Over 50 people have contacted ZDNet UK in the last two months to complain of problems accessing Microsoft's Hotmail service.
Some complainants say they have been unable to access the Hotmail log-in page, while others say they can't get as far as their own inbox.
Although these complaints represent only a fraction of the total Hotmail user base in the UK, they indicate that Microsoft's flagship Web email service may still be suffering from problems that first emerged earlier this year.
Back in February, Microsoft confirmed that server problems were preventing some Hotmail users from accessing the service. Since then, some 150 people have posted TalkBacks to ZDNet UK complaining about the service, despite Microsoft's claim that the problems have been fixed.
One reader said this week that he had only sporadic access to his account and could find no technical reason for this. "Over the last two months I've sometimes been getting a window showing that Hotmail is suffering technical problems when I try to log in. It's completely random as sometimes it will let you log in straight after and other times it won't for hours," he said.
Another reader reported that she had a similar experience, where she could not access her inbox.
"It wouldn't let me into anything on my account. The only thing I could use was my MSN Messenger. It lasted for about a month and definitely wasn't the computer as my housemates and friends could get into their accounts. Eventually, randomly, it just started letting me use it again, it wasn't that I had used too much memory — I'm using barely any, I have no idea what caused it," she said earlier this month.
Other users were able to access the Hotmail homepage but could then get no further — with pages timing out frustratingly.
"The main problem I had was the page timing out after entering my log-in details," said another Hotmail user. A further customer added "I have tried using both Firefox and Internet Explorer. When logging in using Firefox I get a time out error."
Some Hotmail users have also complained that they got limited support from Microsoft when a problem was reported. One told us...
For more, click here...
Talkback
It's not just affecting hotmail, MSN Messenger will now sometimes diaply a msg syaing that you can't log in because the service is too busy. If you click 'retyr' the message just keeps comming back. Howvere if you hit cancel then sign-in again it works fine. Must be a pssport problem I reckon.
i have the same problem.
50 people?
Out of how many millions?
And this is a story, why???
Be for real, why don't you ask the users to replicate the problems for you before you take this (golden) nugget and run with it!
I am seemingly constantly unable to access my hotmail...sometimes the problem lasts for a day or more. It's really very annoying and you don't expect it from such a giant in the industry. I also have an aol account, and for all the moaning about aol, I only very rarely have problems accessing it.
To John,
That's 50 people who have bothered to complain, you may have millions who don't bother to complain, but just change e-mail service to something more reliable like Yahoo or Google. That's what people in the UK would normally do, they will walk away and go somewhere else.
I too got fed up with the inability to log-in and the lack of response from M$. I finally just quit, went to Yahoo.
I use my ISP as my main account, yahoo for the junk.
I don'y use IE anymore due to security problems and have been refused because of using Netscape, Opera, or Mozilla. Have had zero problems with the other services maybe due to the fact not all companies use M$ servers, or windows operating systems.
To Andy,
If there was a problem with millions of users, I think it would be more apparent. True, the number of unreported problems may be high, but Hotmail has over 220 million users. Even if you inflate the number of reported problems by 10,000% to account for unreported problems (which I think is pretty liberal) this still accounts for only 0.2% of the total userbase. I think for a free service with a huge abount of users, a 99.8% availability is pretty darn good.
Hotmail has yet to upgrade my account beyond the old 2 MB limit, claiming that it is taking a long time to get that much storage space for everybody. I don't buy it.
And yes, I've had the problem in Firefox on occasion too.
I guess this truely good news for Gmail. Then again, this whole internet thing is a fad according to MS. Maybe we should just spend our free time with Sat Tv:
http://www.tkqlhce.com/c666p-85-7NPWSQVWVNPORXPQPW
I agree that MS is most likely ignoring these issues. I have a problem with my account and the Members Directory. I cant change my nickname in there, i get an eror message saying the service is temporarally unavaialble. I doubt that MS thinks that 3 or 4 years is temporary. and every time i email MSN about the issue, i get a message saying that they are currently working on the issue and it will be resolved soon. BS! i would asssume SOON is not 3 years, and i HIGHLY DOUBT that they are working on the issue, theyre all probably working on LIVE isnteaded of fixing all of the kinks.
