C hap te r What Are Windows Live Essentials? In this chapter, you will: uuDiscover the applications you can add to Windows at no cost uuSet up your own Windows Live ID uuWalk through adding the Windows Live Essentials Applications to your computer uuRun the Windows Live Essentials Applications uuInstall the Windows Live Toolbar uuSearch the Internet with Bing uuAccess Windows Live Applications from the Windows Live Toolbar uuCustomize the Windows Live Toolbar If you are reading this book, then chan
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? Introducing Windows Live Applications When you install Windows Live Applications, which you’ll do later in this chapter, you will be asked to select the applications you want to install. Each application might include some prerequisites; however, in almost all cases, everything you need will be installed at the same time that you install the application.
I n t r o d u c i n g W i n d ow s L i v e Appl i c at i o n s ❘ 3 In addition to the Windows Live Applications, there are also a few additional Windows Live Services that are worth your attention. A few are listed in Table 1.2. These services will also be covered in this book. In addition to the following services, there are several others that are can be found within Windows Live. All of these services are available online, so they require an Internet connection to use. Table 1.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? or higher for Windows XP). It is recommended that you have 512MB of RAM in your computer. If you are using Windows XP, you can get away with only having 128MB of RAM; however, 256MB is the recommended minimum if using Windows XP. Because you are downloading these applications from the Internet, you’ll need an Internet connection. If you are using Windows Live Mail, you’ll need to have the connection to send and receive mail.
D ow n loa d i n g a n d I n s ta ll i n g t h e W i n d ow s L i v e Appl i c at i o n s ❘ 5 To start the process of installing the Windows Live Applications, you need to first download a file from download.live.com. When you go to this URL, you should find that it is somewhat similar to Figure 1.1. Figure 1.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? Once you’ve downloaded the wlsetup-web.exe file, run it by double-clicking on its icon. You could also have chosen to run this program as a part of the download. When you run this program, you may need to tell Windows to allow the program to run (you’ll need to have administrator rights to your machine). The program will start by showing what is in Figure 1.2. Figure 1.
D ow n loa d i n g a n d I n s ta ll i n g t h e W i n d ow s L i v e Appl i c at i o n s ❘ 7 Figure 1.3 Choosing the applications to install You can check the items you want to install. As you click on the names of each application, information about it will be displayed to the right. You can go ahead and install all the applications now, or you can install a few now and later run the installation program again to install others.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? Figure 1.4 Please close these programs. Figure 1.5 Installing the Windows Live Applications 26873c01.
D ow n loa d i n g a n d I n s ta ll i n g t h e W i n d ow s L i v e Appl i c at i o n s ❘ 9 As the programs install, information will be displayed about the applications. Note that if you followed the alternative suggestion earlier and downloaded the full applications, then when you start the install, it will progress more quickly because you’ve already done the downloading.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? Figure 1.7 Selecting additional settings In addition to the two options mentioned, you might also have one or two additional options for providing feedback to Microsoft. Figure 1.7 shows two options for providing feedback. The descriptions of these two options explain what they do.
S e t t i n g Up a W i n d ow s L i v e ID ❘ 11 Figure 1.8 Do you want to set up a Windows Live ID? Setting Up a Windows Live ID In order to use the Windows Live Service mentioned earlier, you will need a Windows Live ID. As stated, if you already have one, you can close the dialog box and move on to the next section about using the Windows Live Essentials Applications. If not, you can click on the Sign up link. This will start the process of creating a Windows Live ID, as shown in Figure 1.9.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? Figure 1.9 Creating a Windows Live ID as part of the installation If you choose to use an existing email address, then you will need to click the link to use your own email address. This will allow you to then enter your own email address. The rest of the information on the form will remain the same. Don’t bother trying to use a bogus email address because you will still have to validate that it is real.
S e t t i n g Up a W i n d ow s L i v e ID ❘ 13 If the value you enter is available, a message will be posted to the form saying that it is available. If it is not available, then a list of alternatives will be presented that you can use to select an alternative. Figure 1.10 shows the alternatives that were selected when I tried to get BradJones@live.com as an ID. I have the option to select one of these alternatives or to enter a new value into the Windows Live ID box and try again. Figure 1.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? Figure 1.11 Advanced Search for a new Windows Live ID Once you’ve found an available ID, you can continue to enter the rest of the information. While the Windows Live ID is the most important piece of information, second to that will be your password. You’ll need your ID and password to access Windows Live Services. You won’t necessarily need these to use the Windows Live Essentials Applications.
S e t t i n g Up a W i n d ow s L i v e ID ❘ 15 After the password, most of the information on the form is straightforward. You should complete the form and then click the “I accept” button. This will process the form and create the Windows Live ID. If you have any errors on the form, messages will be displayed to help you correct then. Once you’ve correctly completed the form, you’ll be greeted with a page prompting you to get started with Windows Live, as shown in Figure 1.13.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? At this point, you have a Windows Live ID, and you are ready to do all of the things in this book—or at least the ones you’ve installed as shown earlier! On the getting started page shown in Figure 1.13, there is a link to home.live.com, which is the Windows Live home page. You can use that link to go to this page now, or you can go to the Windows Live home page at any time in the future by using that URL.
