I just posted this reply on another thread, but I thought others might be interested... it was regarding live chat with spark friends... so I suggested an msn group where you can have a chat facility... this is some instructions for setting up such a group :)
go to groups.msn.com i think it is quite straight forward. near the top there is a blue box and it says "create your own group" so click that. If you already have a hotmail or msn account, you can log in straight away, otherwise, create a free account.(get a .net passport) Once you are signed in, you need to name your group and write a desciption... The next page is a little confusing... 1) rate your group, i imagine it would be general (ie suitable for kids and adults...) 2) membership - can anyone join (public)? or do they need to ask you for permission first (public restricted)? (that way only your spark friends would join) or do you want to invite members individually (private)? i'd guess public restricted is most appropriate 3), 4), 5), 6) i'd leave as the default values...
on to the next page... chose a category... Health... Diet and Nutrition would be a good bet
The next page is your personal preferences... can the group members read your email address, do you get copies of all the messages in your inbox, or read them online etc... Then click create! If your group name was already used by someone else, you'll have to chose a new one...
after all that, the chat link will appear on the left handside!!
when you want to tell your spark friends about the new group, post the link to your thread...
eg http://groups.msn.com/thirtyplusonsparkpeople/ or whatever name you chose :)