Questions about Windows Live Sign-in Assistant

Tue, 16 May 2006 18:09:43 GMT

Over the past few weeks, we’ve received a ton of fantastic feedback from everyone on the Windows Live Sign-in Assistant and how much better our new Windows Live sign-in experience is. Thanks to everyone for the great feedback!

We’ve noticed a steady stream of questions on certain aspects of the Sign-in Assistant so we wanted to answer some questions in a concise manner to clarify any confusion. As always, leave us comments if there is still anything that isn’t clear!

Q: How do I install the Windows Live Sign-in Assistant?

A: Currently, the Windows Live Sign-in Assistant is only available as an option when you install the Live Messenger beta. Previously, the beta was “invite only”, but it was recently opened up to all users. See our previous blog post on how to get the beta.

During the install process for the Live Messenger client, there is an option that says ‘Install the Windows Live Sign-in Assistant”. Make sure you check that option during install otherwise it won’t install :) Many people have skipped over this option during the Live Messenger install process. We're working with the Messenger team on how to improve the messaging during setup to improve discoverability.

Q: I have the Windows Live Sign-in Assistant installed but I’m not getting multiple users shown on the sign-in screen. How do I fix this?

A: The 2 most common reasons for multiple users not working are:

1) You are using Firefox. Currently the Windows Live Sign-in Assistant is for Internet Explorer. We are working on full support for Firefox, but unfortunately were not able to get it into V1. We recognize that customers use Windows Live services from multiple devices and computers, so we will continue to do work here to figure out a good solution. I would like to note that our Windows Live Mail team has been doing a bunch of work to get the richer Live Mail experience working with Firefox -- check it out .

2) You previously installed a Messenger beta. Many people installed an earlier pre-beta version of Live Messenger (older than build 689) which included a version of the Sign-in Assistant. Since this was a pre-release version, it will not work on our sign-in UI. If this applies to you, use “Add/Remove Programs” in the Control Panel and remove BOTH Live Messenger beta and the Windows Live Sign-in Assistant (you have to uninstall both). After that, go to http://ideas.live.com and re-install the official Live Messenger beta which will install the correct, and working, version of the Windows Live Sign-in Asssitant.

Q: All I see is a blue “buddy” icon on the sign-in screen. How can I get my Messenger or MSN Spaces display picture to show?

A: At this time we don’t support showing your Messenger or MSN Spaces display picture. We are, however, looking to make improvements on this in the future. Stay tuned for some cool work in this area!

-Trevin Chow, Lead Program Manager

Windows Live ID: Discussions

Questions about Windows Live Sign-in Assistant