Windows Live is one of Microsoft’s newest services. The services and software provided consist mostly of Web applications but also the classic programs that need to be installed on one’s computer. Windows Live provides three types of services, based on connecting, sharing and protection.

Just this week, Microsoft announced the release of a series of new services provided by their Windows Live. The new features, add-ons and updates have basically turned the Windows Live site into a social networking site. The move is quite odd, especially since their previous service, MSN, who was more social-network-oriented, is still alive and kicking, being run alongside the newer and shinier Windows Live.

The new features brought on by Microsoft include improved photo-sharing, e-mail and instant messaging. The updates and improvements have so far received very positive feedback. In the words of TechCrunch blogger Michael Arrington, these updates have taken Microsoft Live from a “simple search engine with a few services bolted on” to a full-fledged social network which provides it users with Web information, content and activity.

Microsoft says that their improvements amount to what Yahoo has been discussing for the past year. The say their Windows Live Messenger has exceeded Yahoo’s Messenger in popularity.

Possibly influenced by Yahoo’s strategy, Microsoft is also focusing the social networking aspect on the most popular means of Internet communication – instant messaging. Arrington complimented the new features on Windows Live, such as the e-mail client, the instant messaging, the Movie Maker, Photo Gallery and the likes. His satisfaction prompted him to make the following comment “it makes me almost wish I wasn’t solely a Mac user.”