Windows Live Essentials

Windows Live - Essentials contains a set of tools for your windows computer.
Windows Live Messenger is like Google talk.

But it works only on Hotmail accounts. It is better than Google talk regarding the number of features. We can share photos and videos, do a video chat, etc. We can also add Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn account details into Live Messenger to receive instant updates.

Windows Live Photo Gallery is like Picasa. We can view, edit, and upload our photos to SkyDrive, Facebook, and Flicker.

Windows Live Movie Maker is a tool to create videos from your photos and video clips. We can add special effects, transitions, sound, and captions.

Windows Live Mesh is a program to sync your computer files with SkyDrive. SkyDrive is a free online storage from Microsoft. We get 5 GB of free storage space. The program can stay connected to the Internet to detect any change in the files/folders and to update them automatically.

Windows Live Mail program is like Office Outlook. But it is much simpler compared to Outlook. We do not have to care about POP and IMAP settings, port numbers, etc. It has a stylish look.

Windows Family Safety is a security program. It can be used to set security privileges to user accounts on the computer. We can set the ratings of games, block websites, and prevent access to files. This can be used for user accounts of kids at home. It will protect them from unsafe websites.

There are many other programs included in this software package.