Facebook is to test a Messenger for Windows desktop client. Windows 7 is the only version of Microsoft’s operating system that is going to be supported; there is no news yet for Mac and Linux users.Facebook has started testing a Facebook Messenger for Windows desktop client with a restricted group of users, currently in beta. The application which requires Windows 7 provides access to three main Facebook features. They are Facebook Chat, the new Ticker Feed, and Notifications.Messenger for Windows is a new trial application that lets you use Facebook without being on www.facebook.com.
While you surf the web or use other applications, you can:
- Chat and message with your friends on Facebook
- See the latest updates from your friends in ticker
- Get quick notifications about what’s going onDuring this trial period,
Facebook plans on rolling out changes to the app and expect outages as it makes improvements. Messenger for Windows will automatically install updates. Facebook is looking to gauge whether users are interested in using the social network’s real-time features without having to keep a browser window open. Facebook is clearly hoping that users will leave Messenger for Windows on throughout the day, probably since most Facebook addicts already do so with their browser. The advantage of a desktop client is that it can use the operating system’s notification system to alert the user.
Users who can get the new beta client are being randomly selected to join the tester group. The application was developed entirely by Facebook. The Facebook-integrated Windows Live Messenger desktop client already lets you use Facebook Chat to communicate with your Facebook friends. It is currently the top app on the Facebook Platform when it comes to daily active users which are over eighteen million according to AppData.Clients for Mac and Linux will likely only be released if the Windows 7 version proves very popular.