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Microsoft don't allow me to use @mac.com email

wrldwzrd89 said:
Dang, I didn't know about this... thanks! As soon as I get back to my Mac I will see if I'm affected by this issue, since I use my .Mac email as my MSN ID.
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Pretty sure you'll be affected.

The transition has been fine, all my contacts are on my new ID, and it's not like I had to import a list from my old account, it's still the same thing, they don't have to accept my add again, so that saves some hassle.
 
Sorry, but there is just no logical reason for this!

I dont want so many different email addresses, and if people from my MSN contacts do the send mail to function, then it will go to some random hotmail address that I will never check.

I, like others, also have my name reserved as my old hotmail, but got so much spam, i changed to my mac.com address. Now i have to make a new account!!!

Anyone hear from microsoft support?? I sent them and email and one to mac support too, see if they did anything.
 
Don't panic!

You can switch your Windows Live sign-in ID to a different address, and then immediately switch it back again. I used an email alias on my .Mac account as the temporary address. I did get the message about my secret answer being less than 5 characters, but that's because I hadn't set up any answers!

Conspiracy theorists take note: MS are rolling out this security upgrade gradually, and I assume that @mac.com addresses have started being addressed today. However, there was no problem about using a mac.com address as my new ID, so this isn't a plot by MS to eradicate us.

I'm no lover of Microsoft, and I think it's stupid that they tell you to change the ID when it's obviously still OK to use the old one, but let's at least be honest and not paranoid.
 
marccarter said:
Reading all the stuff on the page the link sends you to I read it that Apple are doing something with the email addresses and want to use them, I would guess adding MSN to iChat but does all seem a bit odd.
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It would be nice if Apple were to add MSN capability to iChat, and MS would have no-one but themselves to blame since Messenger for Mac is so crippled and far behind the Windows version. It happened with Safari vs IE, so it could well happen with iChat vs Messenger. The only problem would be Microsoft's service agreement for their IM service, which says, "you may not ... use any unauthorized third party software or service to access the Microsoft instant messaging network."
 
I'm furious at Microsoft for the action. I rang them directly and they told me that they do not phone support for windows live ID's and services. I was even more pi*double s* ed. So, i emailed apple, no response waiting though. Msn/Microsoft no response. sounds like this will be a fun week. In the mean time, I'm making a new domain email from my website. that way they can't cancel it.

Microsoft... Stupid move. but saying that.. its not like Microsoft hates them. they make allot of products, it may of been apple, because they only want you to use them for their AIM services. this whole situation seems stupid.
 
Im also having this problem. Personally the way the link they give you is read this is sounds like its down to Apple. Same as everyone else i have no access to alot of my contacts as i hadnt finished adding them all into Address Book so now im ****ed if i need to get hold of certain people quickly!

Really hope we some solution in the next day or so.

:(
 
At least I know I'm not alone in my suffering...!

I specified a new hotmail.com address (had to be hotmail.com or messengeruser.com - no other options), logged back into Messenger and saw all my contacts. But none of them are appearing online, and it's been several hours now. Something tells me I'm screwed.

Inspired by Neil Mayhew's claim that you can switch your Windows Live account to any address, I set up a new account under my usual mac.com address. Which seemed to work fine. Then I tried logging into Messenger as normal... No dice: "We cannot sign you into Messenger because... blah blah blah."

What the hell am I supposed to do? :(
 
Several hours since I changed my ID and still no one online. Luckily I have my old Hotmail account I can use for now.

One option might be to make a new Hotmail account and export all your contacts from your new ID (i.e. your @mac.com contacts) and import them into your new Passport.

Such a hassle - why oh why oh why.

I don't mind there being this hassle if Apple was to update iChat to support MSN Messenger though.
 
I guess I'll have to do that if it's still the same way tomorrow morning. What a colossal and pointless waste of time.

It takes up to one hour for your contact list to be transferred to your new address. As your contacts sign-in you'll see them online.
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Yeah, right!
 
Roberto100 said:
Inspired by Neil Mayhew's claim that you can switch your Windows Live account to any address, I set up a new account under my usual mac.com address. Which seemed to work fine. Then I tried logging into Messenger as normal... No dice: "We cannot sign you into Messenger because... blah blah blah."
Click to expand...

Sorry, I spoke too soon -- I still can't sign in either :( . Initially, I assumed it was because the change hadn't propagated to the Messenger service, but it's been a while now and I still can't sign in. I should have waited a bit longer before posting :eek:

I'm guessing that Apple have done a deal with Microsoft to allow any .Mac user to use the MSN service, just like they did with AIM, and that would presumably mean that MSN couldn't have any pre-existing users with @mac.com IDs, since @mac.com would have to be treated specially. (Note that AIM IDs normally can't contain punctuation, so this problem didn't arise then, although I did find that you couldn't use a .Mac ID with the standard AIM client.)

Not long until the release of Leopard, now. Wouldn't it be cool if it comes with a new iChat that can do MSN for any .Mac user? They would have to begin making existing MSN/@mac.com users transition now, so as to be ready for the roll-out. I'll be watching the announcement with redoubled interest!
 
