SHORTCUT KEYS

MAIL SHORTCUTS
If you use Internet Mail extensively, you may be interested in some keyboard shortcuts. Here's the first installment. Most of the shortcuts listed here also apply to Internet News.

To open a message, select it and press Enter or Ctrl-O.
To print a message, press Ctrl-P.
To delete a selected message, press Delete or Ctrl-D.
To mark a message as read, press Ctrl-Enter.
To mark a message as unread, press Ctrl-Shift-Enter.
To view the first message in a list, press Home.
To send or receive mail, press Ctrl-M.
Look at the HTML source code of  mail messages press Ctrl-F2. (Notepad will open displaying the source code for the current message). 

Calendar:
Right/left cursor         Move forward or back one day at a time
Alt+up/Down Cursor   Forward or back one week at a time
Alt-Home                  Jump to the first day of the current week

MAY THE BEST FIT WIN.
Tired of manually sizing the columns of your e-mail folders up (and down again) to accommodate wide entries--for example, those under Subject? Don't waste your time clicking and dragging those column edges left and right. Instead, let Outlook autosize your columns for you. Right-click any column, select Best Fit, and Outlook enlarges (or shrinks) the column to fit the widest entry.

SETTING MESSAGE PRIORITY.
Don't let your important messages get lost in a sea of babble. Distinguish your high-priority messages by marking them as such. To designate an e-mail message as high priority, simply click the button that displays a red exclamation mark.

STICK WITH THE MESSAGE GROUP.
If you frequently have lengthy e-mail conversations, you know what it's like to have lots of related messages strewn all over your Inbox. Want to consolidate? Group your messages together by subject. Inside Inbox, right-click the Subject column heading anywhere and select Group By This Field. Each item in your message list now includes a plus sign, the subject, and the number of items grouped by that subject. More important, each subject, no matter how many items within it, takes up only one line on your message list. Click the plus sign to expand a message group, then double-click any message inside to open it (or click it once to view it in the preview pane).
To return to an ungrouped view, right-click the Subject heading (now a stand-alone heading in the bar above the column headings) and select Don't Group By This Field. To remove the extra bar (the one that says Drag A Column Heading Here To Group By That Column), right-click any column heading and deselect Group By Box.
Note: You can use this technique to group messages in any message folder, not just Inbox

Grouping also makes it easier to delete a whole bunch of related messages in one fell swoop. For example, suppose you want to get rid of all messages to Aunt Betty in your Sent Items folder. As it happens, you have the messages in that folder grouped by the To field. Simply right-click the Aunt Betty group and select Delete.
Don't have your messages grouped together? That's easy enough to fix. Right-click the To column heading and select Group By This Field. Now go ahead with your group deletion.

MARKING COMMENTS ON FORWARDED MESSAGES.
When you forward an e-mail and include the original text, you want to make sure that it's clear which comments are yours and which are part of the forwarded message. Outlook provides a simple way to identify who's who and who said what.
To begin, click Tools, Options. Select the Preferences tab and click the E-mail Options button. Next, select the Mark My Comments With: option, then type your name in the box. Click OK. Now whenever you make a comment in a forwarded message, Outlook will identify you as the commentator.

IT'S TOTALLY AUTOMATIC.
To archive a message folder's contents by hand: Select File, Archive; select Archive this folder and all subfolders; select the folder you want to archive. Under Archive file, type a name for the archive file you're about to create. Enter a date in the Archive Items Older Than Box and click OK. You can archive folder other than message folders, for example, perhaps your Calendar is jam-packed full of information and you'd like to clean it out a bit.
Well, before you start messing around with archiving options for Calendar, get a load of this: As long as you have AutoArchive turned on, Outlook 98 archives any Calendar information that's older than six months. It's also set to archive Tasks and Journal items after the same time period; and it archives Sent items and Deleted items after two months. One simple setting, and Outlook does the rest.
To turn AutoArchive on, select Tools, Options, and select the Other tab. Click the AutoArchive button and select Archive Every 14 Days. (Note: You can change the number of days to any number you want.) Under Default Archive File, type the name of the file to which Outlook should move archived items (or click Browse, select a file, and click OK). Assuming you want Outlook to prompt you when AutoArchive is about to begin (so you have the option to cancel the operation), leave Prompt Before AutoArchive selected. And finally, if you want AutoArchive to delete expired items from the e-mail folder, select Delete Expired Items.
Click OK, and the AutoArchive settings mentioned above (for Calendar, Tasks, and so on) go into motion. Our next tip describes adjusting AutoArchive options for these and other folders.

So what happens if there are items you don't want archived, regardless of their age? For example, perhaps you have some e-mail messages that are ancient, but that you want to keep right where they are (while archiving the rest of the folder's contents). For exactly this purpose, Outlook offers a setting that protects individual messages.
Double-click any message you'd like to protect, and in the resulting message window, select File, Properties. Select Do Not AutoArchive This Item, then click OK. Archive all you want--that message won't budge.

