MSNClient

[Skywing]

Changes:

- Added support for all MSN protocols to date.  This includes the latest version, which uses Passport tickets to authenticate.  By default, the program will auto-negotiate and use the highest protocol version supported by the server; however, you can set the highest protocol version it will use by setting the "Logon Protocol" registry string.  Valid values are MSNP2 through MSNP8.  Various features may not be available when using older protocol versions.  For instance, you may not be able to send a message to a mobile device when using a protocol earlier than MSNP5, and (when support is added for them) groups will only be functional on MSNP7 or later.  MSNP8 offers new NAT compatibility features which will be taken advantage of in future versions to better support file transfers between users who do not have a direct connection.

- Added support for displaying exactly why a logon failed when using MSNP8.  For instance, if you try and connect using an e-mail address that does not have a passport, you might see a message like "The e-mail address you provided is not a valid .NET Passport.  Please try again or register for a .NET Passport.".  These notifications are not displayed if you have turned off system message notifications.

- Fixed an issue with the popup notification windows causing them to not properly wrap text between lines under some circumstances.

- Corrected a few other minor spacing issues with some of the popup notification messages.

- Fixed an issue where pings would not be sent properly.  Now, the client will send a message to the server every 30 seconds, which should help prevent idle timeouts with some firewalls and NATs.

- Numerous other internal changes paving the way for file transfer and group support.

- Minor bugfix: addressed an issue causing display names to have 0s appended to them.

[Skywing]

New in this verison:

- Full file transfer support (finally).  Additionally, when working with contacts using MSN 5, Windows Messenger, MSNClient, or certain other third-party clients, MSNClient will use an enhanced, more NAT-compatible file transfer mode that should improve the odds of being able to transfer files from behind a restrictive NAT or firewall.

- Fixed an issue that prevented MSNClient from signing in to Hotmail accounts when using MSNP8.

- Fixed an issue which caused the popup notification window links to not do anything when clicked on Windows 95/98/Me.

- Fixed a minor memory leak related to the popup notification windows.

[Skywing]

New in this version:

- Fixed an issue causing the program to stop trying to reconnect to MSN until you restarted it.
- Fixed an issue causing contacts to not be recognized on any list if they weren't on your forward list when using MSNP8.
- Fixed internal group tracking when using MSNP8 (note that groups are still not visible to the end user yet).
- Fixed an issue causing the program to not recognize changes to some privacy options stored server-side until the next logon when using MSNP8.
- Fixed an issue preventing the status bar and status menuitem for the main contacts window from being properly updated when a view besides 'Contacts' was selected.
- Added tracking for the last 10 chat messages in switchboard sessions.  If a message couldn't be delivered, you'll be notified.
- Added tracking for the last 10 invitations in switchboard sessions, and notifications for undeliverable invitations.
- Added an option to start an IM conversation with a user not on your contacts list (Contacts > Send an Instant Message...).
- Added an option to modify which lists a user is in to the user properties window.
- Added notifications for switchboard (chat) sessions being closed due to inactivity.
- The program will now notify you if a user adds you to your contact list.  The program will now automatically add users to your allow (but not contacts) list when they add you if you have enabled this.
- Improved native Unicode support in several areas of the program.

[Skywing]

It's been awhile since the last update, but the project is far from dead.

New in this version:
- Fixed several issues that could cause the client to crash.
- Fixed an issue that could cause the client to disconnect immediately on connect.
- Fixed an issue with decoding certain friendly names.
- Fixed a longstanding issue that prevented the client from noticing that somebody had added (or removed) you from his/her contacts until your next reconnect.
- User data is now stored in HKEY_CURRENT_USER instead  of HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE if the client is not running as a service.  You may need to re-enter your configuration information because of this.

Known issues:
- Some friendly names show up as blocks in the contacts list, even when you are using a Unicode-enabled operating system.  This appears to be a limitation in DrawTextW; if anyone has a solution for this problem, I'd like to hear from you.
- File transfer handling still seems to have a few problems.  If it crashes on you, it'd be most helpful if you could post or send me a stack trace.
- MSNP9 support needs to be updated with the most recent challenge values.
- You can't (yet) change where logfiles are kept.  Hopefully, this will be addressed in the next release.

Other related news:
- MSNP2 through MSNP7 are now disabled and cannot be used on official Microsoft MSN Messenger servers.  While MSNClient still handles these protocols, you will not be able to use them successfully except on third-party servers.  There is nothing that I can change in the program to work around this.
- Fixed download link for hypothetic.org.
- MSNMessenger.dll updated for MSNP8, various bugs fixed.

[Skywing]

The MSNMessenger.dll ISAPI application has now been released.

You can get it here.  A basic readme is included.

[Skywing]

A new version of MSNMessenger.dll has been released that fixes the .say command.

Expect more updates of MSNClient and MSNMessenger.dll in the near future!

[Skywing]

This update adds a great deal of new functionality and fixes many bugs.

