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6.0 through 7.5 versions to retire in early September

August 11, 2009 on 11:20 am | In News | 24 Comments

A couple of months ago, we told you that we would be retiring Yahoo! Messenger versions 6.0 through 7.5 this August. Well, you have a bit more time as we have pushed this out until early September.

This means that if you are currently using a version of Yahoo! Messenger that is below 8.0, you will no longer be able to sign in and use it after the retirement date in early September.

If you are using a version that is set to retire, you have several options for continuing to use Yahoo! Messenger:

Option 1: Download the latest version for Windows
You can use Yahoo! Messenger 9.0 which offers enhanced security as well as better protection from spam (info | video demo | download). It was even voted the best overall client in the 2009 About.com IM Awards. 9.0 also includes more advanced features like voice calling, free mobile text messaging (SMS), as well as the ability to IM with friends that use Windows Live™ Messenger.

Option 2: Use Yahoo! Messenger for the Web
If you can’t use the latest version mentioned above, you can always sign in to Yahoo! Messenger for the Web from any web browser. No extra download or installation is required. With our web version, you can send IM’s as well as SMS text messages to your friend’s mobile phones for free. Our web version also includes anywhere archiving, allowing you to access your message history from any computer or browser. Try it now at http://webmessenger.yahoo.com.

Option 3: Use the built-in IM feature in Yahoo! Mail
Both versions of Yahoo! Mail offer a built-in feature that lets you send and receive IMs. If you’re using the all-new Yahoo! Mail, just click the status menu next to your name in the upper header and change your status to “Available”. This will sign you into Yahoo! Messenger (you also have the option of staying invisible). IM conversations occur in separate tabs within your Mail page.

In Yahoo! Mail Classic, you’ll see a module on the left hand side of the page labeled “Chat & Mobile Text”. Click on the status menu in that module to change to “Available” (or Invisible). IM conversations will show up in a small box in the lower right corner of your Yahoo! Mail Classic page (but it won’t interfere with your Mail messages or using Mail).

As an alternative, there are also solutions available for your mobile phone. We recently launched Yahoo! Messenger for the iPhone and additionals versions are available for other mobile handsets. Find out more

And remember, no matter what version you migrate to, your contact list always goes with you. As the date gets closer, we’ll remind you again here on the blog and provide the final date for retirement.

Thanks,

Sarah Bacon
Product Manager

24 Comments »

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  1. Excellent, glad to see these old versions are being retired. Any chance at seeing Messenger 8 getting retired anytime soon?

    Comment by Michael — August 11, 2009 #

  2. Hi Sarah,

    A problem us users have, is that bugs appear in newer versions, despite being reported at beta stage and beyond. If I report the bugs, such as below, to the customer care, they send poor replies about how to ignore people, or they say they don’t understand:

    Bug 1: Cannot post Emotes in chat using the “:” syntax

    Bug 2: The text toolbar auto-opens in chat

    Bug 3: The voice chat automatically starts in chat

    Bug 4: Yahoo! Messeger, once closed, cannot always be opened again, it must be ended from Task Manager (especially if chat has been used) first

    Bug 5: The “/help” chat in text is very out of date (includes goto, follow etc.)

    Bug 6: The ignore list control does not behave properly in the privacy options, shift and selecting all leaves entries in the list.

    Bug 7: When maximised, the windows often don’t pin to the right hand side of the screen, leaving a cm gap.

    Bug 8: The bottom username in the user list in a chat room often displays incorrectly and cannot be selected.

    Bug 9: Voice chat is unavailable in HTTP mode.

    CivilisedButCensored

    Comment by CivilisedButCensored — August 11, 2009 #

  3. @Michael – No plans at this time to retire 8.0 and 8.1. Thanks,

    Sarah Bacon

    Comment by Administrator — August 11, 2009 #

  4. Regarding the web messenger, I noticed that the javascript encapsulating the flash object for web messenger checks for flash player version 10. If the user does not have flash player 10 then it won’t load the flash object.

    Would it be possible to check if the web messenger works on flash lite and open the script for flash lite? That way we can use the web messenger on flash lite enabled cell phones. Also same with linux version of flash player 10.

    Comment by Saurabh — August 11, 2009 #

  5. Hi Folks, i don’t know where i could post it, but i’ll use this comment section..

    Please put into your backlog a feature to search/find on the local history… The Webmessenger has it’s but the desktop version not..

    It’s the only feature which is missing to made Y!IM totally awesome..

    Thanks,
    Diego Piccolo!

    Comment by Diego Piccolo — August 11, 2009 #

  6. Yahoo Messenger chat needs to be shut down completely. The chatrooms are completely over run by porn bots and people with programs to take over the voice chat, kicking users out of chatrooms for no reasons at all?? Yahoo is a complete pile of junk.

