We are happy to announce that Windows Live Messenger Library 2.0 (WLML 2.0) is available immediately.  We encourage everyone to try it out.  WLML 2.0 is backward compatible with WLML 1.0.  In addition, the V1.0 API continues to be available with no changes.

WLML 2.0 offers the following new changes:
  • Sorted contact collections
    • We noticed that many applications displayed the contact list in its raw unsorted form.  We have introduced new OnlineContacts and OfflineContacts collections that list contacts in sorted order to make it easier for applications to show sorted contact lists.
  • Contact display picture links
    • This has been one of the most requested features for the library.  We now return contact display picture links.  Because display pictures respect user privacy, there is some special handling required to use them in applications (we will cover this in an upcoming post).
  • Customization for the Sign-In Control
    • You can now define color schemes for the Sign-In Control.
  • A new URL for loading the library
    • Library files are now content distributed globally.  Applications should see improved library load time.
  • Hosted static images for status icons and Messenger logos
    • We now host static images for applications to use for displaying user status.  We offer both GIF and PNG images.
  • URL strings for Messenger resources
    • The library returns a set of market-specific URLs for applications to display links to required Microsoft pages such as the privacy statement.  This is to enable applications to move the Sign-In Control out of view when it is not needed.
  • Sign-In Control returns extended authentication results
    • The Sign-in Control has been updated to return more detailed information about user authentication results.  For example, the authentication result indicates if a user is already signed in to Messenger.
The library is available at the following URL:
http://www.wlmessenger.net/api/2.0/messenger.js
We have also updated the documentation, with increased coverage and samples in many topics, including new samples for custom presence and custom messages.

We hope you enjoy it and look forward to seeing your applications and hearing your feedback in the forums.

Keiji Kanazawa
Program Manager
Windows Live Messenger Contacts and Messenger Platform