New in this version:
- Text output is much faster.  Scroll and selection positions are now properly preserved.  The new behavior is to automatically scroll down as new text is added to the chat window if the scroll bar is positioned at the bottom.  Additionally, the behavior regarding saving the selection / caret position has changed.  The selection will be preserved if the caret is not positioned at the end of the chat window; otherwise, it will be moved down as new text is added.
- Added preliminary IPv6 support for all connections.
- The client now resolves hostnames asynchronously.  This means that a DNS resolution request that is taking a long time to complete will no longer make the user interface appear unresponsive.
- No user interface elements block network activity.  Support for modeless menus currently causes some unexpected behavior sometimes due to a bug in Windows; if you find this to be unacceptable, modal menus can be reenabled by setting the REG_DWORD Modeless Menus to 1 in Software\Valhalla's Legends\Skywing\BinaryChat\Global Settings\User Interface.  Modeless menus are only supported on Windows NT 4.0/Windows 98 or later.
- Registry accesses are now based from HKEY_CURRENT_USER if the client is not running as a service.  As a result, you may need to re-enter some configuration information when upgrading from a previous client version.
- The caret is now properly positioned to the end of the passport text field in the modify contacts window if a passport was automatically filled in (which would be the case if you went to a contact's property pages and modified their list settings).
- Added a notification area ("tray") icon.  On Windows 2000 and later, a 256 color icon will be used; otherwise, a 16-color icon will be used.
- There is a context menu associated with the notification area icon that can be used to show the contacts window if you hide it by clicking the close button.
- Attempting to view the properties of a user that is not on your contacts list will now bring up the edit contacts window.
- Added a menu option to the File menu of the chat window that gives easy access to the received files directory.
- Added a logon configuration window to the client; this is accessible from the Settings menu in the contacts window.  The logon configuration window will automatically be displayed if you have not yet entered in all information required to connect (for instance, if this is the first time you have run MSNClient).
- Added support for playing user-defined sounds when certain events occur.  These are disabled by default, but can be configured through the Settings menu in the contacts window.
- Added an option for disabling sounds except for when you are working with a fullscreen program.
- Added support for paging users with MSNP9.  Additionally, support for including international text in pages has been greatly improved.
- Added preliminary support for paging MSN Direct watches.  This has not been tested.
- Added preliminary support for configuring whether or not pages can be sent to your MSN Direct watch.  This has not been tested, and appears to only work properly if you have setup an MSN Direct watch with your account at http://mobile.msn.com.
- Added support for receiving messages from mobile devices.
- Existing chat and file transfer connections will now be retained when reconnecting to the main MSN Messenger server.
- Pages are now logged if the client's logging settings permit it.
- Added support for receiving MSN Alerts.  This also includes support for receiving MSN Calendar notifications if you have signed up for a subscription service that includes MSN Calendar.  Alerts will be logged if the client's logging setttings permit it.
- Files can now be dragged and dropped to an open chat window with less than two participants to initiate a file transfer session.  Note that more than one file can be dragged and dropped at a time in this fashion.

- Fixed several issues that could cause the client to crash when shutting down.
- Fixed an issue with changing the client's logging settings.
- Fixed an issue that prevented the System messages menuitem in the contact window's View > Notify Windows menu from working properly.
- Fixed an issue that prevented some display names containing international characters from being properly displayed in the contacts window.
- Fixed an issue that could cause the client to crash if an MSNP8 or MSNP9 connection was canceled at a certain time in the logon process.

Known issues:
- MSNP10 is not supported yet; the client will not function properly if you attempt to logon with it.

[Skywing]

Version 1.02 of MSNMessenger.dll has been released.

Several bugs have been fixed, and functionality for paging users from a Web browser has been added.

You can get it here.

[Skywing]

Version 1.03 of MSNMessenger.dll has been released.

This version fixes a recently-occcuring issue that could prevent MSNMessenger.dll from detecting any contacts as online.  If you are experiencing this problem, the new version should resolve it.

Additionally, a minor bug that caused the program to exit the chat session instead of send an error message when a command with an invalid syntax was issued has been fixed.

A new version of MSNClient will be released shortly to correct the contact visibility bug, as well as several other problems.

[Skywing]

A new MSNClient version has been released.  It can be downloaded from the usual locations.

New in this version:
- Fixed a recent issue that caused all contacts to appear offline on certain accounts.
- Fixed a parsing problem with some file transfer requests.
- Fixed an issue that could (very rarely) cause failures when disconnecting and reconnecting.
- Fixed an issue that could cause random failures if a file transfer request initiated by you (not the remote party) timed out.
- Modified the behavior of the user interface with respect to modeless menus.  Now, window menus will be modal by default, unless explicitly overridden by setting REG_DWORD Software\Valhalla's Legends\Skywing\BinaryChat\Global Settings\User Interface\Modeless Window Menus to 1.  This fixes several focus issues related to menu activity.
- Added a 30 second logon timeout to prevent the client from getting 'stuck' at the authentication phase.

[Skywing]

If you were having problems running the previous 1.03 release, download the file again.  This update should resolve the problem.