Microsoft's MSN to limit Internet Chat

[tonado]

I wonder if it will affect many Candle users. I heard Yahoo is better anyway.

-----------------------------------------------------

Microsoft's MSN to shut down, limit U.S. Internet chat

 

Tuesday, September 23, 2003

©2003 Associated Press

 

URL: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?...2147EDT0818.DTL

 

 

(09-23) 20:32 PDT SEATTLE (AP) --

 

Microsoft is shutting down Internet chat services in most of its markets around the world and limiting the service in the United States.

 

The company said the changes should help reduce criminal solicitations of children through online discussions. A business analyst said they also would enable Microsoft to shed some free users who are a drag on profits.

 

The changes will take effect Oct. 14, Microsoft said Tuesday in an announcement by its London office. Microsoft will post the changes on its Web site, MSN spokeswoman Lisa Gurry said.

 

In most of its 34 markets in Europe, Latin America and Asia, Microsoft MSN has chosen to simply shut down the service, the Redmond, Wash.-based software company said. However, MSN will continue to offer chat services to users in the United States, Canada, Japan and Brazil.

 

Eliminating and curtailing the service will help curb inappropriate uses, Gurry said, including pornographic spam as well as pedophiles or other sexual predators.

 

Microsoft officials refused to say how many people use its chat service. The company has about 8.6 million subscribers for its Internet service.

 

In the United States, MSN will require users of its chat service to subscribe to at least one other paid MSN service. That way, the company will have credit card numbers to make it easier to track users who violate MSN's terms of use. The sessions will not be moderated, Microsoft said.

 

In Canada and Japan, the company will offer some moderated chat rooms. Users can also subscribe to an unmoderated service. MSN will offer some moderated chat discussions in New Zealand and Brazil.

 

The move may help MSN trim the number of free users and help boost its overall revenue, said Rob Helm, an analyst with Directions on Microsoft, an independent research firm.

 

"I think this change will have welcome side effects, like keeping spammers out of the chat rooms," he said. "But fundamentally I believe this is a move to make MSN more profitable. It will allow the company to get rid of some infrastructure that was supporting chat, and to make more money on what it leaves in place."

[Q&Q]

Yes, yahoo is even better. And actually it will only limit chat rooms, not the messenger.

[AZwolfman]

Both AIM (AOL Instant Messenger) and Yahoo IM are way better than MSN. With Yahoo, you can even have video chat.

[Guest Se_Lang]

I have always used NetMeeting for video as Yahoo video is like watching a slow slide show, but Yahoo messenger is by far the best for chatting I think, However to use NetMeeting you will need to find out what your IP or her IP is since this is what you use connect.

[Q&Q]

I have always used NetMeeting for video as Yahoo video is like watching a slow slide show, but Yahoo messenger is by far the best for chatting I think, However to use NetMeeting you will need to find out what your IP or her IP is since this is what you use connect.

Yes, use NM to see and talk to each other and use yahoo to get each other's IP.

 

BTW, did your MM give you your Chinese name? It's an interesting name

[Guest Se_Lang]

lol, kind of gave me the name, it evolved a little, her nephew called me Liu mang cause I was always holding her hand then my chinese friend here in US said se lang was better so I was titled "Se Lang", during my last trip we was walking around the street markets in beijing one night and decided to get the seal carving done her family name is Tong, so since it rolled off the tounge so nicely I used Tong Se Lang but mostly she calls me da se lang.

 

Side note: her given name is "Man" so I get to have fun when I talk about the man in my life, or the man I love or I only have room for 1 man in my life etc.... use your imagination it is fun sometimes people look at me funny until I explain.

[Guest Se_Lang]

it means womanizer

[Jiefly]

I think loved ones always give each other many special nicknames.

 

Like me and my GG, our "cute" nicknames are all called "bad words" in usual. But they are our love language~~

 

Se Lang GG must be in the same boat...

 

If I told you all those nicknames between me and my GG, you are not going to believe...

 

heehee....far more fun!!!

[Guest Se_Lang]

I think loved ones always give each other many special nicknames.

Yes Jiefly you are right, I get called a few pet names from her and all are in love and fun.

 

Maybe we should start a new topic under the language and culture area and collect all the pet names we all use that could be a good laugh

 

 

Now back to the regularly scheduled topic, which is what is the best way to communicate across the distance since MSN sucks

[Bobby]

However to use NetMeeting you will need to find out what your IP or her IP is since this is what you use connect.

 

There are many ways to do this, most people go into the 'Properties' section of their 'Network Neighborhood' and look up the address, however, if you are like most dial-up/dsl (and most cable) users, you are using DHCP and the address isn't displayed there. Here is what I usually recommend and has the least chance of messing anything up:

 

Windows 95/98:

Click on Start

Select Run

Type "command"

[A black box will open]

At the prompt, type "winipcfg"

Close the IP Information window when you have the address

Type "exit" in the black box to close the box

 

Windows NT/2000/XP:

Click on Start

Select Run

Type "cmd"

[A black box will open]

At the prompt, type "ipconfig"

Type "exit" in the black box to close the box

 

(Note: don't actually type the quotes, type the words in the quotes)

[Guest hakkamike]

If you are using Netmeeting?? why don't you just go to the top of Netmeeting when it is running chick on Help and go down to About Windows Netmeeting, click on that and it will give you your IP????

Later, Michael Perez

[Guest Se_Lang]

There are many ways to do this, most people go into the 'Properties' section of their 'Network Neighborhood' and look up the address, however, if you are like most dial-up/dsl (and most cable) users, you are using DHCP and the address isn't displayed there.  Here is what I usually recommend and has the least chance of messing anything up

Go to the "help" menu at the top of your NetMeeting client. Click "About" and your IP address is listed at the bottom of the window. It will look something like this: 123.45.67.8. You can then give it to your friend over an instant messaging software and ask them to call you.

 

 

For those of you that have home networks it is a little more involved or in some cases a lot more involved I had no luck using the 2-wire product so I went back to my old faithful Linksys router but even with that I just ended up making my 1 computer completely exposed to the world which is not the safest way to go. I will try to find the ports that NM uses and post the list here for those of you that want to go that route

[Guest Se_Lang]

here is the link

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?...b;en-us;q158623

 

but here is the short version

 

Port Purpose

-------------------------------------

389 Internet Locator Server [Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)]

522 User Location Server (TCP)

1503 T.120 (TCP)

1720 H.323 call setup (TCP)

1731 Audio call control (TCP)

Dynamic H.323 call control (TCP)

Dynamic H.323 streaming [Realtime Transport Protocol (RTP) over User Datagram Protocol (UDP)]

 

 

To establish outbound NetMeeting connections through a firewall, the firewall must be configured to do the following:

Pass through primary TCP connections on ports 522, 389, 1503, 1720 and 1731.

Pass through secondary UDP connections on dynamically assigned ports (1024-65535).

[Bobby]

If you are using Netmeeting?? why don't you just go to the top of Netmeeting when it is running chick on Help and go down to About Windows Netmeeting, click on that and it will give you your IP????

meh.. I don't use netmeeting.. figured it would be a decent fyi..

[Guest Se_Lang]

Why not simply use Yahoo Messenger and simply click on Webcam or Voice? Darn sight easier than reconfiging your 'puter.

Because the quality of yahoo video leaves alot to be desired with NM it is more like video and less like a slow slide show