All About Microsoft

Mary-Jo Foley

Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

By Mary Jo Foley | July 7, 2011, 6:53am PDT

Microsoft is rolling out in two phases starting this week an update to its Windows Live Essentials 2011 bundle of Windows add-on software and services.

Windows Live Essentials 2011 includes Photo Gallery, Mail, Movie Maker, Messenger, Writer (a blogging tool), Family Safety (parental controls), Live Mesh (the PC-sync tool formerly known as Live Sync), the Bing Toolbar, Microsoft Office Outlook Connector, Office Live Add-in and Silverlight. The products in the Essentials suite are a hybrid of software and services. There are other Windows Live properties that are not part of the suite, including Hotmail and SkyDrive, which are Web services that do not install software on users’ machines.

The coming refresh to the 2011 suite includes updates to a number of the pieces. It includes full support for SSL and a fix for a sorting issue in Windows Live Mail; a new version of the Bing Bar; stability issues and voice/video quality improvements in Messenger; bug fixes for Photo Gallery; and overall general performance and quality of service updates across the suite.

As of this week, the update is available on the Microsoft Download Center and at http://explore.live.com. Some time later this month, existing Windows Live Essentials 2011 customers will be prompted to update to the new version, which is build number 15.4.3538.0513.

In other update news, if you’re one of those wondering what happened to the “Remember me” and/or “Remember my password” checkboxes on the sign-in pages for Microsoft services that use Windows Live ID, there’s a new blog post explaining Microsoft’s philosophy for eliminating those options. (Now there’s a sign-in page focused on a single account with one check box option — “Keep me signed in.”)

One more update-related note: If you’re wondering about a recent Zune HD firmware that went live recently (v4.5 build 114) - it fixes a known security issue around fraudulent digital certificates that also affected Windows, Windows Server, Windows Mobile phones and Windows Phone 7 phones.

Kick off your day with ZDNet's daily e-mail newsletter. It's the freshest tech news and opinion, served hot. Get it.

More from “All About Microsoft”

How one Microsoft team is developing its own HTML5 iPad app

Microsoft readies Windows Intune 2.0 PC-management service beta

Topics

Microsoft Windows Live, Microsoft Corp., Windows Live Essentials 2011, Microsoft Windows, Operating Systems, Software, Mary Jo Foley

Mary Jo has covered the tech industry for more than 25 years for a variety of publications and Web sites, and is a frequent guest on radio, TV and podcasts, speaking about all things Microsoft-related. She is the author of Microsoft 2.0: How Microsoft plans to stay relevant in the post-Gates era (John Wiley & Sons, 2008).

Full Bio
Disclosure
Contact

Vendor HotSpot

The 360° Conversation around Cloud Computing

TECH VISUALIZER brings the social conversation to life... powered by Brocade

Learn More »

Related Discussions on TechRepublic

Did you know you can take part in these discussions with your ZDNet membership?

Ask a Question Start a Discussion

Comments

Add Your Opinion

Join the conversation!

Follow via:: RSS; Email Alert

Just In

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

tomlin21-24319035676893835085146735905770 11th Oct

Now i'm the truth is notably new to wp. but that which you publish on this on line log is in fact terrific and nfl football jerseys notably useful.

View in thread

Please Select
Please Select

0 Votes

+ -

Writer is simple and easy

patrick@... 7th Jul

I'm a big fan of Windows Live Writer. I use it to create/update posts and pages on my Wordpress blog. WYSIWYG editing with your imported theme makes it my go-to tool for blog entries.

Reply
Flag

0 Votes

+ -

Out of sight, out of mind

windowseat Updated - 7th Jul

I know the DOJ anti-trust had something to do with this but isn't it about time for this sillyness that is Windows Live Essentials to stop? There is some good functionality in WLE but most of which should be in the base OS (like photo galllery, skydrive, mesh. moviemaker). These products really aren't discoverable by the uninformed Windows users. Instead, they get a bundle of crapware that only serves to confuse and pollute their user expereience. Isn't it time for WLE to find its way back to the base OS?

Reply
Flag

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

Aerowind 7th Jul

@windowseat You hit the nail on the head with the anti-trust thing. It's the same reason Security Essentials isn't included even when it really should.

