RebelSean, you have right to misunderstand me because I couldn't express myself correctly. I understood what you mean, you are right on your statements but I believe I am right with mines as well. Let me try to explain it again.
Yes, MSN server is the first place which people's list informations are stored. And WLM retrieve those information if there is nothing (no cached folder) in the computer locally. But normally everyone who doesn't worry about their security keeps Messenger's caches in their computers. Also Messenger's related option suggests keeping cache by default, because in the sentence it says: "This is a shared computer, don't store...." so it means that if you don't share your computer with others, you must untick this option so your contacts' display names will be retrieved from cache and always be shown as the ones you have seen from them lastly even if you sometimes see them offline.
WLM doesn't
store and in case there already exists a name, doesn't
update the display name information at the server, just like it doesn't store display pictures as well. When you delete your cache, all display pictures of your contacts' are set again as the blue default one.
The difference between display names and display pictures is, display pictures have never been stored at the server, but names used to be stored while using MSN Messenger. So some of your contacts' names are still there and if there is no cache on the computer, those names can be retrieved from the server by WLM. However as you guess, these names have been saved at the server while you were using MSN Messenger, so most of your contacts' names were different at those times. So you see old names when you delete your local cache.
Really, can someone say me that, if WLM checked the server for new names all the time, what the purpose of caching contacts' information locally would be. You say, caching information is for fast sign-in. Then if WLM checked all contacts' information with the server at every sign-in even if there is a local cache, then how would it make signing-in fast?
I hope it is clear now.
Edit: By the way, the quotation below is the evidence of my statements. He deleted the cache and contact's name turned to an older one, is this correct rem17?
quote:
Originally posted by rem17
quote:
Originally posted by RebelSean
Try deleting your contact cache:
C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Windows Live Contacts
I have done this and asked a few friends to sign out, then I sign in again to check, but it's still not working. 
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