Shoutbox

With Windows Messenger Live and Msgpus Live, the desktop contacts do not update to reflect the current status of my contacts.

I believe it correctly "lights up" when a contact sign in, but when a contact goes inactive or even signs out of the messenger service, this is not reflected on the desktop contact, which is still showing the contact as logged inn and active.

Finally, not a bug, but merely a suggestion: It would be brilliant to be able to change the color of the icon on the desktop contacts, the green/grey thing doesn't work for me, and at high transparency it is difficult to distinguish between the two.

Edit 10.08.2006:
Just wanted to add that I'm having the same problem with tabbed chat windows. The icons in the tabs do not update

I'm attaching a kinda crappy picture to this post to demonstrate the problem. In the picture you can see that the contact is offline, however both the tab and the desktop contanct indicates that the contact is online and active.

Best regards,
Tusse

Am I the only one with this problem?

Tusse.

Nope...I'm having the same problem.

I've discovered the same problem.  Can someone help me to solve it?
- Update the contacts
- Change the color of tab

quote:

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Originally posted by supertusse
Finally, not a bug, but merely a suggestion: It would be brilliant to be able to change the color of the icon on the desktop contacts, the green/grey thing doesn't work for me, and at high transparency it is difficult to distinguish between the two.

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Get a Messenger Skin?

i have this problem, it doesnt do it alot, but i dont use the desktop contatcs alot either, for me removing them then adding them to the destop normal makes it correct, its a pain but its a solution if its not a regular occurence

I can confirm this problem with Messenger Plus! Live 4.01.0.240 and Windows Live Messenger 8.0.0792.00 on Windows XP SP2.

It appears that the desktop contacts update appears in relation to some user-induced action that may be registered by msgplus. The same problem is actually present in the tabbed chat windows icons too, so it appears to be a "deeper" msgplus problem (i.e. the tabbed chat icons go both online and offline at the same time as desktop contacts - and both are wrong about the time when this happens, they are always late).

The recipe for refreshing msgplus on this matter is first closing the contact's window (regardless if she just came online or went offline) and then:
a) opening a new chat window from within messenger's main window if the contact just came online, or
b) opening a new chat window from the desktop contact if the contact just went offline. In the tabbed chat window, it immediately goes offline, but the desktop contact will stay unchanged until you remove your mouse from it. But this is rather a graphical issue and not nearly as evil as the main issue.

For the desktop contacts feature, I would describe this problem as critical/major/blocker, as it completely destroys the functionality and purpose of the feature, since (at least for me) this feature's purpose is: to help identify important contacts when they are online.

Hope this description helps,

-- Irfy

In most cases signing out/shutting down WLM can fix the problem. It's not so much a FIX but it usually updates the desktop contacts, and if your still having troubles....reformat Windows!! lol

Thank you, Irfy, for your excellent description.

I just wanted to add that I'm now seeing this on two computers, one XP Pro machine at work, and one XP Home laptop at home.

Best regards,
Tusse.

For the record, I have the same problem. I'm running the latest MsgPlus and Messenger Live, verified as of yesterday. Just in case it matters, I'm also using SimpLite 2.2.5 for security.

I see patchou hasn't replied to this thread - is this bug ackowledged somewhere else, or has he not been able to reproduce it?