That's right. I was also having a strange problem. When i use to forward an email with attachments, virus scan windows were popping up, but then they were going in some ifinite loop causing my ie to hang. This happened many times, also with msn explorer. I wrote to microsoft too. Another thing was that suddenly my msn explorer started giving me problems while emptying my junk mail. this continued for 7 months. Too many back and forth communications from msft support but no resolution. I re-intalled latest version many times. But problem disappeared when my hotmail account was upgraded to 25 MB due to change in my address. funny...now everythng is good and i still use hotmail. also, i experienced "too many users accesing hotmail" error when i use to access hotmail from other side of globe when it's early morning here in US.
I only use HotMail for MS Passport sites now - use gmail/yahoo for everything else - it got so bad....
John, not everybody reports
Simple...
USE (Google's) GMAIL!
It's 1000 times better, it has 2.6GB storage (and increasing by the second) and your account can be incorporated into most email programs, unlike Hotmail which Microsoft now charges to incorporate into (ONLY) Outlook/OutlookExpress.
And best of all, you don't have to sell your soul by signing up for Passport (or anything privacy-invasively similar).
To this day I don't understand why peole are so gung ho about Hotmail. Every ISP, and online mail-provider has something BETTER and more reliable.
What's to complain about? Can't read messages or send any. Just started. Machine just sits & does nothing.
I havent been able to log into hotmail all day. This is a serious problem that needs to be acknowledged. I have had many important emails about weapons of mass destruction sent to me today that i could not check.The world may be in incredible danger.
The problem appears to be centred on the Passport login system, not Hotmail itself. Regardless of what aspect of my MSN account I'm trying to access when I try to sign in I get no further than a blank web browser window with a URL that points to a Passport server.
Users reporting successful logins to Messenger should not be surprised that this service works when other MSN services don't - it uses seperate servers to regulate access and they don't seem to be affected by the problem.
I'm taking a punt here but the fact that the login process seems to hang suggests either a serious outage in Micorofft's Passport server cluster or a potential DDoS attack. Only Micorsoft have the answer ...
I've been unable to log into my Yahoo mail account for a whole day now. That's just great now that I've routed all my other email accounts through there.
Hi,
I have just read your piece on Hotmail access problems. I have not been able to reach my mail since Monday (30/11/05). In a way I'm relieved that that it's not me but am concerned that Hotmail appear not to be taking responsibility. What am I supposed to do now ? My electronic mail is too important to me to be left to the vagaries of Hotmail in denial.
NB The e-mail address quoted below won't do you much good !!!!!!
Hotmail -absolute CRAP!!!!!
i cant freaking get on hotmail.com
msn hotmail wont let me get on my hotmail it ask for ma address n password then it asks for me to match the characters and it just keep on askin for the same things!!!
Add me to the 50++++. Many mails which I send just disappear too, people think I am real bad for not mailing them. WANTED: New mail account!!
wat the hell is up with msn??? why the hell dnt this suky program work????
P.S i luv leander darwin she makes me wet!!
I have had one problem or another with hotmail every week for months now and am sick of it as I pay for my account.
I recieved two emails today the 15th of december and they were sent on to me the 10th. Snail mail is quicker !
I complain to them regularly to no avail. Since their big upgrade its been a nightmare and they still respond in a way that sounds to me they are looking for someone or something to blame , Its never their fault. What else can someone do? I wont be renewing my premium account thats for sure and am trying to avoid using the service altogether.
My Hotmail has gone haywire this last week
My messages are all over the place not in order of arriving and I cant empty my Trash Can ? I am sure there is a BUG in it somewhere as some of my Mail is being Quarantined when it gets to its Destination.
AS for contacting Hotmail that is a NonEvent
It has taken me 9 hours to receive some emails, some I have NEVER received, Page expires before you can sign in, you acn't easily contact hotmail support.
DO NOT SIGN UP FOR HOTMAIL!!!!!!!
I have been paying for AOL service, unable to access my mail for many months, I would like to cancell my account, wasting my time and money.
I also have problems getting into my account with hotmail it is very frustrating at times . So if things dont get better soon its good bye hotmail !
