September 21, 2009 on 9:25 am | In iphone | 43 Comments
This weekend, we released an update for the Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone app. This latest version fixes the issue that some users were having with the contact list disappearing upon sign in. Thank you for your patience while we worked on the issue.
To download the latest version of Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone (v1.2.3) that includes this update, go to the iTunes App Store or tap the App Store icon on your iPhone and search for Yahoo! Messenger. If you already have Yahoo! Messenger installed, you may also have an update alert for the app.
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
August 25, 2009 on 10:53 am | In iphone | 121 Comments
Thanks to everyone who has been using and providing feedback on our latest version of Yahoo! Messenger for the iPhone.
Based on your helpful input, we’ve made lots of updates to this version which is now available in the iPhone App Store. Here’s what’s new / changed:
No more Idle status
Now when you exit the Yahoo! Messenger app on your iPhone but are still signed in, you’ll show as available to your friends rather than Idle. We agreed – showing up as idle didn’t make great sense since you want people to IM you.
Buzz got better
Ok, not every feature off the blocks is perfect and this one took some tweaking. In this version we’ve refined the Buzz notification sound and added a preference to turn Buzz on or off in the event you don’t want to use it (under Settings).
We also added vibrating notifications when you send or receive a Buzz. And if you’re in a conversation with someone and another friend buzzes you, you’ll see a notice on the screen.
New notification sound
Oh your bleeding ears! We heard you didn’t like the new IM notification sound so we changed it up a bit. Karl the engineer describes it as “shorter and prettier”. We hope you agree.
Fixed the address book integration
The iPhone address book integration faltered in our last version so we fixed it in 1.2.2. Now when you’re composing a new SMS for example, you’ll be able to access numbers in your iPhone address book, not just in Yahoo! Messenger.
We also tweaked a few things to address some bugs, crash and login issues.
To download the latest version of Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone (v1.2.2) that includes these updates, go to the iTunes App Store or tap the App Store icon on your iPhone and search for Yahoo! Messenger. If you already have Yahoo! Messenger installed, you may also have an update alert for the app.
As always, please use the Report Problem feature in the app if you run into any issues. You’ll find it under “Settings” in the Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone app.
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
August 19, 2009 on 4:47 pm | In iphone | 42 Comments
My bad, I was mistaken. As some of you might have seen earlier, I wrote a post incorrectly calling out Apple for a delay in the iPhone app approval process. This is what I get for partaking in too much of the free caffeine we get here on the Yahoo! campus…
Turns out I didn’t have the latest information about our Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone app, which is awaiting approval and release by Apple.
If you want all of the gory details… Two weeks ago we submitted an updated version of Yahoo! Messenger for the iPhone to the App Store for approval, but withdrew it to make some additional fixes and enhancements. Doing so reset the approval process timeline.
So the newly submitted Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone app has been with Apple for less than a week, and is well within the timeframe for their approval process.
Mea cupla. We’re a big company and despite all our fabulous technology, we can get our wires crossed and a certain blogger (yup, me) can jump the gun.
We’re thrilled that all of you are enjoying Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone, and we look forward to working with Apple to bring you the update soon.
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
July 20, 2009 on 7:40 pm | In iphone | 163 Comments
The latest version of Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone (v1.2.1) is now available. Here’s what’s in store for you:
New message alerts
(push notifications)
We’ve taken advantage of Apple’s 3.0 push notifications platform to enable new message notifications. Now, you will be notified when a new IM comes to your iPhone, even if the Yahoo! Messenger app is closed (or your phone is asleep).
The new message alerts for Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone work like the push notifications you get for Mail. When a new message comes in, a badge appears on top of the Yahoo! Messenger app icon on your home screen, indicating the number of new messages. This badge is based on cumulative messages received so whether three friends send you one message or one friend sends you three messages, you’d see a “3” on the app icon either way.
We’ll also pop up an alert on your home screen when a new message comes in. This is similar to when you receive an SMS text message on your phone. A notification overlays your home screen and you can decide whether to view the new IM or just close the alert. Even if your phone is asleep, we’ll wake it up and display the alert message.
You can also be notified with a sound when a new IM comes in. If your iPhone is muted, it will vibrate instead.
You can choose to use all or none of these new message alerts. To set your preferences, tap “Settings” on the home screen, then “Notifications”, and finally “Yahoo! Messenger”. From there you can turn on/off the sound, alert or badge notifications (they’re defaulted on when you install the app).
Now that new message alerts are included, you may want to make sure your Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone app icon is visible on your primary home screen. Get tips from Apple on how to customize your home screen icons. Using the same method, you can also drag and drop the Yahoo! Messenger app icon into your dock.
Stay online for up to 2 weeks
The Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone app will keep you signed in and visible to your Yahoo! Messenger friends for up to two weeks. When the app is closed on your phone, your status will show you as online but in an Idle state. Friends can IM you and when they do, you’ll receive a new message notification as described above.
There are a couple of ways your Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone availability can be interrupted. The first is if you sign into Yahoo! Messenger on a different device, such as your computer. Currently you can only be signed into Yahoo! Messenger from one location, so if you tend to move back and forth between your computer and your iPhone, just remember to sign in to your Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone app to ensure you’re online.
The other way to go offline on your iPhone is to manually sign out of the Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone app. In the app, tap on Settings, then scroll down and tap “Sign Out”. This will close the app and you will be offline, no longer able to receive messages on your iPhone.
Buzz your friends…with an iPhone twist
Buzz was one of the most requested features from our users on the iPhone app. So you’ll be happy to know you can now buzz away to your heart’s content. We also gave it a little iPhone flavor. When you want to buzz a friend, just shake your iPhone vigorously. Your friend gets buzzed on their end and you’ll also see the usual BUZZ!!! message in the conversation window.
We also added a few other items… Search in the app is now integrated with the Contacts app on your iPhone. Now when you search for someone’s mobile number so you can SMS them from the Messenger app, they’ll show up, even if they’re not on your Messenger list. We also added a preference to turn off the landscape keyboard option and we fixed a bug so that empty groups in your contact list will no longer be shown.
To download the latest version of Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone (v1.2.1) that includes these new features, go to the iTunes App Store, or tap the App Store icon on your iPhone and search for Yahoo! Messenger. If you already have Yahoo! Messenger installed, you may also have an update alert for the app.
If you run into any issues with the new version, please use the “Report a problem” feature in the app to let us know. Tap on Settings, then scroll down and tap on “Report a problem”.
We hope you enjoy this latest version of Yahoo! Messenger for the iPhone.
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
P.S. – If you installed 1.2 last night or earlier today, please uninstall and install it again. The one we submitted last night had some issues with push notifications, so be sure to install this final update. Thanks!
June 17, 2009 on 10:53 am | In iphone | 66 Comments
Today Apple’s new 3.0 operating system comes out for the iPhone. One of the exciting new features this will bring to the iPhone is push notifications, or the ability for an app to alert you of something even if you’re not running it (similar to how the Mail app on the iPhone alerts you now to new messages).
For Yahoo! Messenger for iPhone, this means you’ll get notified when a new IM message arrives, even if you aren’t actually running the app. Our new version with push notifications is not ready yet, but we wanted to let you know that we are working on it and hope to have it out soon.
We’ll let you know here on the blog when it’s ready.
Sarah Bacon
Product Manager
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