E d i t i n g Yo u r W i n d ow s L i v e P r o f i l e ❘ 17 Editing Your Windows Live Profile Of course, if you find that something in your profile isn’t right or changes, then you’ll want to change that information. You can do this by logging into Live and going to your account settings. The easiest way to get to your account information is to go to account.live.com. This will take you to the account settings page.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? entered into your account information along with a little down arrow. If you click on the down arrow, you will be given a few account options similar to those shown in Figure 1.17. Selecting View your account will also take you to your account page. Figure 1.
E d i t i n g Yo u r W i n d ow s L i v e P r o f i l e ❘ 19 Figure 1.18 Windows Live account page Figure 1.19 Updating account information 26873c01.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? From the form shown in Figure 1.19, you can make changes. Once you’ve completed your changes, you can click Save to save them or Cancel to throw them out. N OT E Using the Windows Live Toolbar At this point, you’ve learned how to create a Windows Live ID, you have learned how to log into your account, and you’ve seen how to update your information. Now it is time to start using the Windows Live Applications and services.
U s i n g t h e W i n d ow s L i v e To o lb a r ❘ 21 In addition to using the Windows Live Toolbar to do all of the preceding, you can also add custom buttons to allow you to do even more. In the following sections, you’ll learn some of the highlights of what you can accomplish with the Windows Live Toolbar. N OT E Keeping Tabs on People in Your Network One of the first options you’ll see on the Windows Live Toolbar is What’s New.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? As you can see, the figure shows various types of information, including social networking interaction-related information. This includes information from my friends in my network as well as social feeds and groups I belong to. What will be displayed are new things that they have done, so you can keep tabs on them. You can see that there are even times, which reveal how old the information is.
U s i n g B i n g : T h e S e a r c h E n g i n e P r e v i o u s ly K n ow n a s L i v e S e a r c h ❘ 23 Figure 1.22 Windows Bing (Live Search) Even more than that, you can restrict your search to specific areas. As you can see in Figure 1.23, there is a drop-down list that can be used to refine your search. You can narrow your search to just news, maps, images, feeds, the current site, or the current computer. Simply enter your search term (or terms) and click the option you want to search.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? Access Windows Live Applications from the Windows Live Toolbar The Windows Live Toolbar will also allow you to access a number of different applications. This includes applications such as Windows Live Mail, Windows Live Calendar, and more. Viewing Email from the Toolbar In Chapter 3, you will learn how to use email associated with Windows Live. This will include the Windows Live Mail program and Windows Live Hotmail.
Acc e s s W i n d o w s L i v e Appl i c at i o n s f r o m t h e W i n d ow s L i v e To o lb a r ❘ 25 As you can see in the figure, this is simply a list of the most recent mail messages in my Windows Live Hotmail account. I can also choose to go to my inbox by clicking on the link at the bottom of the list of messages. N OT E Viewing Shared Photos Just as with mail, you can also get a quick view of photos by using the Photo option on the Toolbar.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? Checking Your Windows Live Calendar Chapter 7 will talk about setting up and using calendar functionality. You’ll be able to schedule appointments, events, and other activities that you can then use or share with others. As with the other features, the Calendar option on the Windows Live Toolbar allows you quick access to current items on your calendar, as shown in Figure 1.26.
Acc e s s W i n d o w s L i v e Appl i c at i o n s f r o m t h e W i n d ow s L i v e To o lb a r ❘ 27 Figure 1.27 Sharing a favorite site Translating to Other Languages The Windows Live Toolbar has several other features that you can use in addition to those that have already been covered. If English isn’t your first language, then you might want to try the Translation option. This option will allow you to translate the text on a web page to a different language.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? Figure 1.28 A translated page Customizing Your Windows Live Toolbar There are a number of buttons and options on the Windows Live Toolbar that I’ve not covered. Additionally, there are a number of buttons not on the toolbar that you can add. You can add additional buttons and customize your Windows Live Toolbar by clicking on the “Get new buttons” icon. As shown in Figure 1.
Acc e s s W i n d o w s L i v e Appl i c at i o n s f r o m t h e W i n d ow s L i v e To o lb a r ❘ 29 The buttons you can add to your Windows Live Toolbar are not limited to those from Microsoft. If you click the Find more buttons link shown in Figure 1.29, you’ll be taken to a web page that will allow you to select from hundreds of options that you can add to your Toolbar.
❘ C h a p t e r 1 W h at A r e W i n d ow s L i v e E s s e n t i a l s ? As you can see, from the Windows Live Toolbar options dialog, you can check or uncheck items being displayed on your toolbar. You can also change the order by clicking on an item to highlight it and then clicking the Move up or Move down option. You can uninstall a button you’ve added or that is on the page by clicking the Uninstall option. If a button or add-in has settings, you’ll also be able to adjust them here as well.