I can't access my hotmail. I can get to the login box, i type my info in and the boxes and then it just says 'page cannot be displayed'
Its the same with my MSN Messenger i cant get in at all.
i can't read my hotmail and i don't know what to do i don't know were to go. I have about 20 emails and I can't read them or reaspond only a certan page shows up were it gives me only choises like ebay or bath and body works and I'm getting really mad please help me
just read your feed back on hotmail i have the same problem,only just started 4/5 weeks ago some days can get in ok others takes 2/3 goes at different times of day -why?
Hi
Unable to access my hotmail messages when clicking on a message it does not react at all
i am having problems with my hotmail, i cant read my mail and moreover i used it for my internet and now i have to rely on internet explorer which is not very efficient. hotmail!!!! is it crap or just something that just poped up without being planned???? they should find something to do before it is too late. we dont want rubbish, we want efficient things. i had to open a yahoo account but its soooo a problem because all my contacts are hotmail based.
my friend is 1 of the hotmail staff but he keeps finding out my password and his brother is goin on my account his brothers msn addy is marslive25@hotmail.com is there anything that you can do about it because every time that i change it he finds it out again could you please send me back a reply and do some thing about it ...........thanks dean
Only way I can read E mail is through Outlook express as Hotmail won't let me open or delete any e mails getting bit peed off.
i think its time for microsoft to scrap hotmail. its absolute shit hole. most people can't access their hotmail accounts and that is fuckin irritating.
i think its time for microsoft to scrap hotmail. its absolute shit hole. most people can't access their hotmail accounts and that is fuckin irritating.
the goverment are robbing the people by
taxing them to much, and the police are robbing the motorist and the public by their
camara system , sending people enormous fines and generaly upsetting every one
this is because they cant afford all the asylum seekers in this country , i am ashamed to be a British man , How much can
we stand, i can see this country in a revolution soon , people will be fighting in the street, i would tell people not to bring their
kids up in this country, the only one who is the winner is Tony Blair and his bent goverment party . get me off this planet
im finding it reaaly annoying when i get spam and then when i open it i have suddenly orded 17 tickets to see the rolling stones. if anyone knows how to report people on msn please report this guy
wetuhkncghflkj@hotmail.ca
i think that hotmail is a cheaskate, the fact that the email lets spam run through is not so good, i Got an email against my sikh religion the other day
I have been with Hotmail for three months and have lost all of my emails, every single one of them. Some are very important.
I had folders set up and there are 43 in my inbox but I just cannot access them.
I have just paid £14.99 to get more space hoping my emails would return and I would gain access, silly me what a waste of money.
Who do I complain to? I cannot find any contact details whatsoever.
Do I have any consumer rights?
Appears not.
to the one who was on about his email is wid outlook express
were the inter net icon is on the start menu theres a email one to change that to hotmail
and i got me account hack and i dont now how to get me addys back and the hacker blocked them to HELP
i can never see my message just after i have written it, it does not get saved in the "sent messages " file and i dont think there is an easy way of either setting it up so that i can or just saving it in drafts. i have asked for help before and noone i wrote to tryed to help, in the least. get back to me if you can help, and before i simply change to yahoo or some other USERFRIENDLY messanger
I cannot access my hotmail account. This has persisted all day long! What's up Microsoft?
02-20-06
I am tired of sending emails and then getting an automatic message come in 12 hours later to say that my message has been delayed do not resend it. Tou do not even get a message after that to say it has now been sent ! Why is this service so poor ? What is the point of having hotmail,, which I pay for, when it is so unreliable.
Mrs G Beale
I too can't seem to read any of my hotmail messages.When i click on these messages, there doesn't seem to be any activity whatsoever...I can see all the messages, but can't read them...What's happening?
I WANT TO CANCELL MY HOTMAIL ID
i want to cancell my hotmail id
I set up an additional email account with hotmail on Tuesday 11th April, which I used to successfully send several emails the same day. When I tried to log-in on Thursday 13th April the passport page indicated that I had entered the wrong email address/password-not true. Out of frustration and necessity I set up another email account and once again used it to send several emails successfully. However, once again when I tried to log-in to the account later the same day I was met with the same message. Apparently neither of my promised free email accounts exist or at least I have no way of accessing them!