I’ve been using Pidgin for a very long time to chat over Facebook while I work. However, in recent months I’ve noticed that Facebook Messenger no longer works through my Pidgin installation. This means that I have to go to Facebook to talk to people. Most of my technical contacts are on Facebook. Even my lawyer is on my Facebook.
One of my huge productivity issues has been that I get stuck going through the newsfeed and peoples pictures and posting the random things that come to my mind.
In this tutorial, I’m going to show you how to install Pidgin Messenger on your Windows PC and update it so that you can login to Facebook.
Step 1. Install Pidgin – Go to https://www.pidgin.im/download/ and click “Download Now” to download the latest version of Pidgin Instant Messenger. Install the file that you have downloaded onto your PC.
Step 2. Find your Pidgin directory. Most people will be able to find this directory in C:/Program Files/Pidgin/ mine was in a roaming profile however so my location was located here
An easy way to find your directory location is to go to your Start menu and type “pidgin.exe” and when the file is located, right click the file and click “Open file Location” then select the directory path from explorer.
Step 3. Go to https://github.com/jgeboski/purple-facebook/wiki/Installing-on-Windows and follow the instructions in the directory that you have found. Don’t forget to install both files, one goes in the plugins folder.
Step 4. Restart Pidgin
Go to Manage Accounts > Click “Add” button > Check Facebook (Notice: Not Facebook (XMPP) – This one is deprecated)
Fill in your login information and click the “Save” button at the bottom. Make sure the account is enabled and then you should see your friends list popup if you are connected or a login failure if the information that you have provided does not work. Again be sure to NOT use Facebook (XMPP).