What does the doorbell sound from the computer while I am on it mean? It will ring four or five times then stop. Later it will ring again and then stop. I share this computer.
Doorbells usually come from email and instant messaging type programs. However, the doorbell is one of the included sounds in windows and could be assigned to darn near anything by the user.
I believe that’s the default sound for when someone on your buddy list signs on to Instant Messaging. If you look in your task tray (at the bottom of your screen on the right, near the clock) and see a little blue or yellow man, that means that that program is running, and that’s what the sound is.
Well, it used to be at least that AIM’s default sounds were opening and closing door sounds for buddies signing on and off. This confused the heck out of me for a while because I didn’t know why my computer kept slamming a door. One of the buddies’ connection kept dropping, signing him off.
Yeah, one more computer user here who used to be confused by all kinds of weird sound effects coming from the 'puter. Finally figured out that my youngest daughter has a humongous circle of AOL Instant Messenger friends, and whenever she was “signed on”, there was a constant parade of doorbells ringing, doors slamming, weird alien sound effects, you name it, drove everybody crazy.
So we all learned to sign her off before sitting down, and a blessed silence fell.
Thanks, folks. I also thought that it might be an instant messaging signal instead of an email signal because of the persistence of the sound. I have no physical sign on anyone being there. Hmmm.
A “Messenger” is installed. (I just noticed the icons that look like chess pawns.) Is there any necessity for its being installed other than to convey instant messages? Will something god-awful happen if I remove it? (I’m excluding irate family members, of course.)
There’s probably no need to remove it. You can disable AIM, MSN Messenger or Yahoo IM if you right-click on the icon on the taskbar, and click EXIT.
Viola. No mo’ ding-dong, and your fellow family-members can still turn it back on later.
Oh, and tell the person that’s responsible for it that it’s common courtesy to log out of programs that aren’t being used by everyone in the family. At very least he/she can turn off the audio cue associated with people logging in.
Heh. A better way to teach this person to sign out when she’s done is to remind her that as long as she’s still logged on, everyone else can see exactly what she’s been doing, and can have the most interesting chats with all her little friends… “She’s not here rite now, this is mom, can I help u?”
snerk