    Comment by Trap — August 12, 2009 #

  7. “Yahoo Messenger chat needs to be shut down completely. The chatrooms are completely over run by porn bots and people with programs to take over the voice chat, kicking users out of chatrooms for no reasons at all?? Yahoo is a complete pile of junk.”

    Amen to that..all Yahoo! Chat is good for anymore is an ongoing advertisement for these nasty porn webcams…seemedly Yahoo! has no desire to rid the rooms permanently of these annoying and offensive bots…I can’t see how Yahoo! makes money off these bots, period. Fix it or shut it down!!!

    Comment by Tim — August 12, 2009 #

  8. I am glad to see that yahoo messenger 8 it is not retired yet because in China we have Yahoo Messenger 8.3 . Why you don’t want to make a chinese version of Yahoo Messenger 9? On http://cn.messenger.yahoo.com the latest version is 8.3.Please help me..

    Comment by John Chang — August 12, 2009 #

  9. Hey Sarah, why is it your create a new yahoo id page don’t work???, seems when I put in united states and a valid zip code it says it don’t match the country I picked??? and to top that off, no name selected works, can’t be that many have 32 character names with all kinds of numbers in it, just To get one to accept, and after trying over 100 attempts to get a name i just figured it was another wonderful product of yahoo and gave it up…you might as well retire this one too, its not worth much if it don’t work…

    Comment by Thomas — August 12, 2009 #

  10. @Diego Piccolo – I had requested the same feature, and I was told by Ms. Bacon to request it via the Send Feedback… option under the Help menu in Yahoo! Messenger.

    Comment by Fake Al Gore — August 12, 2009 #

  11. [...] complete despre aceasta decizie a Yahoo!, puteti gasi si pe blogul oficial al Yahoo! [...]

    Pingback by Yahoo! retrage Y!Messenger 6.0 si 7.5 : Instant Messaging & Games – Mobile & PC — August 13, 2009 #

  12. To tim and Trap

    “Yahoo Messenger chat needs to be shut down completely. The chatrooms are completely over run by porn bots and people with programs to take over the voice chat, kicking users out of chatrooms for no reasons at all?? Yahoo is a complete pile of junk.”

    yeah if ur a complete NOOB ul feel that way LOL but if u have a little knowledge on how a computer works ul know that yahhoo messenger is the best free IM in the web. Google Zombies will again say nah Google talk is much better or skype is much better yeah right! then go use it then LOL use that stupid junk doesn’t even have a chat room…

    By the way if u stop using yahoo and use other IM service instead… it doesn’t matter coz yahoo doesn’t need an imbecile and retarded users like you! Why do u think Yahoo Have Captcha? Its made for stupid drunk people like you who doesn’t even know how to read…

    Comment by YM user — August 14, 2009 #

  13. I understand the need to move on to newer versions. I personally liked the older versions, but Im somewhat neutral on the Version 6 and 7 issue, because I no longer have windows. I don’t use yahooo for my mail, won’t switch my email that everyone already knows I use

    Webmessenger crashes my browser,

    And I watched as Yahoo disabled EVERY single 3rd party Linux app, from Pidgin, to Gyache, no matter which one, no on in linux could connect without any warning.

    So I had to use the official Yahoo Linux client (Which is still Version “1″) But I love it.

    It is old, tho and I might understand its retirement if we had an official version to upgrade TO

    Windows, Mac, Buggy or not theyve got a mac version and Windows has Verion 8 or 9 atleast

    But Linux, we’ve got nothing, first you force us on to youre official clint by blocking everysingle on e of the other 3rd party aps, and THEN you give us a month to “upgrade” when Version “1″ is the newest version we’ve got!

    You are essentialy pushing Linux users to AIM or Skype, or basically elsewhere. I will lose many contacts, because only some of my friends will switch from yahoo, many I will never speak to again.

    Letting the Linux version expire without giving us an upgrde version is not right. It will only force me away from Yahoo (once my favorite messenger). I would stay, but your simply not giving us a choice.

    ****There is NO NEW Linux version to upgrade, so If you cut us off, then I wont have a choice to leave and bring as many frinds that I have with me, not because its personal, but because I dont want to lose my friends. It isn’t fair.

    PS After watching you disable all the 3rd party apps with no warning on Linux, I will not play “games” with my friends” and trust that it wont happe again, even id some version of say “Pidgin” fixes it.

