to those using hotmail live... when you first sign on, that is, if you've used hotmail in the past, it will say click on a windows live id to sign in. in my case, an e-mail address is present so when I click on that link I am then presented with a box that has a field for my password. interestingly enough, in the past I had trouble with composing messages, but when I tested it out just now I had no trouble. though gmail is much much more accessible, and is what i primarily use. best of luck, Patricia e-mail: bcsarah.fan@xxxxxxxxx msn: bc_sarah_fan@xxxxxxxxxxx