Windows 7: windows live mail

thank you for replies, on live mail inbox page if i go to tools ...options.... accounts hotmail is listed as default i have no other account listed. I dont wish to appear stupid but am i getting confused is live mail and hotmail conflicting. Are they seperate email programs, do i have to use one or the other. Apologies for my lack of knowledge.

Live mail and Hotmail are the same thing.

chinrubber,
After looking at this more I think that is the designed behavior of this shortcut to Live Mail inbox on your desktop. This does not open WLM on the internet right? Just opening your inbox is what its suppose to do weather or not you put in your password. I had never used that command to get to my inbox. I have WLM icon on my taskbar. You can remove that command from the bar if you wish. Please let me know if you find something more on this. Thanks for pointing this out.

the problem is anyone could open my emails without a password. I placed a shortcut on the desktop as you said but the same thing happens. There must be a simple solution surely it cant be right that without a password you can open the email program. I have run out of ideas. Thanks for your help

If you are concerned about privacy, try another browser. Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox seem to be the most popular. Personally I use Chrome.

So are you saying that clicking on read mail opens up your live mail account in a web page and that anyone could do this that had your user name. I thought it was opening on your desktop inbox. That does make me concerned about IE 8

in the end i uninstalled windows live email and just placed a shortcut to hotmail on my desktop which works well just as its supposed to.
thanks for the help