For those of you, like me who use MSN Messenger and subscribe to Microsoft's Security Bulletin you were probably sent an email message yesterday saying how there is a new vulnerability in MSN Messenger 6.0 and 6.1.
If you missed the bulletin here it is for your web viewing pleasure: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/msnmar04.mspx
I figure that this vulnerability is a little hard to exploit but I should update my version just to be safe. Since anyone can read any file on my computer (read only not write or edit) and that they have to know the exact name, I thought it would be a pretty harmless hack but there are important files on all of my computers that I don't want people to see. There usually aren't any important windows system files I worry about but you can never be too careful.
So I go and click on the update link figuring there would be this very small update probably fixing just a small amount of code. The upgrade link sends me to the full download page where I get to download the entire 5 megs again. This isn't a problem for me because I'm on a T1 here at work or DSL at home but what if I was on a 56k connection? Why in the hell would I want to download the entire package again?
Recently Rory over at neopoleon.com posted something on his personal problems with the IM client titled An open letter to Microsoft. The title doesn't mention that he is having a problem with Windows Messenger, the messaging client installed by default on Windows XP.
Apparently what happens is when you install MSN Messenger you have actually both the Windows Messenger and MSN Messenger on the same computer. Windows Messenger most likely ties in closely with Exchange messaging services (2000, 2003) so that corporate types can use Windows Messenger as their IM platform rather than the old Winpopup.exe method (pheer my 98 knowledge) or some 3rd party messenger (our company currently uses Vypress Messenger http://www.vypress.com). One downfall to uninstalling Windows Messenger is that Remote Assistance doesn't work afterwards. I don't personally use Remote Assistance but many of my co-workers will. If I'm not mistaken I have to also have it installed and functional to be able to 'talk' to my co-workers but I haven't invested too much into this yet as not everyone is up to 2000/XP.
What hasn't been mentioned is that MSN Messenger 6 installs to a different location than 5, which I currently still have on my computer. Microsoft didn't bother to tell me that installing version 6.x would leave 5 and break the damned uninstaller for 5. To put it simply I have both versions on my machine when I only need 1. How do I go about fixing it? Probably some weird registry hack when it would have been far simpler to uninstall version 5 before I ever put 6 on here. I guess that's my problem for actually using MSN Messenger since 4.8 decided to come out.
My uncle worked at Microsoft for a good couple of years so I understand much of it's inner workings. I do know that for the most part, whole companies work on different aspects of Microsoft products. My uncle's 'company' (for lack of a better word) worked on Netmeeting and did a lot of the technology that goes into it. From this example I can realize that the makers of MSN Messenger are in a 'company' as well with their own views and opinions on their product. Microsoft offers Windows Updates which update certain bits of code as needed and do not require you to download the full Windows XP with extra components added so why would the MSN Messenger team think that downloading the entire product again is a better solution?
I don't know I guess I'm a little anal about my computer. If I don't need 2 versions of something, I simply don't want it. I realize that I will probably need Windows Messenger so I will keep it even though I sometimes get that mixed up with MSN Messenger. I don't like having to manually remove version 5 because the newer installer doesn't seem to pick up that I have the old version and removes it for me. MSN Messenger 5.x used to prompt me every other month or so about updates and would then download and install them all from the client. Now with 6.1 I'm forced back into the world of manual updates where I have to go to the website, re-download the entire client, uninstall the previous client (to prevent any more 5.x to 6.x mishaps) then install the client yet again. Why for the love of God must I do this? I thought Microsoft software has progressed beyond this?
An open letter to the MSN Messenger/Windows Messenger group(s):
Please don't tease me with wonderful self-updating technology and then take it away from me like that. Also let me know up front if your new version will coexist with the old version so that I can remove it safely ahead of time. If a patch wouldn't have solved the problem then bringing back the self-updating feature of MSN would be cool. I may have to sit there for a couple of minutes while the entire MSN Messenger package downloads again but at least it saves me from having to go to the website and do it myself. I didn't have to do that with version 5.x so why should I have to now?