Shoot The Messenger
It allows you to turn it on or off at will
What is the Messenger Service?
Starting back with Windows NT, and carried forward into all subsequent operating systems, Microsoft included a simple way for users on a network to send each other short "pop-up" messages. Network administrators might have used it to notify everyone of system-wide events. It was a nice idea, though in its original form it never caught on widely. There is a standard command line program "Net Send", that can be used to generate these messages, and there's also a GUI (Graphical User Interface) application to do the same.
If you're curious to see the graphical interface: On Windows 2000 or XP, right-click on "My Computer"/"Manage". Then under "System Tools" right-click on "Shared Folders". Choose "All Tasks" and finally "Send Console Message..."
You probably didn't know any of that was there, and neither do most people. It's a never-used feature that has been replaced by the various well known, popular, and feature-rich instant messaging systems. But, like a great many other "legacy" features of Windows, since it was once included, it survives in case anyone who once used it might still need it.
BOB
Edited by bobhome, 12 July 2003 - 09:41 AM.
