Hurrah, I can't use Messenger | The Coffeehouse

W3bbo
The Master of Baiters

So far I've been hapilly using WLM8.5 on XPx64 (installed by running the MSI file directly which doesn't run the arbitrary platform check the GUI installer performs).

However, today Microsoft decided to force XPx64 users to upgrade to Messenger 9, fair enough... except Messenger 9 refuses to install on XPx64. There is a workaround: run the Messenger 9 installer using Detours so it thinks its running on XPx86, except when it finally installs my contact list doesn't show up at all.

I've gone back to WLM8.5 and tried various hacks to make it ignore the upgrade request, but none of them work.

Nice one, Microsoft Smiley

AndyC

Open the MSI file in Orcas, remove OS check, run MSI.

W3bbo
The Master of Baiters

In reply to AndyC

#Aug 26th @ 6:16 AM

I'm having no problem installing Messenger 9; when I run it my contact list doesn't load at all.

AndyC

In reply to W3bbo

#Aug 26th @ 6:28 AM

Well yes, but if you lied to it about what OS you're running, chances are it's installed things in the wrong place. Removing the OS version check from the MSI is probably more likely to work.

Unless, of course, the reason Messenger 9 doesn't allow you to install on XP x64 is precisely because they are aware that this was an issue and they decided it wasn't worth fixing for the 8 people actually running XP x64.

littleguru
<3 Seattle

Installs like a charme on my 7 x64 Tongue Out

CannotResolveSymbol
{insert caption here}

In reply to AndyC

#Aug 26th @ 8:39 AM

Then they shouldn't be forcing the 8 people running XP x64 to upgrade...

dahat

Sounds like at long last you have a compelling reason to upgrade.

One of us, one of us, gooble goble, gooble goble, one of us, one of us!

AndyC

In reply to CannotResolveSymbol

#Aug 26th @ 9:35 AM

CannotResolveSymbol said:
Then they shouldn't be forcing the 8 people running XP x64 to upgrade...

What makes you think the other 7 are running WLM? Tongue Out

In all seriousness, supporting different OS's is a potentially expensive process, so it's hardly surprising that niche products like XP x64 aren't in the support matrix of what is generally intended as a consumer application, in the same way that it isn't likely to be supported on a server OS.

Notably it installs and runs fine on the more consumer-oriented 64-bit operating systems, Vista and Windows 7.

W3bbo
The Master of Baiters

In reply to dahat

#Aug 26th @ 9:46 AM

Noooooooooooo!

W3bbo
The Master of Baiters

In reply to AndyC

#Aug 26th @ 10:24 AM

It's a given that Windows XP x64 is essentially identical to Server 2003 x64.

And what do people use Server 2003 x64 for? An application-mode terminal server, perhaps? And what do you run on a terminal server? Maybe various consumer programs such as WLM.

Check the feedback comments to that messengergeek blog post, you'll see it's full of people with the same problem, given the sheer number of responses it's obvious there is a large XPx64 userbase who Microsoft is needlessly shutting out.

AndyC

In reply to W3bbo

#Aug 26th @ 10:28 AM

W3bbo said:
And what do people use Server 2003 x64 for? An application-mode terminal server, perhaps? And what do you run on a terminal server? Maybe various consumer programs such as WLM.

Not really. Terminal Services implies a corporate environment and in that scenario, Microsoft would be pushing Office Communicator, not WLM. I don't think WLM will even install on Terminal Services. I'd pretty much guarantee the WLM team don't bother testing it there.

W3bbo said:
Check the feedback comments to that messengergeek blog post, you'll see it's full of people with the same problem, given the sheer number of responses it's obvious there is a large XPx64 userbase who Microsoft is needlessly shutting out.

There are 52 comments from 43 unique usernames. WLM is used by over 330 million people. It's not exactly a significant impact.

dahat

In reply to W3bbo

#Aug 26th @ 10:28 AM

> it's obvious there is a large XPx64 userbase who Microsoft is needlessly shutting out

I suspect you have a different view of 'large number' than the WLM folks do... more so I'd wager that their reasoning is not so needless.

Heck, for all you know there is an API or two that they rely on that simply doesn't exist in XP64 but does under x86... or worse they simply have decided to reduce their testing matrix a bit so as to enable better testing on the more widely used platforms.