[TrappedInLiberalHell]

On the subject of Windows Messenger (the instant messaging program)...I can't close it! Even when I reboot my machine fresh and close everything in the system tray, Windows XP will not allow me to exit Windows Messenger. On top of that, it logs me on automatically at whim. It's driving me nuts. There are people on there that I don't want to talk to, and I don't want them knowing I'm online. I'm not convinced that simply blocking them will prevent them from knowing I'm online.

Does anybody know how I can permanently shut off Windows Messenger, or delete the program altogether? I didn't install it in the first place -- it came preinstalled on my laptop.

[RGVTx]

I had the same problem when I recently upgraded my MSN Instant Messenger. It would not let me exit the program, no way, no how. I'm running windows98. So...I went to MyComputer/ControlPanel/AddRemovePrograms and deleted the whole program. No more problem.

[DallasMike]

See this article. I tweaked a similar registry key on my new machine at work the other day and it worked fine. This is not the same key but it's worth a try.

Note that you will have to disable it in Outlook (Tools, Options, Other, Enable Instant Messaging in Microsoft Outlook) or in Outlook Express (Tools, Options, General, Automatically logon to Windows Messenger).