Using Windows Live Programs (part 1) - Obtaining a Windows Live ID & Using Windows Live Messenger

1. Obtaining a Windows Live ID

At the end of the download and install process, the Windows Live installer will ask if you have a Windows Live ID:

If you happen already to have a Windows Live Hotmail account, you already have a Windows Live ID—it's your Hotmail e-mail address. If you don't already have a Windows Live ID, you'll need one to take full advantage of the Windows Live programs and services. (You can use Windows Live Mail and Windows Live Photo Gallery, with reduced functionality, without a Windows Live ID, but the programs will annoy you with repeated signup entreaties.) If you need a Windows Live ID, click Sign Up. Otherwise, click Close.

Figure 2 shows part of the form you'll see if you click Sign Up. Note that you can use any valid e-mail address as your Windows Live ID. Alternatively, you can use an available name with either the hotmail.com or live.com domain; by doing that, you'll be acquiring a Hotmail e-mail address as well as a Windows Live ID. The rest of the signup form will ask demographic questions. Some of the information you supply will be used to tailor the Windows Live home page (it will show the current temperature in your Zip code, for example), but if you're concerned about the potential for less benign uses, you can click the link to read Microsoft's privacy policy.

2. Using Windows Live Messenger

With Windows Live Messenger, you can do a lot more than send instant messages. You can use it to transmit SMS text messages to mobile devices, transfer flies to or play games with contacts, send e-mail, and, with the help of a companion program called Windows Live Call, initiate Voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VoIP) telephone calls. Its primary purpose, however, is to facilitate real-time chats. If you have a webcam, you can also transmit video to your messaging contacts.

Like Internet Explorer, Windows Live Messenger does not use a horizontal menu bar by default. A menu button, located near the upper right corner of the window, opens a set of fly-out submenus:

If you prefer horizontal menus, choose Show The Menu Bar at the bottom of the main menu.

2.1. Adding, Categorizing, and Blocking Contacts

Before you can send messages, you have to have contacts. To add a contact, open the menu, choose Contacts, and then choose Add A Contact. In the ensuing dialog box, you can enter the contact's instant messaging address (if the person has one) or e-mail address:

Either way, your contact will receive an invitation and will have the opportunity to accept or decline.

Alternatively, if you only want to send text to a contact's mobile device, select a country in the drop-down list under Mobile Device Number and then enter your contact's full mobile number.

As your contact list grows, you might want to organize it into categories. Choose Contacts, Create A Category, and then type a category name in the Create A New Category dialog box. In the same dialog box, you can select existing contacts to become members of the new category. You can also drag a contact into a category later. (To remove a contact from a category, right-click it and choose Remove Contact From Category.) Categories are different from groups. Groups (choose Contacts, Create A Group) let you communicate with multiple contacts at once.

When you receive an invitation to be someone else's contact, Windows Live Messenger offers you the option to accept or decline. If you accept, you can also place the new contact into an existing category. If you decline, an additional check box appears that gives you the opportunity to block subsequent invitations from this person. And if you block, you also get the opportunity to report the inviting party as a spammer. If you change your mind and want to unblock a spurned contact, choose Tools, Options and then click the Privacy tab. In the Privacy dialog box, you can move people between your Block List and Allow List.

2.2. Sending Messages

To begin an instant messaging conversation with a contact who is online, right-click the contact's name and choose Send An Instant Message. A new window will appear. Type your part of the conversation in the bottom line of the window:

Note that this chat window includes its own menu. Clicking Photos or Files here allows you to share pictures with or transfer documents to your contact. Clicking Video activates your webcam and invites your contact to receive video during the conversation (the contact will have the opportunity to accept or decline). Clicking Invite lets you bring other parties into the conversation. The Games and Activities menus offer additional modes of interaction.

If your contact is not online or not available when you want to communicate, you can send an oxymoronically named offline instant message. Your recipient will see your message when he or she logs back in. Alternatively, you can right-click the person's name and choose Send E-Mail. Or you can right-click the name, choose Enter A Mobile Number, supply the number, and transmit a text message.