Nvyseal pointed out to me that upon install you have to close Google Talk (of all things). After installation i had to restart (you can run Google Talk with WLM running). I don't think this has happened before.
The GUI is much more basic compared to the Vista styled build that we last had. It doesn't even resemble the first Windows Live Messenger build that testers got. Performance seems to be excellent but i haven't been using it for more than 5 minutes.
One feature thats remained is the option to select the color of your WLM Windows along with the Sharing folder option. Now you can choose off a drop down menu whether you'd like to share a folder OR a file only with that contact. Hopefully each feature will get this attention and leave us with a sleek and powerful program.
Something i do like is the option for people to see your personal space. You get told people are pending your decision on whether to allow them to see the space or not.
Things like the icons in the System tray have reverted to the same one used in Windows Messenger and MSN. However we still have the new icons on the top of each chat window and also the 'Go to your space' button.
Adverts are back in every place possible...they ruin an otherwise minimalistic interface. Although i am disappointed with its look these just seem to not fit in.
Will i be keeping this build installed? only time will tell. Hopefully no bugs to ruin the 'experience'. If i find any i will let you know. Some people have had problems updating to this version for no apparent reason.
Microsoft plans to roll its Passport authentication service into the Windows Live family of Web services by 2007, renaming it to Windows Live ID. While the company is keeping mum on specifics, the service would make use of Microsoft's new InfoCard technology. It would be interesting to see when Windows Live Messenger gets the Live ID integrated. This i think would render any previous builds obsolete because the technology required to use them would be gone.
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