Using Windows Messenger

Windows Messenger allows you to communicate in real-time with other people who use Windows Messenger. To sign in, you need to use a Microsoft .NET Passport as your login ID. If you do not already have a .NET Passport, go to .NET Passport and follow the instructions. To check if .NET Passport is available in your language, see .NET Passport International.


Connecting to Windows Messenger using .NET Messenger Service

To sign in to .NET Messenger Service

  1. Click Start, point to All Programs, and click Windows Messenger.
  2. In the main Windows Messenger window, click Click here to sign in.
  3. If your sign-in information is not already listed, type your sign-in name (your .NET Passport) and password in the text box.
  4. If you want to store your sign-in information on your computer, select the Sign me in automatically check box, and then click OK. (Do not select this check box on public computers or computers you share with others.)

To sign out of .NET Messenger Service

  • In the Windows Messenger main window, click the File menu, and then click Sign Out.
    –or–
  • Click the Windows Messenger icon in the notifications area of the taskbar, and then click Sign Out.

To stop Windows Messenger from starting automatically

You might not always want Windows Messenger to start up each time Windows starts up. You can start Windows Messenger manually from the Start menu. To stop Windows Messenger from starting automatically, take the following steps.

  1. In the Windows Messenger main window, click the Tools menu, and then click Options.
  2. On the Preferences tab, clear the Run Windows Messenger when Windows starts check box.

Sending and receiving messages

Sending an instant message is how you have conversations with people on your Contacts list. Each message can be up to 400 characters long and can also include emoticons. When you receive an instant message, you will hear a sound and see an alert on your Windows taskbar. You can turn off or change the sound that notifies you of a new message. You can also turn off alerts.

To send an instant message

  1. In your contact list, double-click the name of someone who is online. The conversation window opens.
  2. Type your message in the box at the bottom of the window, and then click Send. Your message appears in the upper conversation box.

To open an instant message

  • Click the alert to open the message.

To add other people to a conversation

  • In the conversation window, under I want to, click Invite Someone to this Conversation. (If I want to is not visible, on the View menu, click Show Sidebar.)
  • Click the name of a contact, or click Other and type an e-mail address or sign-in name, and then click OK.

Configuring and saving your conversations

To use emoticons in messages to show feelings

  1. In the conversation window, click Emoticons.
  2. Click the emoticon you wish to use and it will appear in your message.
  3. To see more emoticons, or to see the keyboard combinations for emoticons, click More.

To set the size of text that you read

  • In the conversation window on the View menu, point to Text Size, and click the size you want. All the text you see in the conversation window will appear at the size you specify, but the sender determines the color and font of the text you receive.

To save a conversation

Unless you explicitly save it, the text in the conversation window will be gone when you close the window. You can save the conversation in Rich Text Format (RTF). Only character-based emoticons can be saved. Emoticon graphics are not saved. You can save character-based emoticons if you turn off emoticons before sending or receiving messages in the conversation.

  1. In the conversation window, on the File menu, click Save As.
  2. Go to the folder where you want to save the text, type the file name, and click Save.

Managing your status and who sends you messages

Your status is how Windows Messenger users see you listed in their Contact list. When you start Windows Messenger, your status is displayed to your contacts as Online. To change your status, click your name at the top of the main window and select one of the following statuses. You will still receive instant messages for all status types, except Appear Offline. However, if you select Busy or On The Phone, the conversation window won't flash and you won't hear the alert sound as you would with any other status, except Appear Offline.

  • Online
  • Busy
  • Be Right Back
  • Away
  • On the Phone
  • Out to Lunch
  • Appear Offline

If you close Windows Messenger, your status will appear as Offline. When you are offline, messages sent to you will not be delivered.

You will be marked as Away when your screen saver goes into effect or when the time you set on the Preferences tab of the Options dialog box has elapsed, whichever comes first.