Reply
Flag

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

Cylon Centurion 7th Jul

@Aerowind

I wish they would include MSE as well. It would do more for users than the trial AV junk most are faced with.

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

OffsideInVancouver 7th Jul

@windowseat

If they bundled it with the OS you'd just get more bitching about "bloat" :P

Reply
Flag

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

windowseat Updated - 7th Jul

@OffsideInVancouver

Prehaps! But most end-users experience with a fresh copy of Windows is exactly that "bloat". Given the freedom of what OEMs are allowed to do to copies of Windows on machines they ship. My hope is that with Windows8 all that crapware will have to go through the same process of being download at the user's request.

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

bitcrazed 7th Jul

@windowseat - I am kinda in two minds about including LiveEssentials (LE) inside every copy of Windows.

One of the good reasons for NOT shipping LE inside Windows is that if it did, it'd be a heck of a lot harder for Microsoft to iterate on it and release regular updates. If a component ships inside the OS, it's supported for (at least) the lifetime of the OS. For this reason, MS tends not to release new versions of OS components and features out of sync with OS releases - the servicing story would get impossibly complex, very quickly.

Also, many enterprises might not necessarily want their desktops littered with apps that they don't want their users distracted by instead of doing their jobs!

In the end, I am happy to click a link and download LE myself when building/reinstalling my machines. It takes just a few minutes and gives me the flexibility to install just the features of LE I want (e.g., I don't need Family Safety).

Reply
Flag

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

Imrhien 7th Jul

@windowseat Totally agree. Personally they should be allowed to at least have the installer available with a shortcut on the desktop or something. Bundle MSE and Live Essentials already! Noobs don't know about half of this software!

Reply
Flag

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

JonnyRocks Updated - 8th Jul

@windowseat No no. We don't want it in windows. Than it would be part of the product again. Can't introduce new live products. Have to make sure live is good to go befreo windows is released. They're free. why do they have to be in the OS?

Reply
Flag

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

hilda4jc 7th Jul

I have found that this is a microsoft habit tho.... "if it works... fix it" so it don't... lolol... monkeydoodle

Reply
Flagged

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

Cylon Centurion 7th Jul

Personally, I think it's time for these services to find their way back into Windows. Microsoft has failed on their part when they promised "frequent updates". Since they're updated every few years, they could easily add these back in.

Reply
Flag

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

Hasam1991 7th Jul

Why not name them something better... make them part of BING- Bing mail, Bing writer, etc.. windows live was never successful, right up there w. msn.. which should become BING portal..

Reply
Flagged

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

Hallowed are the Ori 7th Jul

@Hasam1991

Or maybe they could just slap a lower-case letter at the front of each product and act like the whole thing was their idea.

Reply
Flagged

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

harley22x 13th Jul

@Hallowed are the Ori Haha, that actually made me LOL. great idea too xD

0 Votes

+ -

Have they "fixed" Windows Live Mail?

Hallowed are the Ori 7th Jul

Did they fix the "feature" of Windows Live Mail that forces you to view image attachments as slideshows, even if you don't want a damned slideshow?

Reply
Flagged

0 Votes

+ -

WLMesh Storage

leopaul77 18th Jul

Anyone have a sense of when MS will offer increased storage options for SkyDrive synced storage in WLMesh?

Reply
Flag

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

catman518 11th Aug

Why does one have to go to such lengths and wade through so much crap to find a standalone / off-line installer?
Keeping all the PC's @ home safe for the kids and updated is a major task.
A standalone / off-line make my task a breeze. I can control what is installed and when it is installed.
So if I do not feel that the kids should be sitting "chatting" on-line I just do not install the software etc.
Keeps Mum happy, as she feels that the kids are less likely to get caught up in something that they should not have access

Reply
Flag

0 Votes

+ -

RE: Microsoft starts two-phase update of Windows Live Essentials 2011

charl.vorster@... 26th Sep

For us in Sef Effrica, it is very expensive to download an App like LE. Our bandwidth is really costly and unreliable. Large downloads break a number of times, so that the LE upgrade can cost many times Win 7's original price. Would like to see a lighter version of download - only download those bits that you need.