Yahoo Releases Messenger 9.0 with Bolder Interface and Pingbox Feature

Andy Salisbury — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 16:05:56 -0500

This past Tuesday Yahoo released the latest version of their instant messaging program, Messenger 9.0. With the release, they’ve introduced a slew of new features including a brand new interface, chat window, improved spam control, and the Yahoo Messenger Pingbox.

The new interface is more spread out than previous versions, allowing for larger avatars and the ability to post status messages. Also included in the new interface is the ability to import your contacts in bulk from your e-mail, IM, or Facebook contact lists using third party operator TrueSwitch. TrueSwitch will search through your address books and find users already on Yahoo and shoot them a friend invite on your behalf.

The new chat window ups the ease-of-use factor, allowing users to drop maps, images, videos or links directly into the chat box when you want to share them with your friends. Being able to check out videos and images without even leaving your IM client is mighty convenient. Yahoo also made a reversal from their dime-sized emoticons, scaling them down to give them a much cleaner look.

The final big feature is the Yahoo Messenger Pingbox, which is brand new with this release. It allows for web site owners (such as bloggers, eBay sellers, and social networking power users) to chat in real time with anyone visiting their site. This is a step up over lurking your inbox, waiting for a reply e-mail from the site owner that you’re trying to get in contact with. For the owner of the site these Pingboxes are simple to use, and highly customizable. Everything from the aesthetics of the window, to sending out a broadcast message to your site’s users, you’ll be given lots of control.

Windows Live Adds Photo Editing, Blogging Tools and More

Mark 'Marcus Soperus' Soper — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 21:40:23 -0500

If you've had a hard time figuring out what Microsoft means by "Windows Live," you're in good company. Microsoft has used the Live moniker for both web-based services such as Windows Live Search, Windows Live Messenger, and Windows Live Hotmail and for desktop applications that also include a web component, like Windows Live One Care. On Wednesday, Microsoft launched a beta version of its new Windows Live Suite, which includes features to help you connect with other users, find information online, customize your online experience, join a social network, back up data online, edit and share photos and videos, create a content-rich blog, and protect your family from the seamy side of the Internet. The Windows Live Suite works with both Windows XP SP2 and Windows Vista.

I tried beta versions of Windows Live Photo Gallery and Live Writer for this article, but other components include Windows Live Mail, Windows Live Messenger, Windows Live Family Safety, and Windows Live SkyDrive.

Live Photo Gallery - Better Editing, Easier Sharing

I decided to give the "new" Photo Gallery feature a try. It's an enhanced feature of the Photo Gallery feature in Windows Vista, so what's new? The Fix command now features a real-time histogram with Shadow and Highlights sliders. Although it lacks a specific adjustment for midtones (included in the three-slider Levels commands in Adobe Photoshop/Photoshop Elements), the Shadow and Highlight sliders and the ability to adjust the black and white points on the histogram itself make it easier than ever to intelligently fix problem photos.

Before

After

The Fix command also includes an Adjust Detail (sharpening) tool. Photo Gallery is now web-enabled, too, with an option to publish photos to Windows Live Spaces or MSN Soapbox. Photo Gallery also feature better integration with Windows Movie Maker.

Live Writer - Blog On Your Own Terms

Windows Live Writer supports Microsoft's own Windows Live Spaces and SharePoint blogs, but you can also configure it to work with other blogging services like WordPress, Blogger, and so on. Enter the blog's URL, your username and password, and Live Writer analyzes your blog and configures itself. Live Writer lives up to its promise of a rich blogging experience, providing automatic uploading of pictures from your system, insertion of maps from Microsoft Live Earth service, tags from Technorati, 43 Things, and other tag services, and video insertion. Publishing your entries is one-click simple, and you can also manage your blog with Live Writer.

Windows Live Suite is beta software, so you might not want to run it on a mission-critical system, but the features I tried suggest that when Windows Live Suite's components reach production status, Microsoft may have a winner on its hands.

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Yahoo Releases Messenger 9.0 with Bolder Interface and Pingbox Feature

Windows Live Adds Photo Editing, Blogging Tools and More

Live Photo Gallery - Better Editing, Easier Sharing

Live Writer - Blog On Your Own Terms