Windows Messenger and MSN Messenger Problem

[Guest]

I can’t seem to remove Windows Messenger and whenever I start up my computer
I am automatically signed into it. There are times when I do not want to sign
in and talk to people but Windows Messenger automatically does this. I cannot
seem to open Windows Messenger and disable this feature, when it logs on I do
not even realise until someone talks to me or I sign in using MSN Messenger.
How can I stop Windows Messenger from doing this by getting rid of it
completely?

Cheers Tom

 

[Jonathan Kay [MVP]]

Greetings Tom,

You'll just need to disable Windows Messenger. To do so, open it up (click Start, then Run,
type "msmsgs" and click OK), click Tools, Options, Preferences tab and uncheck 'Run this
Program when Windows starts' or 'Run Windows Messenger when Windows starts' (depending on
version) as well as 'Allow this program to run in the background' or 'Allow Windows Messenger
to run in the background' (depending on version). This won't remove Windows Messenger, so
features like Remote Assistance, Whiteboard and Application Sharing will continue to work,
but it will let it stay out of your way.

Also, do you have Norton Antivirus installed? Recent versions of Norton Antivirus added a
new "instant messaging scanning" feature, which can conflict with Messenger and cause it to
also keep starting. To stop it, open Norton Antivirus (Right-click on the Norton Antivirus
icon in the System Tray/Notification Area (by the clock), choose 'Open Norton Antivirus'),
click Options, then Instant Messenger then uncheck MSN Instant Messenger and click OK.

If you'd prefer to just remove Windows Messenger however, you can do so by following the
instructions here:
http://messenger.jonathankay.com/problem.aspx?ID=7
____________________________________________
Jonathan Kay
Microsoft MVP - Windows Messenger/MSN Messenger
Associate Expert
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/
Messenger Resources - http://messenger.jonathankay.com
All posts unless otherwise specified are (c) 2004 Jonathan Kay.
You *must* contact me for redistribution rights.