FLAGGING IMPORTANT MESSAGES.
If you're like most people, you get more e-mail than you know what to do with. Don't let important messages slip through the cracks. Say you're collaborating on an important project with a colleague. You can create a rule that will flag every message automatically for a set number of days. That way, the project won't get lost in between all the others.
To begin, select Tools, Rules Wizard, New. In the Which Type Of Rule Do You Want To Create? section, choose Flag Messages From Someone. In the Rule Description box, click on the From People Or Distribution List link. Find the name of the person (or distribution list) whose messages you'd like to flag, click From, and click OK.
Choose which type of flag you'd like to apply, specify how many days you'd like the flag to appear, and click OK. The Rules Wizard will walk you through refining the rule, if necessary, and offer you the choice of running the rule on existing messages or just on new ones. Click Finish when you're done.

CHANGING CALENDAR WORKWEEK OPTIONS.
I think the week starts on Monday, you say it actually begins on Sunday. Now we can both be right. It's easy to change your Outlook Calendar so that it starts a week on whichever day you want.
First, click Tools, Options. Select the Preferences tab and click the Calendar Options button. Select the day on which your week begins from the First Day Of Week drop-down menu and click OK.

DELETED ITEMS.
By default, deleting an Outlook 98 e-mail message moves it to the Deleted Items folder, where it stays until you manually empty this folder. However, if you don't feel the need for this safety net, you can instruct Outlook to empty it for you whenever you exit the program. Select Tools, Options and click the Other tab. Select the Empty Deleted Items folder upon exiting, then click OK. From now on, exiting Outlook wipes that folder clean (so be sure you've retrieved everything you need before you end a work session).

MARKING COMMENTS ON FORWARDED MESSAGES.
When you forward an e-mail and include the original text, you want to make sure that it's clear which comments are yours and which are part of the forwarded message. Outlook provides a simple way to identify who's who and who said what.
To begin, click Tools, Options. Select the Preferences tab and click the E-mail Options button. Next, select the Mark My Comments With: option, then type your name in the box. Click OK. Now whenever you make a comment in a forwarded message, Outlook will identify you as the commentator.

SAVING A DRAFT OF UNSENT MESSAGES.
When you've got an important e-mail to create, you want to get it just right. So feel free to write a little, then come back later and edit it but what to do with it in the meantime? Save it as a draft, of course.
First, click Tools, Options. On the Preferences tab, click E-mail Options. Select the Automatically Save Unsent Message option and click OK. Now Outlook will save any open messages every three minutes in the Drafts folder.

CHANGING THE TIME ZONE.
Outlook allows you to set up a second time zone in your Calendar, making your travel schedule a lot easier to deal with. To begin, click Tools, Options. Select the Preferences tab and click the Calendar Options button. Next, click Time Zone, select the time zone you're in, and give it a label. Select the Show An Additional Time Zone option and label it as well. Now both time zones will appear above the time slots in your Calendar. If you want to display one and not the other, click the Swap Time Zones button, and the second one you designated will become the primary zone.
Just don't forget which time zone you actually live in.

MEET THE MAIL SORTER.
Do you store all messages from a certain recipient in a folder other than Inbox? Rather than moving them there individually, ask Outlook to do so for you.
From inside your Inbox folder, select Tools, Organize. Now just fill in the Create A Rule Line to match what you want to do. When you're finished, this line might read something like, "Move new messages from joe@something.com into Messages From Joe." To set this rule into motion, just click Create, then click the X in the upper-right corner of the Organize box to close it.
Note: To check for messages from Joe, you'll need to look inside the Messages From Joe folder.

THOSE LITTLE YELLOW STICKIES ARE EVERYWHERE.
You can create and store as many sticky notes as you want. But the Notes folder isn't the only place for notes. You can stick a note on any message folder.
From inside the folder in which you'd like to place a note, press Ctrl-Shift-S (or select File, New, Post In This Folder). Type a subject and the body of the note, then click Post (or press Ctrl-Enter). Your note now appears as an item in the message list, complete with a yellow sticky note icon.

NEW WINDOW.
Did you know that Outlook 98 offers An Open In New Window command, just like your favourite browser? That means you can view the contents of more than one folder--for example, Inbox and Calendar--on the screen at the same time.
Switch to the first folder you want to open; then, using the Outlook Bar or the folder list, right-mouse click the second folder you want to open and select Open In New Window. (Note: You have to stick the folder list to the screen in order to access its right-click commands.) Repeat these steps for each folder you want to open, then size or move the open windows as necessary to view their contents. (Tip: Right-click the task bar and select one of the window arranging options.)

USING OUTLOOK'S TO DO LIST.
To start a To Do list, run Outlook and click the Tasks folder. You can now enter your task. If you want to set an alarm so Outlook can remind you, double-click your new task to open a complete view of it in a new window. To set the alarm, just select the Reminder check box and then set the date and time for the alarm. If you'd prefer to use a specific sound for your alarm, click the button with the speaker icon at the right of the time list box. When the Reminder Sound dialog box opens, locate a sound and double-click to accept it. Click OK to close the dialog box. Outlook is very versatile--you can use it for Internet Mail, Exchange Mail, to keep notes, and to remind you of appointments.