    Simply put, I am sticking to the original Yahoo Linux client. I will upgrade if you give us a new Linux option. I will stay with Version 1 If you allow us to, but if you simply cut us off, then I will go elsewhere and bring my closest friends with me, many of which already have changed messengers this week to keep in contact, because THER IS NO OTHER CHOICE that i have.

    Geez, the Windows people think they have it bad, upgrading to a buggy verion is better than having NO version to upgrade to while a constant popup tells you to “upgrade?!?!?

    Frustrated.

    PLease find a better solution for Linux users. I really do not want to leave Yahoo (But will If I have to)

    -Desi

    Comment by Desi — August 14, 2009 #

  14. Comment by YM user — August 14, 2009 #

    Please avoid calling people n00bs when you don’t known the difference between a chat room and IM.

    Yes Yahoo IM on its own works fine, so long as you don’t frequent chat rooms. But if you used Yahoo Chat you’d find yourself getting IM spammed by porn bots.

    Tim & Trap -

    Yahoo has been battling these bots for years. Every so often they have success and manage to exclude the porn bots.

    But then the porn bot developers find ways around.

    It is good to let Yahoo know that porn bots are a really big problem for users. Yahoo looses a lot of chat users because of them.

    Yahoo management needs to continue the battle putting as much time and effort into battling porn bots and spam bots as it can.

    Comment by BobB — August 15, 2009 #

  15. “It is good to let Yahoo know that porn bots are a really big problem for users. Yahoo looses a lot of chat users because of them.

    Yahoo management needs to continue the battle putting as much time and effort into battling porn bots and spam bots as it can.”

    If’ it’s so good for me to let Yahoo know about the porn bot problem and the management needs to continue the battle….why is it, 75% of my posts on these blogs get deleted?

    I personally think somehow Yahoo! believes that the porn bots make them money and they don’t care to put the effort into cleaning up chat rooms. They don’t mind how many people they chase from these rooms. It’s the almighty dollar that is #1 in their minds. I remember back several years ago when we could chat, bot free. Chat rooms were filled to the gills with people….including me. I was a regular in a chat room for 3 years. It’s not fun anymore, and Yahoo! could care less.

    Comment by Tim — August 15, 2009 #

  16. Well I haven’t been able to use my yahoo messenger at all. For some reason it won’t let me sign in it keeps saying—-there’s an error in the network connection— I’ve tryed everything What can be the problem? I’ve never had this problem with the old yahoo messenger’s. Please help

    Comment by Delia — August 16, 2009 #

  17. In the last few day looks like a lot of people from Romania have problems sign-in using their id and password (password incorrect error). And when they try to reset de password, they all get the same message “Sorry, your password can’t be reset online (9024), For security reasons, we require you to contact Customer Care”.

    Any official comment about that? A lot of people are getting worried about losing their accounts.

    Thank you.

    Comment by Andrei Dutu — August 18, 2009 #

  18. @Andrei – I recommend contacting customer care for assistance: http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/messenger/messenger9/forms_index.html

    Sarah Bacon

    Comment by Administrator — August 18, 2009 #

  19. So I have been trying to download yahoo 9 for months and everytime I do it downloads fine. When I open it to run it, I am told that it cannot be installed because Incorrect command line parameters. Tells me to reinstall and it may help. Nope I have reinstalled and done a system restore on my computer so many times I am starting to wonder if it is worth it.

    Comment by Heather Dawn — August 21, 2009 #

  20. @Heather Dawn – Now try to download Yahoo Messenger 10 Beta too..it works better than 9 for me..

    Comment by Ionut — August 25, 2009 #

  21. For two days, I have been unable to access my Yahoo e-mail (I’ve had it for about 10 years without any major problems). When I try to change my password, I get the same message as that mentioned by Andrei Dutu above. I tried sending an e-mail to my Yahoo address from my gmail. Immediately got an e-mail back saying that the message could not be delivered and that the Yahoo account had been disabled or discontinued. Seems that many Yahoo users have this problem:

    http://www.loginfailure.info/

    Really frustrating. Wrote to Yahoo customer care but they have not yet replied. I hope it will be fixed soon. Any update on this?

    Comment by Christian — August 27, 2009 #

  22. So tomorrow is September 1st. Has the cut off been scheduled?

    Thanks.

    Comment by Neil Hart — August 31, 2009 #

  23. @Neil – The retirement of versions 6.0 through 7.5 will take place in the next couple of weeks. I’ll post another article on the blog with the final date. Thanks

    Sarah Bacon

    Comment by Administrator — August 31, 2009 #

  24. Every chat room is overrun with bots. It’s like playing whack a mole to try to shut them all down. Yahoo needs to get rid of them. The captcha doesn’t keep them away at all.

    Comment by Mike — September 20, 2009 #

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