Just in case you haven't been paying attention to your calendar, you have to know that a Happy Birthday is in order for Windows Live Messenger. Yes, that's right, Microsoft's new Live instant messaging client is one year old. Obviously, I am not counting the period when the IM application was known as MSN Messenger, but just the time that passed since it was placed under the Windows Live brand umbrella and from the moment the final version of Windows Live Messenger hit the market.

Just for the sake of a trip into the past, Microsoft released the first beta for Windows Live Messenger 8.0 on 13 December 2005, making the instant messenger client quite old. However, the testing phase can be considered in utero. Windows Live Messenger 8.0 Beta 2 was delivered on 26 February 2006, and was followed by yet another beta release on May 2. And on 19 June 2006 Microsoft celebrated the availability of the final version of Windows Live Messenger.

Microsoft then moved on with the development to Windows Live Messenger version 8.1. The first beta build of 8.1 came at the end of October 2006, but this was a short testing period and the final version was dropped on January 29, 2007, concomitantly with the general availability of Microsoft's latest operating system Windows Vista.

Since May 30, the first beta version of Windows Live Messenger 8.5 is available for download. Microsoft has optimized this release for Windows Vista. The Redmond Company has overhauled the setup process for the latest version of the instant messaging client. Still, a consistent amount of efforts was also poured into redesigning the graphical user interface of Windows Live Messenger 8.5. One of the most notable aspects is that, with this release, Windows Live Messenger supports the Windows Aero UI in Windows Vista.