WRAPPING LINES IN OUTGOING E-MAIL MESSAGES.
Just because you're using a state-of-the-art e-mail program doesn't mean everyone else is. Some older e-mail packages can't handle lines over 80 characters, resulting in hard-to-read e-mails with lines of varying lengths. You can avoid this by setting the word wrap in Outlook.
First, choose Tools, Options and click the Mail Format tab. Then, click Settings and set the lines to wrap at no more than 76 characters by entering the number in the box. Even the oldest e-mail systems will display your messages as you intended.

ADDING AN ADDRESS TO YOUR ADDRESS BOOK.
Enter all your contacts' information in your Address Book. That's what it's there for!
Begin by selecting Tools, Address Book (or click the Address Book button on the Standard toolbar). Next, click the New button on the Address Book toolbar. If you're on a network, you'll be able to choose between your Personal Address Book or Contacts. Select New Contact. Type the name, e-mail address, and other information, such as address, phone number, and fax number, in the appropriate boxes. Finally, click OK.

SECOND SHIFT.
Do you work longer (or different) hours than the traditional nine-to-five workday? Then you'll want to change Calendar's colour coding to match. By default, only the area between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday appears white (to indicate work hours), while the rest is grey. Change these settings to reflect your schedule.
Select Tools, Options, and click the Calendar Options button. Under Calendar Work Week, select only the days that you work. Then adjust the Start Time and/or End Time to match your typical workday. Click OK twice. Back on your Calendar, you'll see your days coloured accordingly.

STAY ONLINE.
Want to stay online after a Send And Receive operation? (by default, when you click Send and Receive, Outlook connects you to the Internet, checks your mail, and then disconnects you.) To prevent Outlook from hanging up on you select Tools, Options, and click the Mail Delivery tab. Deselect Hang Up When Finished Sending, Receiving Or Updating, then click OK. From now on, once you're online, you'll stay online (unless you disconnect manually).

ATTACHING A SIGNATURE.
You wouldn't send a letter without signing it, would you? Why should e-mail be any different? You can create your own unique signature. Most signatures contain your pertinent contact information--name, company, phone number, Web site, etc.--but you can include whatever you want. Outlook will automatically attach the information to every outgoing message you send.
Click Tools, Options and select the Mail Format tab. Click the Signature Picker button, then click New. Enter a name for your signature (maybe Work or Personal). Click Start With A Blank Signature. Type in the text you want for your signature (name, company, phone number, maybe a witty quote to show off your style). Click Finish, then click OK.

You can do even better and send an electronic business card called a vCard. When you send a message with a vCard attached, recipients can automatically add you to their Address Book.
First, make sure you've entered yourself as a contact in your Address Book. Then click Tools, Options and select the Mail Format tab. Click the Signature Picker button, then click New. Enter a name for your signature (maybe Work or Personal). Click Start With A Blank Signature. Instead of entering your information, click New vCard From Contact. Select your name from the contact list and click Add. Click Finish, then click OK. From now on, Outlook will attach your contact information to outgoing messages.

When you receive a message with a vCard attached, a paper clip icon appears in the preview pane, indicating an attachment. From the preview pane, select the paper clip icon and click the filename that appears. Or, if you've opened the message, right-click the business card icon and click Open. Once you can view the information sent in the vCard, click the Add To Address Book button on the Personal tab. Click OK, and the information will be added to your contacts list.

ATTACHING A NOTE TO A MESSAGE.
Just typed a masterpiece you'd like to share with someone else? You have two options: Either copy and paste its text into an e-mail message, or (the much more efficient way) forward the note as a message attachment.
In the Notes folder, right-click the note you want to forward and select Forward. Immediately, a new message window appears with the note attached. Complete the message as you would any other, then click Send.
In case you aren't familiar with notes, here are the steps for creating one: Select File, New Note; type the text of your note; and click the X in the note's upper-right corner. The note takes its place alongside any others in the Notes folder.

INCLUDE ORIGINAL MESSAGE TEXT ON FORWARDS.
Naturally, you'll want to include the original text when you forward a message, and this is Outlook's default. But how it looks is up to you.
To set off the original text with an indent, select Tools, Options. Select the Preferences tab, then click the E-Mail Options button. Under When Forwarding A Message, choose Include and Indent Original Message Text.

MARKING MESSAGES AS PERSONAL.
It's generally not a good idea to send your personal information via e-mail, so make sure your friend knows that the message is personal. Next time you compose a new message, select View, Options. Set the Sensitivity option to Personal, Private, or Confidential. Then, click Send.

