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WLMessenger 2011 reflects the following social-network realities:
When you start WLMessenger 2011, you can choose from a large window view that brings up news and entertainment feeds from MSN or an identically sized Social view that displays your friends’ latest comments and news from Windows Live, Facebook, and MySpace. When you add a contact, you can specify how much of your information to share.
WLM 2011 also includes a more compact and easier to use ‘picture in picture’ interface for video chatting along with HD video support, a resizable window so you can see your contacts in multiple columns, easy sharing of audio clips and photos, and better integration with WL Mail: photos you receive through WL Mail also show up as social updates in WLMessenger.
Along with support for the most common social-networking PC clients, WL Messenger 2011 also supports the Apple iPhone and other mobile platforms.
WLW 2011 also benefits from the ribbon interface shared by the rest of the content-creation gang in WLE. As with its predecessor, it enables you to use a single blog editor to post blogs on WordPress, Blogger, Windows Live, and other blogging platforms. To set up WLW2011 to work with your blog, answer a couple of question and WLW2011 does the rest.
To make your blogging easier, WLW 2011 offers three views of your posting: the default Edit view, a Preview view showing how your post will look in a browser, and the traditional HTML Source view
WLW 2011 features easier insertion of pictures and videos from your own computer or from the web, and you can also insert videos from online services such as YouTube. It includes integrated tools such as word count and a spell checker as well as HTML and character-based formatting. The Insert tab also lets you insert tables, maps, and Bing (“Windows Live”) searches into your blog entries. You can also use it to create an online photo album hosted on Windows Live SkyDrive.
WLW 2011 continues to support a growing library of plug-ins, so you can customize it to meet your needs.
Windows Live Sync 2011 is a not-exactly-“new” member of Windows Live Essentials. It is a replacement for two older Windows Live synchronization services that were available in separate downloads: Windows Live Mesh and Windows Live Sync.
The 2011 version of Windows Live Sync borrows Live Mesh technology, but offers only 2GB of storage (which comes out of the 25GB of cloud-based storage all Windows Live users get as part of SkyDrive).
However, Windows Live Sync 2011 provides cross-platform PC to Mac synchronization without using up your online storage (get the Mac client here) and provides remote access between computers running WLSync 2011. The Devices.live.com website lets you see the status of the drives and devices being used by WLSync 2011.
If you currently use Windows Live toolbar, Windows Live Sync or Windows Live Mesh, be sure to see the instructions for preparing your system to use WLSync2011.
Windows Live Family Safety 2011 is the least glamorous member of the WLE 2011 family, but if you’re trying to keep your children away from the seedy side of the Internet or from age-inappropriate programs on your computer, it could be the most important. WLFS 2011, like its predecessor, requires that each family member you want to monitor have a standard user account on the computer. However, it’s not necessary to set up a Windows Live account for each family member unless you allow them access to social networks and enable contact management.
WLFS 2011 also includes a new Warn on Adult Content setting, blocks paid ads, and includes an adult image content filter. Activity reports now display only sites that users access, so it no longer clutters up the report with popup ads that were never clicked on.
To avoid flipping between the WLFS 2011 management tool and the limited family protection settings already in Windows 7 and Windows Vista, WLFS 2011 also includes time limits and program blocking as well as game rating limits, so you can use it to manage both local and network content. With WLFS 2011, you decide how much access to provide to younger users.
Windows Live Essentials 2011’s integration, feature set, and scope bring it closer than ever to the original Windows Live Vision of seamless integration of social networking and social media. It’s a worthwhile download for anyone using Windows 7 and for all Windows Vista systems that meet the requirements.
Comments are closed on this article
Fecal Face
January 21, 2011 at 2:36pm
Hmm, looks like you have 69760 unread emails. Might want to get on that ;P
BAMT
July 22, 2010 at 11:39am
@stradric
But isn't it quicker to hit alt+x then the hotkey of the menu item than it is to click? That's how I work, anyway.
And yes, I know the obviousness that is the control hotkeys still working. I like alt combinations, too.
Edit: Jeeze, why doesn't my comment go where it should? It must be because I'm a minority with Opera on Linux.
michaelh
July 22, 2010 at 8:28am
If some users like the Ribbon, why not have both? The same selections are available via icons or menus, would a GUI choice be so difficult? I use the suite regularly though not at length and I've adapted just fine to some of the one-click operations. There are too many previously simple operations that now require burrowing into sub-menus. When their headers were straightforward I could navigate to what I needed, now I've got to put myself in a WYSIWYG devotee's mindset.
It's like the Win 7 default Start menu operation. The recently-used applications list slows me down and requires an extra click to get to what I want. I don't have anything against interface streamlining - great options for those that don't need more - just give us choices that doesn't require user mods or registry hacks.
The Live Essentials suite seems to promote more of the same philosophy. The backbone options are too well hidden for my tastes.
fociwm
July 22, 2010 at 7:59am
Unlike other people, I like ribbon. Why? Because I didn't really get used to menu even after about 10 years of using office suite. It was difficult to find what I wanted. On the other hand, ribbon was very intuitive, and therefore easy to understand. Now I use several new functions just because I found them in ribbon.
As you may blame, I'm not a power user. But I'm just a steady user. And with ribbon, I am able to use the word and powerpoint much more powerfully and more efficiently. I have to admit I was too lazy to learn and practice Word and Powerpoint. But it was just enough with menus during those 10 years. Now I'm doing my job much better. So except for power users who spent a lot of time in learning the office, ribbon was definitely improvement.
stradric
July 22, 2010 at 6:58am
With Live Essentials comes the 'Windows Live Sign-In Assistant'. This service is now famous for breaking SMB file shares on many applications as well as media devices like the WDTV. With the WDTV, you'll get "Invalid login" trying to browse the file share until you uninstall Live Essentials. It's a deal-breaker for me. I stay away from Live Essentials now.
You can actually install Movie Maker alone and not get the Sign-In assistant. But if you install Live Sync for example, you will get it and you'll need to remove the whole Live Essentials package in order to get functioning SMB shares again.
It's a shame too because the Sign-In assistant means that I don't have to sign into Live enabled websites.
wk
July 22, 2010 at 5:14am
I just have one question, who think ribbon is an improvement? I use MS office at work, and desbite the great improvement in 2007 version, the most irritating thing is ribbons, what is wrong with menu bar in 2003 version, it was organized, and you can find whatever you want in an easy and fast way.
Ribbon is just more aesthetic and that is it.
and YES you can not call ribbon an improvement.
stradric
July 22, 2010 at 7:07am
The ribbon is not just for aesthetics. It improves efficiency. Many oft-performed actions will become 1-click operations rather than multiple clicks with the old menu bar. I find it very convenient in many situations.
Many people don't like the ribbon bar because they are slow to adapt to change. It took them a long time to get used to the menu and when they finally did, Microsoft improved it with the ribbon bar. But people don't see it as an improvement. They only see it as a step back to learning something new. But that's technology for you. It's always changing.
I agree with Microsoft on imposing the change. Had our government had the same amount of courage, we might actually be using the far superior metric system in the US.
