December 14, 2009 on 12:40 pm | In 10 version, Features | 8 Comments
In the new Yahoo! Messenger 10, we added an alternative view of your contact list – the Y! Updates tab. When you jump into that view, you’ll see a running list of updates from the friends on your contact list.
Your friends’ updates can vary from a change to their Yahoo! Messenger status to their latest tweet on Twitter; even the last song they listened to on last.fm or their latest changes to their Avatar. Yahoo! supports updates from dozens of both Yahoo! and non-Yahoo! services.
In addition to the new Updates view, we also added detailed preferences to help you control what types of updates you see and from whom. So if your friend Samantha is a tweet-aholic, you might want to turn off her updates. Or if Uncle Lenny’s taste in music is light years away from yours, perhaps getting his last.fm updates is unappealing.
No worries – changing it is easy. If you’re in the Y! Updates tab, click on the tab’s dropdown menu and select “Customize Yahoo! Updates” (or go to Messenger > Preferences > Yahoo! Updates).
When the window appears, you’ll see a list of sites from which Yahoo! offers updates, followed by your list of contacts. If there’s a type of update you prefer not to receive, just uncheck the box next to it. Be aware that unchecking a service in the list means that you won’t receive that type of update from anybody.
If you’ve had enough of someone’s updates, you can also turn them off. Just uncheck the box next to their name in the list. You will no longer receive any updates from that contact in your Y! Updates view. Note that you’ll still be able to see their updates by viewing their contact card anytime.
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
December 8, 2009 on 2:02 pm | In Features, iphone | 6 Comments
With the latest version of Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone (v1.3), it’s now possible to not only share photos, but also videos that you take on your iPhone 3GS.
While you’re in a conversation, tap on the emoticon icon to bring up the message options. Tap on the Media tab where you can choose to take a new photo or video clip, or choose an existing one from your photo gallery.
Your friend will receive a notification that you’re sharing a file with them, and after the file finishes transferring, you’ll see a confirmation on your phone. At anytime while the file is sending, you can tap on the speech bubble to view it.
Friends can also IM you videos (.mov, .mp4), and photos when you’re on your iPhone. When a new file is coming in, you’ll see a message asking if you want to accept or decline the incoming file transfer. Accept it, wait for the download and then just tap the speech bubble to view the image right in the app.
A handy thing about this new feature is that it allows you to send and receive files up to 15MB in size. So when you video your baby’s first steps on your phone, you can instantly send it off to friends and family on IM. And best of all, it won’t count against your data plan the way MMS messages do.
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
December 1, 2009 on 4:35 pm | In 10 version, Features | 4 Comments
Groups are a useful way to keep your contacts organized in your list. Here in the office, most of us have “Friends” and “Work” groups to separate our personal and business contacts.
Someone asked me the other day if they could have a contact show up in multiple groups in their list. The answer is yes, and below are some instructions on how to include someone in multiple groups in your Yahoo! Messenger 10 contact list.
First, click once on a contact in your list to highlight/select it. Then click on the Contacts menu at the top of your Messenger window and go to “Manage Groups”. From there, click on “Copy to Group”. You’ll first be asked to select the contact you want to copy. Then in the final step, you’ll indicate to which group you want to copy it.
When you’re done, you’ll see the contact is visible in both groups in your contact list. Just repeat the above step if you need to add that same contact to additional groups in your list.
And if the time comes where you only need that contact in one group, you can easily remove it by right clicking on the contact in the group, and selecting delete. As long as the contact appears in one group, it will remain in your contact list.
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
November 24, 2009 on 5:34 am | In Features | 5 Comments
Our day of feasting with family and friends is almost here. So why not get in the mood with your Avatar too?
Head over to Yahoo! Avatars and change into a t-shirt or costume for the Thanksgiving holiday. Dress up as Pilgrim Paul or Paula, or try on a goofy turkey costume (I hear it’s all the rage this year). On the Avatars site, click on the “Extras” tab, then “Holidays & Events”, and finally, click on “Thanksgiving”.
We’ve also got a host of t-shirts to help you express your love of the holiday (“I love eating!”), and an assortment of accessories like carving knives and turkey themed hats to help you celebrate.
Lots of backgrounds too so even if you can’t scoot up to the dinner table with family this year, at least your Avatar can.
And if you’re looking for other Thanksgiving treats, tips and tricks, check out Yahoo!’s Thanksgiving Guide, full of recipes, Turkey Day ecards and more.
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
November 9, 2009 on 4:31 pm | In 10 version, Features | 21 Comments
While the new video calling feature in Yahoo! Messenger 10 is great all on its own, you can liven up your video calls even more with special effects.
Many of the popular webcams come bundled with free software that lets you add effects, backgrounds, or accessories to your video calls.
Imagine talking to a friend and all of a sudden you grow a goatee and moustache. Or perhaps you feel more comfortable talking as a cat. Pick an Avatar from your webcam software and start meowing.
Some webcams also offer filters that change the color of your window, distort your face in hilarious ways, or make you look like you’re in a vintage movie.
Here are the basic steps for how to add special effects to your video calls:
1) Make sure that you have installed the manufacturer’s software that came with your webcam. It should be on the CD that came with your webcam. Or visit the webcam manufacturer’s website.
2) Start a video call with a friend in Yahoo! Messenger 10
3) Bring up the control panel for your webcam. On the panel there should be a section or icons for the special effects. Select the one you want and start goofing!
What video effects are available with a webcam varies by type of camera and the manufacturer. But here are a few links from some top webcam makers that detail how to use their video effects:
Logitech
Creative
Microsoft (pdf)
Have you used video effects on your calls? What are some of your favorites?
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
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