really anxious to test it out. After a took a few pictures at home the next logical step was to get the camera to work and take some shots of our beautiful Red West campus. I was lucky enough to catch a very sunny day .

Some say that the campus where the Windows Live teams are working is the best Microsoft campus yet. The official name is Corporate Campus North and it's located about a mile northwest of the main campus. There are five office buildings, a two story cafeteria, parking garages, basketball courts, a really nice small lake, a river and a lot of trees and grass. Most of the Messenger team is located in building D.

Here is an aerial view of the area (the bird's eye view is awesome):

I created a photo album with the pictures I took. Disclaimer: I have to say that I'm a point and shot person so don't expect any photographic masterpieces .

Other links about the Red West Campus:

• Microsoft's Red West Campus .... What's that all about?
• Red West pictures from a former intern

If you have a comment/question/concern/discussion topic/rant/rave/other - please head over to the Windows Live Messenger Newsgroup.

 posted by Nicole

The i'm Initiative is the most exciting piece of news I have had to share with Messenger users since I started working on Messenger over 3 years ago and there has been tons of exciting news over the last 3 years. Now if you are like me and are a Lost fan if you hear The <anything> Initiative your mind immediately jumps to the DHARMA Initiative and you assume it must be bad and very mysterious. The i'm Initiative is completely the opposite, it is very good and all the previous mystery around the secret emoticon in Messenger 8.1 will be revealed below.

When I think about working at Microsoft on Windows Live Messenger two things in particular make me feel warm and fuzzy about my job:

1. Having an impact on the best IM client and network in the world (according to me and I am sure most of you) used by over a 1/4 Billion users around the world
2. Microsoft and its employees' commitment to giving back to the world 

Not everyone has the financial ability to give money to the causes they care about. That is where the i'm Initiative steps in - it enables Windows Live Messenger users to make a difference by directing a portion of Messenger's advertising revenue to a cause of their choosing.

If you are like me there must a be ton of questions flying around in your head about how it works, so I have used my favorite blog format (FAQ) below to hopefully help answer all your questions. If you still have questions please head on over to the Windows Live Messenger Newsgroup where I will be happy to answer them for you.

Wonderful! How does it work?

1. Use Messenger 8.1
2. Add the i'm emoticon to your display name by entering the code of the cause you would like to support (hint: I suggest adding it at the end of your name so you still appear in the correct alphabetic order in your contacts list)
3. Send and receive IMs
4. A portion of the advertising revenue generated by your usage of Messenger will be donated to your cause. So the more IMs you send and receive the more money will be donated to your cause.

note: currently the donation only applies to Windows Live Messenger users in the United States. If you are in the US and you are IMing with a contact in another country your IM activity will be counted towards the donation.

What does the i'm emoticon  represent?

It tells your contacts that you are making a difference, it is short for "i'm making a difference".

What are the i'm emoticon  codes and causes?

• American Red Cross --  ready to help, code = *red+u
• Boys & Girls Clubs of America --  providing a positive place for kids, code = *bgca
• National AIDS Fund --  fighting AIDS, code = *naf
• National MS Society --  joining the MS movement, code = *mssoc
• ninemillion.org --  helping 9 million refugee kids, code = *9mil
• Sierra Club --  exploring and protecting the planet, code = *sierra
• StopGlobalWarming.org --  stopping global warming, code = *help
• Susan G. Komen for the Cure --  finding the cure, code = *komen
• UNICEF --  helping kids survive, code = *unicef

Can I put the I'm emoticon  in my personal message? and send it in IM?

Yes you can. However you must also place it in your display name for your IM activity to be counted towards the donation.

My favorite cause isn't listed. What can I do?

Please send us feedback here.

What is the minimum amount that will be contributed to each cause?

Each of the causes above will receive at a minimum $100,000 in the first year.

If there is a minimum there must be a maximum for each cause. What is it? 

There is no maximum. The more IMs you send and receive the more money will be donated to the cause you select. 

Can I contribute to multiple causes?

You can put multiple causes in your display name, however only the first one listed will count towards the donation. If you can't choose just one, feel free to change the first one as often as you wish.

How does Messenger even generate revenue\money anyway?

Windows Live Messenger is a free service to users. We do include advertisements in the client that help pay for the service and our salaries. With the i'm Initiative you get to decide where a portion of the revenue goes.

Some of my contacts can't see the i'm emoticon What gives?

In order to see the i'm emoticon  you must be using Messenger 8.1 final. You can tell your friends to get it here.

I have followed all the steps above. What can I do to help out even more?

• Tell all your contacts on Windows Live Messenger to add the i'm emoticon  to their display name and don't stop until your contact list looks like this:

OK maybe not exactly like that but you get the idea

• If you have friends and family who are not using Windows Live Messenger yet encourage them to do so
• Create a trackback or link to this post on your blog or in e-mail to share this information with others
• Keep sending more IMs
• Visit the sites of the causes listed above to check out different ways to help
• Check out the official i'm Initiative website to find out about stuff you can add to your blog and email signature to show your support

This sounds too good to be true - sort of like that e-mail I got about Bill Gates sending me a Million dollars if I forward the email onto 10 friends and they send it on to 10 friends, etc. How do I know this is really true?

You can check out the official i'm Initiative website -- http://im.live.com -- and the causes will have information on their websites as well.

I don't live in the United States. What can I do?

As mentioned above - currently the donation only applies to Windows Live Messenger users in the United States but there are still ways you can help out.

1. Sign up here. You will be asked for your country information, this will help with future plans of expanding this to other countries.
2. Add the i'm emoticon  to your display name anyways to show your contacts what cause you support
3. Encourage all your friends especially the ones in the US to put an i'm emoticon in their display name
4. Send a lot of IMs to your friends in the US
5. Send feedback here about what causes you would like to see added in your country

I still have more questions, where can I get more answers?

Head on over to the Windows Live Messenger Newsgroup. note: I am currently on vacation (in Hawaii where Lost is filmed, so I will not be replying until Monday). Aloha and Mahalo!

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If you have a comment/question/concern/discussion topic/rant/rave/other - please head over to the Windows Live Messenger Newsgroup.