Today we’ve released the next generation of Windows Live! You can get all the new products now at the new WindowsLive.com. You can install everything in one download, or pick just the products you want.

Everything coming out today is designed to work with the Windows Live services you’re already using, like Windows Live Spaces, Hotmail, Messenger, and Windows Live for mobile, but of course, they add a whole slew of new features into the mix.

Today’s release includes:

• Windows Live Mail — This desktop mail program lets you see all your e-mail accounts in one place (including Hotmail, Gmail, AOL, or any other IMAP or POP web e-mail account), and adds all kinds of features you don’t normally get with web mail.
• Windows Live Messenger (update) — The popular IM program has a new upgrade, including improved contact cards, file sharing, video calling, and VOIP capabilities.
• Windows Live Writer — A WYSIWYG editing program for bloggers that makes it easy to add photos, maps, tags and more to your blog, and publish directly to Windows Live Spaces, Blogger, TypePad, and many other blogging services.
• Windows Live Photo Gallery — Helps you find, organize, fix, and share your photos and videos, stitch together panoramic photos, and upload them all directly to Windows Live Spaces or Flickr.
• Windows Live Toolbar (update) — Easy access to Live Search and Windows Live, custom buttons, and security features that help you block suspicious websites and pop-ups.
• Family Safety from Windows Live OneCare — Tools to help you protect your children from inappropriate websites and contacts. You decide how much control you want for each child.

Where to begin?

There are too many new features in this release to describe in one blog post, so I’ve got a (somewhat random, and very incomplete) list of 10 things you can do with Windows Live, to get you started. Most of these features are brand new today; a couple of them are not entirely new, but they’re a little more polished in the new release, and I think they’re worth pointing out.

1. Get a new @live.com e-mail address

This one isn’t on the list of products because you don’t need to install anything, but it’s definitely new, and long anticipated! Go here to create a cool new e-mail address ending in @live.com. You can access your new e-mail account via Windows Live Hotmail, Windows Live Mail, or Microsoft Office Outlook Connector. 

 

2. Automatically rotate and group your photos  

Windows Live Photo Gallery automatically figures out which photos need to be rotated and does it for you as you import them from your camera.* You can also automatically group your photos based on when they were taken, or by using tags you add.

For more cool stuff you can do with Windows Live Photo Gallery, check out the Microsoft Photo blog.

*Auto-rotation may not work with some older models of digital camera.

 

3. Add maps, videos, or pictures to any blog post 

Spice up your blogs with pictures, maps, and videos. With Windows Live Writer you can easily format your blog entries to look the way you want them to, and add photos, videos, maps from Live Search Maps, files from Windows Live SkyDrive, and lots of other stuff.

1. After installing Writer, enter the web address of your blog or space.
2. Writer automatically detects the formatting and other settings you use on your blog, and formats your new entries to match.
3. Click New at the top of the Writer window.
4. Use the buttons in the right pane to easily insert maps, videos, and more.

 

4. See all your new mail at a glance

When you install Windows Live Mail on your desktop, you can manage multiple e-mail accounts in one program. To take that a step further, quick views are virtual folders that show you categories of mail from all your e-mail accounts grouped together in one place. No more switching between accounts and folders!

You can get quick views of all of your unread mail, all unread mail from your contacts, all your sent mail, all flagged mail, etc. To add the quick views you want:

1. In Windows Live Mail, right-click Quick views in the folder list.
2. Click Select quick views.
3. Select the quick views you want to see in your folder list.

Learn more about more Windows Live Mail on their blog.

 

5. Send an SMS to a mobile phone from Windows Live Mail

Sending text messages (SMS) from Windows Live Mail is a great example of how Windows Live programs work together to give you more than the sum of their parts. You can send text messages from Windows Live Mail to any contact who’s set up Windows Live on their mobile phone. Look for a telephone icon next to the names of people in your contact list who have it.  

To send a text message from Windows Live Mail:

1. Click the arrow next to New.
2. Click Mobile text message.
3. Select the person you want to send it to.
4. A Messenger window opens, and you can start texting as if you were on your mobile phone (only easier, because the keyboard isn’t so tiny).

 

6. Add a voice clip to your text conversation

Text messages, voice messages, instant messages–the lines are all starting to blur. If you use Messenger on a Windows Mobile phone, now you can include voice clips in your SMS conversations.

 

1. Open Windows Live on your Windows Mobile phone, and start an SMS (text message) conversation in Messenger.
2. On the Menu, select Voice clip.
3. Click record.
4. When you finish recording, hit Send.
5. The voice clip will show up as an icon in your conversation, and your friend can click Play to hear it.

 

 

7. Make a button to add to your toolbar

You can customize your Windows Live Toolbar with buttons from Windows Live Gallery, or you can create your own. It took me about 2 minutes to create a button that shows my local traffic information, and it was kind of fun! And when you’re done, you can submit your button to Windows Live Gallery so other people can use it too!

1. On Windows Live Toolbar, click the arrow next to the Gallery button.
2. Select a button from those featured on the menu, or click Make a button.
3. Fill out the simple form to create your own button that links to a favorite website, add a dropdown menu—you can even include a specialized search function.

 

8. See who your kids are talking to online

If you have children, you worry about them. With Family Safety from Windows Live OneCare, you can feel better about what they’re doing online, and especially, who they’re meeting. A built-in contact approval system lets you know who your kids are talking to on Windows Live services, including IM, e-mail, or Windows Live Spaces, and you can approve or reject anyone new. 

Family Safety also blocks specific websites or content categories that you choose for each child. If they want to see a site that you’ve blocked, they can use the software to ask you for permission.

 

9. Make a difference with i’m in Messenger

If you already use Windows Live Messenger to IM your friends, why not raise some money for a good cause at the same time? If you join the i’m initiative, every time you start an IM conversation, Microsoft shares a portion of the program’s advertising revenue with a social cause that you choose from our initiative partners, including great organizations like the Red Cross, UNICEF, and the Humane Society.

In November and December, Microsoft is doubling its contributions to the i’m initiative. There’s no cap on the amount Microsoft will donate to each organization, and there’s no charge to you, so you can put Microsoft’s money where your mouth is.

 

10. Smile, and help children around the world

Windows Live is partnering with Operation Smile to get people to share their smiles and help make a difference in the lives of children around the world. To participate, go to windowslive.com/smile and share pictures of your own smiling face. Your photos might be posted on the site, or they might show up on big screen displays at Windows Live events going on in New York and Los Angeles today and tomorrow.

Whether or not you get your 15 minutes of fame, share your smiles using Windows Live. Microsoft’s donation to Operation Smile is based on ad revenue from Windows Live Spaces for November and December. So, the more photos you share on Windows Live Spaces, the more money will go to Operation Smile.

 

Do you have other favorite things you like to do with Windows Live? Try it out and let us know what you think is cool, what confuses you, and what you want us to blog about next.

Antonia B.
Windows Live team

Announcements

November 6, 2007

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