Keep WhatsApp, Snapchat, Facebook Messenger, and Twitter messages. Nudge MSN Messenger should return. MSN Messenger, the only way for 90s and 00s kids to communicate, was created in 1999 and died on October 31, 2014.
Nudge MSN Messenger terminated all IM clients. It was more addictive than messages and AOL, the precursor to Skype. It’s generation-defining, like vinyl for ’70s kids or Pokémon GO now. If you were born in the late 1980s or early 1990s, you’ll recall MSN Messenger.
STATUS: SONG LYRICS
Nudge MSN Messenger’s popularity soared as the emo craze began. Why? The option to show song lyrics as your status atop every chat. Teenage angst erupts, reflecting your emotional state. These lyrical statuses could be utilized to send covert pining messages to your would-be bae.
BRB & GTG
MSN Messenger and text talk were best friends. ‘BRB’ or ‘Be right back was the most used abbreviation, and we want to bring it back. “BRB” signaled you needed to pee, your mom was ready to chastise you for spending too much time on the computer, or you were done with the talk and searching for an exit.
“Be right back” wasn’t the sole text shortcut in Nudge Messenger’s heyday. GTG was its ultimate abbreviation shortcut. GTG meant you needed a poo, were about to get a bollocking for being online, or dinner was ready. So…GTG.
THE ABILITY TO “APPEAR OFFLINE”
I’m genuinely online, but no one knows it — mwahaha. The ability to set your status to Appear Offline was a Messenger delight that let you escape difficult discussions while still knowing who else was online – and sending a few friends discreet messages explaining your purportedly errant ways. Messenger let you set your status to In a Call or Out to Lunch, but you were 13 and too embarrassed to chat with the awkward kisser.
LOGGING IN/OUT TO NOTIFY YOUR CRUSH
This feature also worked offline. You may manipulate it to chat to your crush. By switching from Online to Appear Offline and back, you’ll notify all of your online connections, including your crush. You waited with a lusty heart, hoping for a message. You tried this… daily, right?
Dropping “Oops, Sorry, Wrong Convo” Apologies
Messenger wasn’t simply for one-on-one chats. You frequently have 12 discussion tabs open. This caused complications, such writing to the wrong persons. Accidents happened sometimes. ) “Lisa’s a badass. Oh, Lisa, not you, another Lisa “( Sometimes it was a tactic to get your crush’s attention. ) “Jenny and I sexted recently. Miscommunication, Michelle “( Teenage horny genius.
NOT REQUESTING MSN NUMBERS
Asking a crush for their phone number used to cause nausea, sweating, and shame. Asking for their MSN name didn’t mean you were crushing on them. It was less invasive despite enabling you communicate to them more and learn things, like their favourite tunes, via their status updates.
RUSHING HOME FROM SCHOOL TO SEE FRIENDS
You spent six hours a day with your friends at school, then rushed home to chat online. Why? Because you never made plans beyond “meet you online at 4” for that evening’s kickabout or dosing. This was the start of simple, fast communication that parents couldn’t monitor.
Nightmare Nudging
MSN Messenger’s ‘Nudge’ was obnoxious before Facebook’s ‘Poke’ The nudge button didn’t only alert or gently nudge your friend; it rocked the entire conversation window. When a friend didn’t answer your message, even if they were in the bathroom or getting a drink, 27 Nudges were sent every 10 seconds.
EMOJI’S ORIGIN
In the late ’90s and early ’00s, Messenger debuted emoji, which are currently the world’s fastest-growing language. Known as emoticons, they swiftly took over your conversations and posts, changing entire lines of text into unreadable hieroglyphics. If emoji weren’t enough, you could send full-page animated “winks” with dancing pigs and gurning faces — that’s technology.
EMOJI SHORTS
Messenger lets you create shortcuts that automatically insert emoji. “111” can become a smiley and “lol” a laughing smiley. Fun, but you could also use it to prank your friends by waiting for them to go to the bathroom and then setting the kissy lips emoji to automatically transmit whenever they sent a cool, nonchalant “Hey” to someone they fancied.
WHO READ YOUR MESSAGES?
Before happy slaps and internet trolls, the biggest danger was conversing frankly with someone you liked on MSN Messenger and realising they had four friends snickering at your teenage angst-filled declarations of love.
MATE CHECKED IF SOMEONE WAS ONLINE
Shameful! You were barred if someone appeared offline but was talking to your friend. It was awkward to ask a buddy if a blocker was online, but joining a group chat with one was worse.
Seeing When Your Crush Texted You
O.M.EFFING.G!! Nothing beat the pleasure of opening a chat window to message your (not-so-secret) crush and seeing “Contact is typing…” Eek. Seeing when someone was typing gave you unmatched delight. WhatsApp and Facebook do the same, but it’s not the same. Originator.
THE HORROR OF NO “TYPING” MESSAGE
Seeing when someone typed you wasn’t all sunshine and lollipops. It was bad. Was the message lost? 30 seconds of ‘Contact is typing…’ and then… nothing. Ends. Nobody calls. They’ll know you were waiting for every word, but what were they going to say? The mystery still haunts us.
MSN Messenger on school computers
It was the ultimate indication of playground disobedience and earned you major props. Year 8 hero for installing MSN Messenger during a boring IT class.
Playing Minesweeper Flags Like A COD Sniper
Pokémon Go isn’t real. We used to play Minesweeper Flags on MSN Messenger. Reds vs. blues Minesweeper was the most heated PC-based battle at the time. The tension was like a Halo match on pep pills.
MUST END CONVERSATION SO MUM CAN USE PHONE
MSN Messenger was popular before WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger and pre-broadband. Your talks were sometimes cut short by your mother’s cries to “get off the computer, I need to call your aunt Jill.” Dial-up… We miss neither your piercing connection tones nor your slow downloads.
