[princeG]

Windows Live Messenger 8 Beta details:

Mike McCoy posted some information regarding the upcoming Messenger 8 beta on the Microsoft connect newsgroups: Has the beta started yet? No. Currently we are in a phase of MSFT internal testing. There are a handful of people outside MSFT, such as MVP's, who are also participating in this testing but their numbers are very small (less than 100). When will the beta start? I can't give out a firm date yet but it should be sometime next month. How do I sign up? If you were part of the 7.5 beta you will get invited to participate in the beta. Have you seen that it leaked? Yes we have. In fact we put it on download.microsoft.com. We did this because we realized after the 7.5 beta that even if we restrict the download, people still host the bits on their own download sites and it leaks anyway. Instead, we are attempting to control leaks through sign-in authorization. We also saw that the sign-in restriction has been hacked. However, the result is a version that is not fully functional. Plus, if you install and run these hacks you are exposing yourself to spyware and viruses for a version of Messenger 8 that is not even fully functional. My advice is to be patient and wait for your beta invite. Anything else new with this beta? Yes, we have two different types of betas: Managed and Closed. The Managed beta is like our traditional betas. Participants will go to Connect, file bugs and participate in restricted newsgroups. For Closed betas, participants will have the ability to download and use the software and participate in public forums. The Managed beta will be limited by what country you are in so even though you participated in the 7.5 Managed beta you may only be eligible for the Closed beta if you are not in a Managed beta country. Which countries are Managed and which are Closed? Unfortunately, I can't say at this time.