Everyone loves standard protocols, and now Windows Live Messenger has finally moved away from its own proprietary system to use XMPP (the Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol). This means that it's far easier to create apps that work well with Windows Live, or even integrate it directly into devices. Currently, third-party apps which connect to Live Messenger (like Adium, eBuddy, or Pidgin) use a reverse-engineered library, but this is the first sign of support for unofficial clients from Microsoft. XMPP's also behind a number of other instant messaging services in use today, including Facebook Chat, Google Talk, and Jabber, so the work done to support one platform will be easily transferred to the rest.
The Windows Team Blog says that its new direction is motivated by its principles of choice in both devices and services. However, Microsoft's decision to try and open up the platform could also be motivated by an almost 10 percent drop in active users in the past two years — presumably with the rise of competing services like Facebook Chat.
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I haven’t used Windows Live messenger in years. Nor Yahoo messenger for that matter. I was getting WAAAAY too much SPAM on them so I haven’t even installed them on any computers I own or any new build I make since like 2006.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 9:59 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions
i never get any spam on WLM.. Yahoo was terrible though. I use WLM a lot since the video chat works with kinect.. just wish it wasn’t that weird html ui, i sort of like simple interfaces like pidgen or the old wlm clients.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 12:34 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
Who are these people who don’t use MSN? Who are you talking to?? Who are you hanging out with?? Everyone uses MSN that’s why it matters.
Some people use Gmail, no one uses Yahoo, no one has used AOL since the 90’s, and Skype (also owned by MS) is probably next most popular protocol. Obviously you can completely ignore Apple’s iChat stuff. MSN dwarfs all other chat protocols, because, well, once again, MS used Windows monopoly to get people msn.com/hotmail.com addresses, and gave them a stupidly simple way to use it on their windows pc.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 7:02 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
Yes, I know this is a dying platform, but it’s used a lot overseas, still. For that, I applaud this. I’m hoping that I can now contact people from Gmail’s built in chat using their Windows Live chat handles, just like I can with AIM.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:00 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions
They don’t seem to have enabled XMPP Server Federation unfortunately.
I was hoping I’d be able to chat with GTalk users from the Windows Phone messaging hub, but alas, no.
Hopefully they’ll add XMPP Federation in the near future.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:19 AM EST reply Recommend (3) Flag actions
Microsoft is on a roll.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:03 AM EST reply Recommend (7) Flag actions
It could also be a measure to make Skype and WLM integrate.
Posted on Dec 16, 2011 | 7:15 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
On a scale of one to ten, I was blindsided.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:04 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions
This could also presage the work we can expect Microsoft to do to tie WLM, Skype and Lync together.
Perhaps Microsoft has realized that competing via use of proprietary protocols and lock-in is less effective than delivering a terrific user experience and choice. It seems that they are opening up their platforms and tools across the board lately.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:07 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions
Or, I think more likely, Skype + Lync will remain a proprietary platform, and WLM will be transitioned into an open ‘talk to everything’ platform..
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:30 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions
Developers developers developers?
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:13 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions
Hooray for open standard and it’s a real shame it took this long for IM to get to it.
Facebook Chat and Google Talk use XMPP, Yahoo doesn’t use it. I don’t know about Skype or Lync.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:17 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
We need them to do this with Skype now!
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:18 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
Ahem… http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embrace,_extend_and_extinguish
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:22 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
thats so 1993..
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 12:35 PM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions
There is nothing wrong in crushing your competition. It is only wrong when you have a monopoly which MS had. When you don’t have a monopoly it is perfectly OK.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 5:16 PM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions
Hoping this leads to a decently-supported MSN plugin for iChat.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:26 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
In theory, you should be able to just use iChat without plugins, as it works using XMPP too. However, I’ve seen reports that this doesn’t work properly as yet.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:35 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions
It doesn’t work properly because Microsoft decided to implement a custom login procedure that means no existing XMPP client will just work. They need to be updated to use MS’s custom OAuth 2 implementation.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:44 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
Well, yea, there’s been no software update in the last 2 days, but Apple could throw something together pretty easily. Don’t expect this to be a huge priority though… They’re still trying to work their butts off to make Lion a usable OS.
Check the reviews on the Mac app store, they’re atrociously bad. Methinks THAT is what’s taking up Apple’s time on the OS X side. Even basic shit like stability.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 7:04 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
Just when I was about the definitively pull the plug on it.
Will see…
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:35 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
I grew up with “MSN Messenger”, I think everyone my age in Canada has.
Now no one is ever online. Texting kicked it in the balls, and Facebook finished it off.
Good luck to them.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:45 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions
Likewise. Used MSN at uni from about 2003-2005. Now I just use the chat built into gmail.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 3:29 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
I’ll second the MS is on a roll comment. Not a day goes by that MS isn’t doing something to improve their services. I love that and will continue to pick them apart so that they listen. I think the blogosphere is mostly reponsible for all the “listenging” that is going on with many of these companies.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 10:46 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions
“Not a day goes by that MS isn’t doing something to improve their services. "
Couldn’t they have implemented this like 5 years ago? Just sayin’
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 7:05 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
I’m glad Microsoft bought Skype, now I don’t feel guilty anymore when using it and not using WLM.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 11:11 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions
Sounds like HP, hey WebOs isn’t doing well let’s open it up …..Microsoft…hey lets open up messenger. BTW my company used Windows messenger for years as it’s IM of choice, we just this week were told to move to Google Talk.
Why do companies have to wait until their products are failing to make them more consumer friendly?
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 11:49 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
uhm.. no. MSN isn’t anywhere near failing. They realized the market is much larger when you integrate with services beyond the ones under your own control. Having unified messaging from xbox, phone, facebook, web and IM client is a good thing.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 12:37 PM EST reply Recommend (3) Flag actions
This would never have happened back when people still used MSN!
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 3:27 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
I still use Windows Live Messenger. I haven’t used it to communicate with anyone’s Windows Live ID (or whatever it’s called) for at least two years as no one other than me is online. However as it supports Facebook chat, I often use it for that. It is just so much nicer looking and I already am familiar with it. The only problems I’ve had are having my conversations split between WLM/Facebook and my phone.
Posted on Dec 15, 2011 | 5:10 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
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