COLOR-CODE NOTES.
Do you create some notes for work, some for family, and some for no one but yourself? If you're looking for an easy way to tell one type from the next, try colour coding, Outlook allows you to create notes in five different colours.
To change the colour of a note that's currently open, click the icon in its upper-left corner, select Color, and choose a colour from the list. If the note is closed, right-click it (in the Notes folder), and you'll see the Color command in the resulting menu.
In case you aren't familiar with notes, here are the steps for creating one: Select File, New Note; type the text of your note; and click the X in the note's upper-right corner. The note takes its place alongside any others in the Notes folder.

Do you have more than five different categories of notes, for example, one for each of eight ongoing projects? Then divide your notes by categories. Right-click any note and select Categories. (If the note is open, click the icon in its upper-left corner and select Categories.) Under Available Categories, click the check box next to as many applicable categories as you want, then click OK. Repeat these steps for any other notes you want to categorize. (Tip: To save time, apply categories to more than one note at a time. Hold down Ctrl as you click each note, right-click the selection, select Categories, and so on.)
In case you aren't familiar with notes, here are the steps for creating one: Select File, New Note; type the text of your note; and click the X in the note's upper-right corner. The note takes its place alongside any others in the Notes folder.

To view your notes by colour, select View, Current View, By Color. To group your notes by category, select View, Current View, By Category. (If you've given a note more than one category, it will appear once in each category.) Click the plus sign on any line to view all the notes in that group. To ungroup your notes, select View, Current View, Icons (or Notes List).
In case you aren't familiar with notes, here are the steps for creating one: Select File, New Note; type the text of your note; and click the X in the note's upper-right corner. The note takes its place alongside any others in the Notes folder.

REQUEST A RECEIPT FOR INDIVIDUAL MESSAGES.
You can set Outlook to request a receipt for each message you send out. But one receipt for each outgoing message adds up to lots of clutter in your inbox, so you'll probably want to request receipts for specific messages. To request a receipt, compose a new message. Select View, Options (or click the Options icon on your toolbar). Under Tracking Options, select the Request A Read Receipt For This Message option. Then, click Close and send your message as usual.

PROCESS RECEIPTS ON ARRIVAL.
If someone requests a receipt along with a message they send to you, it's a good idea, and a polite gesture, to send that receipt promptly. If you happen to be the absent-minded type, just have Outlook take care of it for you.
From the Outlook desktop, select Tools, Options, then select the Preferences tab. Click E-Mail Options, then Tracking Options. Select the Process Receipts On Arrival option, and from now on, Outlook will send receipts automatically.

USE AUTOPREVIEW TO PREVIEW MESSAGES.
If you happen to be the popular, in-demand type of person who receives lots of e-mail messages, there's an easy way to scan through them to determine which you should read first (and which you should dump immediately). It's called AutoPreview.
Select View, AutoPreview, and the first three lines of each message appear in the message list.
Note: To turn AutoPreview off, just select View, AutoPreview again.

Wish the preview text appeared in your favourite colour? Or that it was a bit larger? You can easily change the colour, font, or point size of the preview text. Pull down the View menu and select Current View, Customize Current View. Click Other Settings, and under AutoPreview, click the Font button. Use the resulting dialog box to change the appearance of your text, as desired, then click OK three times (to close all dialog boxes).

ADD HOLIDAYS.
Life can't be all work and no play, right? So make sure that you know when holidays are approaching by having Outlook automatically enter them on your calendar. From the Outlook desktop, select Tools, Options, and then choose Calendar Options. Click the Add Holidays button and presto! Outlook automatically enters national holidays on your calendar.

TASK REQUESTS.
The next time you need to delegate tasks, stay right where you are, in front of your computer. The Tasks feature makes it a snap to assign tasks right through the mail.
To create a task request, press Ctrl-Shift-U (or select File, New, Task Request). Type the recipient's address on the To line, or if he or she is already in your address book, click the To button, double-click the recipient, and click OK. Now just complete the remaining fields: Type a subject, select a due date and start date, and so on. Enter any instructions in the big white box at the bottom. When you've finished creating the task, click the Send button, and off it goes.

Don't feel like completing a task but don't want to be so bold as to decline it? Assuming you have the power to do so, you can always assign it to someone else. Simply open the message that contains the task request and select Actions, Assign Task. Type the address of the desired recipient on the To line, then click Send.

FIND PEOPLE.
Once you have a few entries in your address book or contacts list, it can be difficult to find the person you're looking for by just scanning the list. But Outlook makes it easy with the Find People feature, which can be accessed in several different ways.
From the Outlook desktop, select Tools, Address Book (or click the Address Book button on the Standard toolbar). Then, click Find People and enter the identifying information--such as the first name--and click Find Now.
From inside a new message window, click the To button to bring up the Select Names window. Click Find, type the search information, and click Find Now.
From the Outlook desktop, click in the text box on the Standard toolbar. Type a piece of identifying information about the person you're seeking--it can be a first or last name, nickname, even part of the person's e-mail address--and press Enter. The contact information for that person will pop up.