Here's looking forward to the beautiful day when I'll be able to delete Messenger from my hard drive... :)
 
Thanks for this response. Your not having set up a secret answer was the clue I needed. I went to my secret answer, and it was an 8 year old Hotmail question and answer. I reset it to one of their defaults and I was then able to reset my login ID to a gmail email account.

Hopefully everything will be sorted by tomorrow.

Neil Mayhew said:
You can switch your Windows Live sign-in ID to a different address, and then immediately switch it back again. I used an email alias on my .Mac account as the temporary address. I did get the message about my secret answer being less than 5 characters, but that's because I hadn't set up any answers!

Conspiracy theorists take note: MS are rolling out this security upgrade gradually, and I assume that @mac.com addresses have started being addressed today. However, there was no problem about using a mac.com address as my new ID, so this isn't a plot by MS to eradicate us.

I'm no lover of Microsoft, and I think it's stupid that they tell you to change the ID when it's obviously still OK to use the old one, but let's at least be honest and not paranoid.
Click to expand...
 
Neil Mayhew said:
Sorry, I spoke too soon -- I still can't sign in either :( . Initially, I assumed it was because the change hadn't propagated to the Messenger service, but it's been a while now and I still can't sign in. I should have waited a bit longer before posting :eek:
Click to expand...

Did you say you put it back to your .mac address? It wil let you, but then it will tell you later when you get to login properly to MSN that you need to change it, you can't use .mac email addresses anymore as they state and then discuss in the web page you get sent to. I just switched mine to a Gmail address I have and the whole process was done and completed in under a minute. i then tried to put it back to .mac as you suggested and it told me that I hd to change it, back to Gmail and its now workign, though this time it took about 30 minutes to start up properly.

Interesting to fnd out whats going on though, they say it is down to the company that own the domain and not MS, so I guess Apple are up to something!
 
Roberto100 said:
.........Inspired by Neil Mayhew's claim that you can switch your Windows Live account to any address, I set up a new account under my usual mac.com address. Which seemed to work fine. Then I tried logging into Messenger as normal... No dice: "We cannot sign you into Messenger because... blah blah blah."

What the hell am I supposed to do? :(
Click to expand...

Not use a .mac email address for starters! Thats the reason we all had the issue in the beginning, MSN no longer works with the addresses, yes it lets you sign up with one, and it looks like you can login, but you are not properly logged in otherwise you would see everyone online, as soon as it sees you are using a .mac email it tells you to change it again.

Annoying!
 
Anyone have success yet? All my contacts show up offline (when I know they aren't), and I still show up as offline to everyone else! :mad:
 
I just tried Mercury Messenger and Microsoft Messenger with my gmail address and both worked fine.

Unfortunately, Microsoft Messenger apparently caches things and un-did my contact list when I tried to check things. :eek:
 
Reply

I have tried most of the suggestions posted here to no avail. I can now log into messenger using my new ID but none of my old contacts work. Making it a little pointless really.

I contacted Microsoft support yesterday about this issue & finally got a reply this morning. Sadly they found that the ID I had given them didn't exist, despite me explaining that it had been changed. They went on to suggest a load of things that had nothing to do with my problem showing rather clearly that they hadn't read my e-mail & had just fished around in the big box of standard replies.

The best part was the end bit where they expounded on how I can sign up for messenger with my existing ID.

I have replied with a link here to show that there are others with this problem
 
I emailed MSN support. Asked me to Email Microsoft Support. Microsoft Support Replied with a load of stuff about caching of passwords, then asked me to speak with MSN support!!

Other Email addresses do work fine, and always have. My Yahoo.com works and my old gmail.com, its just the Mac.com one.

Infact when signing up to a live ID, the default option is that you have a Email address, not give me a new hotmail address. They just seem to be hating the mac.com people at the moment!

Has anyone out there actually swiched their ID and had it work correclty, showing contacts and everything???
 
Update

Seems that I can now login using my mac.com email :) must of been something MSN Fixed??? Anyone else now on?
 
Yep, I'm back on also. Would recommend that everybody saves their contacts as a file tho just incase this happens again.
 
Badboyzlat said:
Yep, I'm back on also. Would recommend that everybody saves their contacts as a file tho just incase this happens again.
Click to expand...

Exactly what I just did!

just found this on the web too:
http://www.pcpro.co.uk/macuser/news/125413/messenger-disables-thirdparty-email-logins.html#

Think they are just assuming, as it wouldnt of come back on, and wouldnt just have been mac.com email messages.

Also, someone correct me if im wrong, but the Microsoft help page that comes up must be old. Live communications server 2005 is well old now aint it?
 
Well I changed my sign-in ID, and none of my contacts are appearing online yet.

Thanks for screwing up my MSN MS....
 
Mines up with the changed name. Although my contacts have noticed that while I can see them and send them messages I have been removed from their contact lists.

Thanks Microsoft Live team, for wasting 2 days of arsing around with MSN accounts. And for forcing me to change my MSN ID to some long Microsoft thing.

*loads up the AIM website*
 
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