When you run full-screen programs such as presentation programs or games, your status is automatically set to Busy and you won't receive alerts. To change this, clear the Block alerts check box on the Preferences tab of the Options dialog box.

To block someone from sending you a message

Blocked contacts do not know they have been blocked. You simply appear offline to them. A person you have blocked cannot contact you directly.

  • If you receive an instant message from someone you want to block, or if you want to block someone you are having a conversation with, click Block in the conversation window. (If other people are in the conversation, click Block, and then click the name of the person you want to block.)
    –or–
  • In the Windows Messenger main window, right-click the name of the person you want to block, and click Block. The person is moved from your Allow list to your Block list. To see your Allow and Block lists, click the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Privacy tab.

To block all messages from people you don't know

  1. On the Tools menu, click Options.
  2. On the Privacy tab, under My Allow List, click All other users, and then click Block. All other users moves to your Block list. This forces anyone who wants to send you messages to add you to their own contact list.

Creating and managing your Contact list

To add a contact to your list

When your contact list is in the Groups view rather than the Online/Offline view, new contacts are added to the All Contacts group. You can copy all new contacts to other groups.

  1. At the bottom of the main Windows Messenger window, under I want to..., click Add a Contact. (If Add a Contact is not visible in your main Windows Messenger window, on the Tools menu, click Show Actions Pane.)
  2. In the Add a Contact Wizard, enter Contact information in one of the following ways:

  • By e-mail address or sign-in name if you know this information.
    –or–
  • Search for a contact if you need to find the person's e-mail address.
  1. Follow the rest of the directions in the wizard.

To remove a contact from your list

People who are not on your list can still contact you unless you block them.

  • In your Contact list, right-click the name you want to remove, and then click Delete Contact. The contact is deleted from your list, and from all the groups he or she might have been in.

To create a group in your list

  • Under I want to, click Add a Group. (If I want to is not visible, click Show Actions Pane on the Tools menu.)
    –or–
  • On the Tools menu, point to Manage Groups, and click Add a Group. A new group is created, and you can give it a name.

To rename a group in your list

You can rename only groups you have created, and when you rename a group, the order of the groups may change.

  1. Right-click the name of the group you want to change, and then click Rename Group
  2. Type the new name.

To move or copy contacts to a different group

  • Point to the contact you want to move, and drag it to the new group. To copy a contact to a new group, press CTRL while dragging. The contact will now be in both groups.
    –or–
  • Right-click the contact, click Move Contact to or Copy Contact to, and then click the name of the group to which you want to move or copy it.

Managing Alerts

Alerts pop up in a small box near the Windows Messenger icon on your Windows taskbar. An alert means that someone has sent you a text message. To block alerts, set your status to Busy.

To open a sign-in alert

  • When a contact signs in, an alert appears. Click the alert to open the conversation window.

To open an instant message alert

  • When you receive an instant message, you'll receive an alert. Click the alert to open the message and carry on the conversation.

To turn off alerts

  1. In the main window, click the Tools menu, select Options, and then select the Preferences tab.
  2. Click the Alerts tab on the left, and clear the check box for the alerts you want to turn off. (If you do not see the Alerts tab, on the Tools menu, point to Show Tabs, and then click Microsoft .NET Alerts.

To change your alert sounds

To find all the sound files on your computer, click Start, click Search, and then click All files and folders. In the All or part of the file name box, type *.wav, and then click Search. In the search results, double-click a sound to listen to it. When you find the sound you want, note its name and location, and then follow these steps. When you reach step 4, navigate to the folder that contains the sound you want to use.

  1. On the Tools menu, click Options.
  2. On the Preferences tab, under Alerts, click Sounds.
  3. In the Sounds and Audio Devices Properties dialog box, click the Sounds tab, and in the Program events box, scroll down to the Windows Messenger category.
  4. Click the sound you want to change, and then click a new sound in the Sounds list. To preview a sound, click Play. (If the list does not contain the sound you want, click Browse and look for other sound files (files with the extension .wav).)