The original guide introduced MSN Messenger to people unfamiliar with the application. It described obtaining the client, creating a Hotmail account and using that account to begin a conversation.
Those were steps for the service of that period. This page is a historical walkthrough, not a working account-creation or installation guide for the original network.
Signing in
The source described two ways to reach the sign-in window: using the prompt in the application or opening the menu on its taskbar icon. The user then entered an account name and password.
It also mentioned the option to remember those details. On a shared computer, saving credentials could give someone else access, so that decision was separate from simply being able to sign in.
Adding and organising contacts
The Add a Contact command let the user enter another person's account. The source noted that the button's location could change between versions and that related actions were available through the Tools menu.
Contact management included removing entries, viewing profile information and organising people into groups. A user could arrange the visible list by groups or by who was connected.
Choosing a display name
The display-name field controlled the nickname seen by contacts. Changing that name did not change the underlying account identity. The article also described decorative symbols and other personalisation common at the time.
The related display-name article explains the extra formatting used by a compatible Messenger Plus! extension.
The old proxy example
The guide ended with a proxy configuration under Tools, Options and Connection. It used SOCKS version 4 and a local address as examples.
Those values should not be copied into a modern network. A proxy address, protocol and port need to come from the actual administrator or service being used. The address of a home router is not automatically the address of a suitable proxy.
What the walkthrough illustrates
The article shows how much of the experience depended on visible account state, a recognisable contact list and a few everyday commands. Today's messaging applications may use different accounts and security controls, even when some of the interface ideas look familiar.