OPENING ADDRESS BOOK.
There's more than one way to access your address book? Select Tools, Address Book. You can also press Ctrl-Shift-B or click the Address Book button on the Standard toolbar

FREE/BUSY OPTIONS.
One of the benefits of using Outlook on a network is that you can share your schedule with your colleagues, which can cut down on exchanges like "I can't make a Tuesday morning meeting; can we do it in the afternoon instead?" "No, not unless I move my lunch meeting to Wednesday..." With a few clicks, Outlook can let others know when you have time available for meetings and when you're busy.
From the Outlook desktop, select Tools, Options, then click Calendar Options. Next, click Free/Busy Options to open a dialog box that lets you decide how much information about your schedule you want to provide--how many months' worth of calendar to show, where to show it, and how often to update the information. Then, click OK.

MARK PREVIEWED MESSAGES AS READ.
If you want to know which inbox messages you've read and which you haven't, all you need to do is look at the text in the message list. Messages that haven't been read appear in bold while messages you've read don't appear in bold. The only problem with this setting is that it's determined by whether or not a message has been opened in a separate window. So if you tend to read messages in the preview pane only, they all remain bold.
To resolve this confusion, you can instruct Outlook to mark any message previewed for a certain amount of time as read. Just select Tools, Options and click the Other tab. Next, click the Preview Pane button, select Mark Messages As Read In Preview Window, then set the number of seconds a message needs to be previewed before it's marked as read. Finally, click OK twice. The next time you select an unread message and leave it displayed in the preview pane for the specified amount of time, Outlook will mark it as read.

RECOVER DELETED MESSAGE.
In any given work session, you can get any deleted message back. By default, Outlook stores deleted messages in the Deleted Items folder--that is, until you empty the folder manually or until you exit Outlook (if you've set the option to empty the Deleted Items folder automatically upon exiting).
Switch to the Deleted Items folder and locate the message you deleted by mistake. Right-click it, select Move To Folder, choose the destination folder, and click OK.

FLAG MESSAGES FOR FOLLOW-UP.
Wish you could highlight certain messages to help you remember to follow up on them? Outlook offers something even better: flags.
Right-click any message that requires follow-up action and select Flag For Follow Up. (You could also select the message, then choose Actions, Flag For Follow Up.) Select a follow-up action, such as Reply or Call, in the drop-down list next to Flag To, then click OK. Back in the message list, you'll see a red flag next to that message.
All done following up? To remove the flag from the message altogether, open the Flag For Follow Up dialog box by right-clicking the message and selecting Flag For Follow Up. Then, click the Clear Flag button. To leave the flag there but change its colour to white (so you'll know for sure you've followed up on that message), open the same dialog box but select the Completed check box. Either way, finish by clicking OK.

TASKPAD.
Want to manage your tasks and calendar from the same place? Take advantage of the TaskPad, a list of to-do's (carried over from the Tasks folder) that appears in the lower-right corner of the Calendar window.
You can add a task to the TaskPad (and the Tasks folder) without even opening Tasks. Just click where TaskPad says to, type a name for the task, and press Enter. To delete a task, right-click it and select Delete. Or to simply cross out a completed task, click its check box. Again, any changes made here also appear in the Tasks folder.
Tip: Need more tasks power? From the Calendar window, select Go, Tasks.

REPLIES SENT TO A DIFFERENT ADDRESS.
Let's say you send out invitations to a meeting but want your guests to RSVP to someone else. First, compose a new message. Click the Options icon on the Standard toolbar (or select View, Options). Then, select the Have Replies Sent To option. Type the e-mail address you want replies sent to, or click the Select Names button and choose the e-mail address from there.

REORGANISE THE OUTLOOK BAR.
Tired of scrolling down the Outlook Bar to get to the shortcuts you use most? Wish some of the shortcuts in the My Shortcuts section were in the Outlook Shortcuts section, or vice versa? Then do some rearranging. You can move any shortcut to any location on the bar using a simple click-and-drag operation.
Click on the shortcut you want to relocate, then drag it up or down the Outlook Bar to the desired location. A black line will appear to let you know you're hovering over a legitimate spot. Let go, and the shortcut slides into place.
To move a shortcut from Outlook Shortcuts to My Shortcuts, or vice versa, click and drag the item directly over My Shortcuts (at the bottom of the bar), wait for this area to appear, then drop the shortcut in your location of choice.

SEND LATER.
To get Outlook not to deliver a message immediately, compose a new message then, click the Options button on the Standard toolbar. Under Delivery Options, select Do Not Deliver Before, and choose the date and time by clicking the down arrow. Click Close, then click Send. The message will be held until the time you specify.
Note that the message will only be sent automatically if you're using Outlook with Microsoft Exchange Server. If you're using Outlook with a dial-up account, you'll still need to click Send And Receive while you're connected to the Internet.

THIS MESSAGE WILL EXPIRE.
Some messages become irrelevant after a certain date or time. Say you're inviting co-workers out for happy hour on Friday evening. You can set any messages about happy hour to expire on say Friday afternoon at 5:00.
Compose a new message. Next, click the Options button on the Standard toolbar. Under Delivery Options, select Expires After, and choose the date and time by clicking the down arrow. Click Close, then click Send. Outlook will hold the message until the time you specify. The messages you set to expire will still appear in recipients' mailboxes but will be greyed out, with a line through them.

