08
Jun 2010
11 Comments
Ditch the Aero window frame in Windows Live Messenger “Wave 4”

Windows Live Messenger window without Aero frame

Digging around Windows Live Messenger “Wave 4” bits, looking for a way to turn off the permanently enabled SmartScreen-based link scanner, I stumbled on a flag that disables/enables the Aero window border.

If you’re interested in that sort of thing, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindows LiveMessenger and create the DWORD value AeroWindowFrameEnabled with its data set to 0 or 1.

For those on 64-bit platforms, don’t forget you need to tack on Wow6432Node after the Software node, or you’ll be fishing around in 64-bit waters. (Windows Live Messenger is a 32-bit process.)

Given how poorly this works (e.g. can’t move the window, no title bar), I’m guessing it’s unfinished or on its way out.

  • http://www.nidonocu.com Nidonocu

    Given that’s what the title bar looks like for WLM Wave 3 on XP and systems without Aero enabled, I’m guessing it would be unfinished stuff for supporting those systems.

  • Mark

    I am guessing it’s a leftover from Windows Live Messenger Wave 3. Since Windows Live Messenger Wave 4 doesn’t support Windows XP, Microsoft didn’t bother updating the none-Aero version.

  • Brandon

    Is it even worth using the unofficial preview bits?

  • http://richardjgreen.net Richard J Green

    Rafael,

    More to the point, do you have download link for Live Wave 4 you can share?

  • Brandon
  • dmex

    It works alright on wave3, it has text + you can move the titlebar like normal etc… it would be on the way out with wave4 and above.

  • http://nicbedford.co.uk Nic Bedford

    Rafael, have you patched the signin check, or you official beta tester? If patch are you going to release?

  • Hakon

    worst and ugliest messenger out there and you put spotlight on it -_-

  • http://www.gotlockerz.com Jose D

    what about getting the user frame in .png format? is there a way?

  • http://www.cutiadevechituri.co.cc Bodo

    @ Hakon – Look at Yahoo Messenger first, then talk about ugly ;-)

  • http://tom.is-a-geek.org/ Tom

    It’s a very attractive suite of applications actually.