The change-over has been a really awful experience. After two days of trying to get it to work properly I just stopped and removed it. Two days spent doing nothing else. I have gone back to using Outlook Express an hour ago and its been such a relief. It quickly updated everything and works just fine.

Problems included not downloading any emails, downloading them intermittently, and only downloading headers. Strangely this was only on my hotmail account and not on the gmail account.

I wish I had never heard of Windows Live Mail.

Has anyone else had the same or similar problems?

First, two corrections:

1) "Windows MAIL", and not "Windows LIVE", is the name of the email client that ships as a default component of Windows Vista.

2) You state "Microsoft specified that it has no plans to offer support for DAV with Outlook Express". Since Outlook Express has supported DAV all along, and DAV is precisely what is being being phased out (thus crippling both Outlook Express (for XP) and Windows Mail (for Vista), I suspect you meant something like "Microsoft specified that it has no plans to offer support for DeltaSynch with Outlook Express".

Geez people, doensn't anyone proofread their articles before they post them???!!!

That being said, it is with much trepidation that I just learned I must hurry up and test-drive Windows Live Mail if I wish to keep accessing my Hotmail account from my desktop after June 30. The number of horror stories that came up from my first Google search of the issue is anything but reassuring. You can be sure that I will be backing up my Outlook Express mail store folders before I attempt any such migration. Too bad many other early adopters apparently did not know how to do so, or knew but did not consider it necessary to take such a precaution. What were they thinking?

Furthermore, in my professional position as a consultant, I will have to decide whether to endorse and assist in this migration for my clients, or advise against it and recommend the continued use of Outlook Express, particularly where Hotmail access is not required. Thus the results of my personal experimentation with Windows Live Mail will serve as the basis for the position I will adopt professionally...

And finally, may I suggest the addition of a "Preview" feature to your comment submission interface? It is in common use in many Web forums ("fora"?), and greatly facilitates the submission of properly proofread comments...

stay away from the switch. Its a killer and you will hate it. I switched back.

Is there any alternatives to Windows Live Mail Desktop package that uses the new proprietary protocol? I tested Live Mail last year and was appallel by it's poor assembly. The switch is making me seriously think about dumping Hotmail all together.

I tried to download the new email program yesterday, first when I tried to install it insisted I download two other Windows "updaters", then it went into a loop "checking for WIndows Live programs", after about 20 minutes of this something in the OS crashed. I tried again, same loop, there's obviously no way "Windows Live" will ever work on my system.