CREATE NEW FOLDER FROM SAVE AS DIALOG BOX.
Want to save a message as a file? Select File, Save As, navigate your way to the destination folder and--hey, maybe I'll save that message in a brand-new folder.
Good idea, but before you go back out to the desktop (or some other location) to create it, try this instead: Inside the Save As dialog box, navigate your way to the folder in which you'd like to create the new folder. Click the button that looks like a folder with a star in its upper-right corner (not the one with the star in the middle), type a name for the folder, and click OK.
Double-click the new folder, type a name for the file you'd like to create (and select a file type, if necessary), then click Save. You never even had to leave the dialog box!

SORT ITEMS IN SAVE AS DIALOG BOX.
You know how to sort the items on your desktop or in a folder window by Name, Size, Date, or Type (right-click a blank area, select Arrange Icons, then choose an option). Well, you can perform the same sorting operation from inside the File, Save As (or File, Open, Personal Folders) dialog box. This comes in handy if, for example, you want to view all the messages in a particular desktop folder by date.
See the icon on the far right side of the box--the one with the red checkmark on it? Click it, then select Sorting in the resulting menu. Select a sorting criterion (under Sort Files By), select Ascending or Descending, then click OK. Outlook rearranges the items in the original dialog box to match your request.

ORGANIZED TIME.
The first step to organising any project is dividing items into categories. By assigning your messages a category, you can easily see all the messages that relate to a specific activity, project, or group.
Select one or more messages to assign to a category. Choose File, Categories (or right-click the items and choose Categories from the shortcut menu). Check the box next to as many categories as you want to make the assignment. Then, click OK.
Outlook provides 20 ready-made categories, but at some point you'll want to create your own. You might want to group messages, for example, by a specific activity or project. Select one or more messages to assign to a category. Then, choose File, Categories (or right-click the items and choose Categories from the shortcut menu). Click in the Item(s) Belong To These Categories box and type the new category name (if you want to type more than one, separate the names with a comma). Click Add To List, then click OK.
You can also assign messages to a specific contact, which makes it easy to quickly list all messages associated with that person.
To associate a message with a particular contact, select the item(s). Right-click, then choose Options. Click the Contacts button, then select the person to associate the e-mail message with. Click Apply, then OK, then Close.
Note: To see all the e-mail messages and other activities associated with a contact, open his or her information and click the Activities tab.

So how can you actually make use of this feature and view all your related messages together? First, select View, Current View, Customize Current View. Click Group By in the View Summary dialog box. In the Group By dialog box, select Categories from the first drop-down box. (Notice that you can select further groupings by date, subject, and so on.) Then, click OK.
Your inbox (or whatever folder you're working in) should now be organised by category. To get it back to the way it was, right-click the floating category box and choose Don't Group By This Field.

WORD AS THE EDITOR.
Do you use Microsoft Word? If so, you can use it to write and edit your Outlook e-mail messages. By choosing Word as your mail editor, you can more easily use tables, formulas, and fields in your messages. You'll also have access to Word's entire arsenal of formatting features, such as AutoCorrect and Borders.
First, make sure that you have Word properly installed. Then, select Tools, Options and click the Mail format tab. Select Use Word To Edit E-mail Messages, then click OK.
If for some reason you'd rather not commit to using Word on a full-time basis, hire it as a temp! In other words, you can choose it as an editor for specific messages.
Rather than clicking the New Message button on the toolbar to start a new e-mail message, select Actions, New Mail Message Using, Word. The New Message window that appears will have Word's formatting capabilities.

HOT LINKS.
Did you know you can send a URL in an e-mail message that's clickable? That means that whoever you're sending it to can simply click on the URL in your message and go straight to the site--they don't have to cut and paste the URL into their browser window.
To get a URL into a message, you can either type it in or copy and paste it. If the URL begins with www, you can leave off the http:// part of it. Once the URL is included in your message, it will appear in colour and underlined. When you send the message, the recipient can just click the URL to go to the site.

Of course, sometimes URLs get so long and convoluted that it's confusing to read. Why not make it easier on your friends and colleagues you send mail to and embed the URL in the text of your e-mail? Type the text you want to link, Highlight it, then select Insert, Hyperlink. In the dialog box that pops up, first enter the type of link in the Type box (this will almost always be http). Type the address in the URL text box, then click OK. The hyperlink will be underlined and in colour. Once you send it, the e-mail recipients will be able to simply click the formatted text to jump to the site.

SEND TEXT-ONLY MESSAGES.
Open your Address Book (press Ctrl-Shift-B), right-click the person who can't receive HTML messages, and select Properties. On the Personal tab, select Send E-mail Using Plain Text Only, then click OK. From now on, even if you compose and send an elaborate HTML message, Outlook will send that person a text-only version. What's more, the HTML version will arrive as an attachment to the message, so the recipient can view it in his or her browser window.

