ICQ® 6

ICQ 6. build 5354 released 2 May 07
File:Install_ICQ6.exe
Download Size: 11.1mb
Download Location: http://www.icq.com/download/
System Requirments:
Windows XP, Windows Vista
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 and above
Adobe (Macromedia) Flash Player 7 (Recommended)
256 MB of RAM (recommended)

Backing Up Archives
So there I was with ICQ 5.1 and ICQ Pro 2003b installed... I was prepared to loose 5.1 but not my old faithful ICQ Pro 2003b and I wasn't prepared to gamble with my archives / history which date back to Pro 2001a so I set about backing those up first.

My ICQ Pro archives are stored at:
C:\Program Files\ICQ\2001a
C:\Program Files\ICQ\2002a
C:\Program Files\ICQ\2003a
C:\Program Files\ICQ\2003b

The 5.1 archives are stored in a different location
C:\Documents and Settings\WindowsUserName\Application Data\ICQLite\HistoryDB\YourICQ#
so I headed off to
C:\Documents and Settings\Bee\Application Data\ICQLite\HistoryDB\105504951
and grabbed a copy of those also. I then trotted off to ICQ's website and downloaded their ICQ History Converter. It's a breeze to run and I didn't encounter any problems, I logged into v5.1 and there were all my archives, right back to 2001 :)

Installing ICQ 6
I downloaded the latest version of 6 currently available ICQ 6. build 5354 released 2 May 07 (11.1mb download) and I cruised in with the minimum system requirements:
Windows XP, Windows Vista
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 and above
Adobe (Macromedia) Flash Player 7 (Recommended)
256 MB of RAM (recommended)

If you don't wish to have ICQ as your default search option, or your homepage, and you're not too thrilled with another browser toolbar then take care during installation. You will need to watch out for the second stage of install, by default Full Installation is selected, you need to change this to Custom Installation, then uncheck the items you don't want installed.

Step 4 made me smile ;) after that (which you can skip if you like) is the confirmation of your successful installation, if you don't wish to have an ICQ Quick Launch icon or a desktop one then make sure you uncheck those options before hitting "Finish".

I opted to launch immediately after installation just to make sure that all was as it should have been.. and it was, ICQ 6 exectued and logged me in perfectly. I then logged out immediately to check v5.1 and Pro, thankfully and logically, it was 5.1 that was now a dead duck, Pro 2003b still works, but only just. I now get error messages on execution, I'm not sure it is actually v6 related, I'm kinda thinking it might be something to do with the archive conversion, but if I wade my way through the error messages on exectution, ICQ Pro does eventually load and function aok but after wading a few times I decided it was about time I moved on to, if not better features (which I don't feel they are at this stage), then at least a more secure version of ICQ.

I then logged back into ICQ 6, my first proper impression.. it looks great :) I'm unsure about functionality of it at this stage but I'm slowly working my way through the new features. For me, moving on from ICQ Pro is like finally throwing out your much loved PJ's or toe socks... it takes some getting use to.

Converting Archives
Either at first login, or subsequent ones, you will be asked if you wish to migrate your previous version archives, my understanding is that the migration works for previous "Lite" versions, not for a Pro migration but I never tested this theory to see if it was the case or not.

Do make sure you have backed up your archives prior to migration, remember your Lite ones are located at
C:\Documents and Settings\WindowsUserName\Application Data\ICQLite\HistoryDB\YourICQ#
and your Pro ones at
C:\Program Files\ICQ\ProVersionNumber

I sat on my hands during the migration process (so as not to fiddle, which I am prone to doing *blush*) and patiently watched the progress bar... it took approx 5-7 mins to complete. While it appeared the migration went smoothly and without hiccups when I was prompted to delete my old history files I decided not to, I took the safe route and selected No. If you are at all concerned or just wish to play it safe then perhaps No is the best option... especially if your archives are important to you. I've heard a couple of horror stories where ppl have had their archive migration go belly up and seleted Yes at close only to find their archives weren't transferred across at all :(

I was going to check out the new features first, but I got side tracked by the smileys and tZers *blush*