Shoutbox

There are so many inaccuracies and blatant lies in this thread, I'm surprised it still exists. I'm going to clear everything up, once and for all.

1. Microsoft never merged the two Messenger clients. MSN Messenger was totally redesigned as Windows Live Messenger, and Windows Messenger has just been dropped completely.

2. Furthermore, there won't be any future versions of MSN Messenger.

3. Windows Live Messenger is an improvement on MSN Messenger 7.5.

4. Windows Live is a new brand for Internet-based services that will both integrate Windows with the Web, and rival Google. All current MSN services are being upgraded to the Windows Live brand.

5. Windows Live services will be, and already are, much more tightly integrated than MSN services ever were.

6. Windows Media Player 11 for Windows XP is an upgrade for Windows Media Player 10 for XP, and will bring the next generation of Windows Media to the XP platform. It just lacks a few features that will be included in Windows Media Player 11 for Vista.

7. Windows Live Messenger was never known as MSN Messenger 8, as that would have confused the rebranding.

8. The stability of the network has been shaken by the introduction of Windows Live Messenger and the Yahoo! Instant Messenger integration, but the same happens with all new technologies. Over the next few months, the problems will be ironed out, and the service will be more reliable as a result.

9. The new technologies that Microsoft are creating actually greatly simplify the use of various services. Sharing Folders is easier to use and understand than File Transfers, yet Sharing Folders is the more complicated feature.

10. Microsoft, like Google, are releasing betas into the wild to allow more knowledgeable users to test the software on a much wider variety of machines and configurations than either company can manage by themselves. The end result is a product that is stable on more machines than ever.

11. Felu's signature is actually based on an old beta version of Windows Live Messenger, which had a different look and feel to the released version.

12. If you can't understand well-written, gramatically-correct and correctly spelt English, I suggest you spend some time learning how to use English properly.