FLAG DOWN A RESPONSE.
When you send a message that needs a quick reply, compose a new message. Next, select Actions, Flag For Follow Up. Choose a message from the Flag To list box or type your own message, set a date and time by which recipients must respond by clicking the down arrow and selecting a date from the calendar. Then, click OK.
When the message is sent, a red flag will appear next to it in the recipient's inbox. Once the recipient responds, the flag will turn white.

CHANGE INTERVAL IN CALENDAR.
The calendar is a great way to keep your appointments straight. The Time bar shows the hours of the day in half-hour increments, and if that works for you, great. But if you keep appointments in smaller increments, you'll want to customise the intervals on the Time bar. First, open the calendar. Right-click anywhere on the Time bar, which is the grey bar next to the Appointments pane. Select the time span you desire from the shortcut menu--the intervals can be as short as 5 minutes or as long as 60 minutes.

But now how do you get back to today's schedule? There are several quick ways to jump back to today's schedule. If you're in the Day/Week/Month view of the calendar, simply click the Go To Today button on the Standard toolbar. You can also right-click in the Appointments pane, then choose Go To Today from the shortcut menu.

CREATE MESSAGE GROUP.
Do you frequently send messages to the same group of people? For example, you might regularly send a joke to all your friends, or you might need to CC the same group of people--your manager, your manager's manager, and so on--on your work-related messages. In any event, don't waste your time adding each and every address to your messages. Set up a group' that includes them all, then use the group name to address the message.
Open your Address Book (press Ctrl-Shift-B) and click the New Group button. Type a Group Name, such as Friends, then click the Select Members button. One at a time, double-click each name you'd like to add to the group, and when you're finished, click OK. Back in the Properties dialog box for Group Name, you'll see the names you selected in the Members box. Double-check the list, then click OK.
Now let's suppose you want to send an e-mail to all members of the Friends group. Open a new message dialog box, and in the To field, type the first few letters of the group name. Move to another field, and Outlook completes the group's name. Complete the message, send it off, and rest assured--every member of the group will get a copy! Similarly, to CC all members of a group, simply add the group name to the CC field.

Do you have a really long address book, with lots of group names? Rather than scanning through your list of Address Book entries trying to locate the right one, opt to view a separate group list. Inside your Address Book, select View, Groups List. The window splits in two, with a list of groups in the left pane.

SORT ADDRESS BOOK BY FIRST OR LAST NAME.
Depending on your line of work, you may feel more comfortable identifying the entries in your Address Book by their first or last names. Either way, Outlook makes it a snap to sort your entries alphabetically. Inside the Address Book, make sure View, Sort By, Name is selected. Then select View, Sort By, First Name or Last Name, depending on your preference. Do you find yourself always scrolling down to the lower half of the entry list? Select Descending in the same menu to start with the Z's at the top.

SEND MESSAGE TO ENTIRE ADDRESS BOOK.
Here's a quick way to send a message to everyone in your Address Book: Press Ctrl-Shift-B, press Ctrl-A (for Select All), and click the Send Mail button. Now compose your message and send it off as usual. If you're a group user, you'll want to deselect groups before clicking Send Mail so people don't receive multiple copies of your message; and there may be other people you don't want to receive your message at all. Hold down Ctrl as you click each group or entry you don't want to include in your mailing, then click Send Mail and so on.

ATTACHMENTS.
The beauty of e-mail is that you can send entire files to another person. Outlook makes it easy to send documents, spreadsheets, and graphics and multimedia files by e-mail. You just have to send the file as an attachment, which means that the file isn't part of the e-mail message itself but travels with the e-mail and can be opened by the recipient.
To demonstrate, create a new message. Fill out the To and Subject field. Write whatever message you'd like to send, then click the Insert File button on the message window Standard toolbar. You can also choose Insert, File. In the Look In box, navigate to the folder where the desired file is saved--for example, My Documents. Select the file, then click Insert. Finally, click OK. The file will conveniently be displayed in the message as an icon.

If you want to keep a file that's been sent as an attachment, you certainly don't want to have to open that e-mail every time you need it. You need to save it to your hard drive.
Open the e-mail message that contains the attachment you want to save. Right-click the attachment icon, and then click Save As. Type a name for the file in the File Name box, and navigate to the folder where you want to save the file. Choose a file format in the Save As Type list, then click Save.

OUTLOOK + WINFAX.
Did you know that you can send and receive faxes from within Outlook 98? All you have to do is download the appropriate add-on (a scaled-down version of WinFax) from Microsoft's Web site.
Exit all programs, then open the Control Panel. Double-click Add/Remove Programs, and on the Install/Uninstall tab, select Microsoft Outlook 98. Click the Add/Remove button, then click Add New Components. In the Add New Components window, click Install From Web. Your browser window will now open to the Outlook 98 Components Web page. (Note: If you aren't online already, you'll need to establish an Internet connection during this process.) Click the check box next to Symantec WinFax Starter Edition, then click Next and select a download location. Finally, click the Install Now button and follow the steps necessary to complete the installation. You'll now find a Fax tab in the Tools, Options dialog box.

Ready to send your first fax? Select File, New, Fax Message. Complete the address fields and body of the message, just as you would for an e-mail, then click the Send button. You'll now see a dialog box asking you to verify the fax number. Select the appropriate number (or type one in), click Send, and off it goes!
Tip: Do you frequently get busy signals when sending a fax? You can set the number of retries and the delay between them on the Fax tab of the Tools, Options dialog box.

Did you just draft a long fax, but now you've decided you want to e-mail it instead? Not a problem, as long as you haven't clicked Send yet. Inside the open message window, select File, Send Using, [your mail account]. On the flip side, you can fax an item you originally intended as an e-mail message. Instead of clicking Send, select File, Send Using, Symantac WinFax Starter Edition.

ORDER IN THE INBOX.
Whether you're looking at the Inbox, a folder containing e-mail messages, your Contacts list, or a Task list, if it's got columns, you can sort its contents using the mouse. For example, let's say you want to sort the messages in your Inbox alphabetically by the sender. Just click the heading of the From column so that it contains an up-pointing arrow. It should now be sorted in ascending order. To sort in descending order, click the column heading again so it contains a down-pointing arrow.

BLUE/PURPLE ARROWS.
You might have noticed a column in your Inbox that contains what looks like envelopes next to each e-mail message. This is the icon field, and it yields important information about each message. If the envelope is yellow and closed, this means the message is new and you haven't read it yet. If it's white and opened, you've opened the message already. If an opened message icon contains a purple arrow, this is Outlook's way of letting you know you replied to that particular message. If you forwarded a message to another recipient, the envelope will contain a blue arrow.

EXPAND CALENDAR'S WORK WEEK VIEW.
If you typically view your Calendar using Work Week, you'll find that your appointment descriptions get cut off to fit inside those narrow columns. If you'd like to see more at a glance, consider enlarging those columns to fill the screen. Hold your mouse pointer over the dividing line between your schedule and the TaskPad, and when it changes to a double-pointed arrow, click and drag all the way over to the right edge of the screen. Let go, and your schedule fills the screen. Need your TaskPad back? Click and drag that divider right back where it started.

SEND AN E-MAIL TO A CONTACT.
Did you know you don't have to go to your Inbox to create and send an e-mail message? If you're already in the Contacts folder, why switch if you don't have to?
Begin by opening your Contacts folder. Click the entry for the person you want to send an e-mail message to, then choose Actions, New Message To Contact. Or use an even quicker way: Simply right-click the contacts name and choose New Message To Contact from the shortcut menu.

Working in reverse, you can change the space allocation of a Day, Work Week or Week View to preview more months in the Date Navigator (the two-month view in the top right area of the screen). Click and drag the dividing line mentioned above to the left, and when it jumps to a new position, you'll see another month added to the Date Navigator. Repeat these steps as many as two more times for a five-month view.

DISPLAY CALENDAR'S TASKPAD AND MONTH VIEW SIDE-BY-SIDE.
When you view your Calendar in a Month View, you have to do without the TaskPad and the Date Navigator, right? Wrong. By default, they don't appear when you select this view, but you can certainly add them to the screen. Hold your mouse pointer over the right edge of your Calendar window, and when it changes to a double-pointed arrow (with two lines in the middle), click and drag left until the line has made two jumps. Let go, and the TaskPad and Date Navigator appear on the screen! (Note: This arrangement sticks only until you switch to another view.)

ASSIGN A TASK TO A CONTACT.
If you use the task list, you know it's a handy way to keep track of what you're working on. But it can also be a neat way to keep an eye on what others are working on. If you have to assign a job to someone, there's no need to send an e-mail detailing the job--just create a new task and send it to whomever via e-mail!
Drag the appropriate contact listed in Contact folder to the Task folder on your Outlook bar. Or select or open the contact and choose Actions, New Task For Contact. Outlook fills in the To box with the contact's name and e-mail address. You fill in the subject and other information. Click Send, and the task request is on its way.

DISPLAY APPOINTMENT TIMES USING ANALOG CLOCKS.
When it comes to time, some people just relate better to an analogue clock. If you're one of those people, watch this neat Calendar trick: Switch to Calendar and select View, Current View, Customize Current View. Click the Other Settings button, and under Week or Month (or both), depending on the view you use, select Show Time As Clocks. Click OK, and then check out your appointments (in Week or Month View). Before each appointment, good old-fashioned clocks represent the start and end times.

MAKE CALENDAR'S MONTH VIEW START WITH SUNDAY.
When you switch to Calendar's Month View, the far left day on the screen is Monday? To start each week with Sunday, select View, Current View, Customize Current View, and click the Other Settings button. Under Month, deselect Compress Weekdays, then click OK twice.

ADD CALENDAR HOLIDAYS.
If you open up Calendar and start searching for Halloween (October 31st), you won't find it. Christmas isn't there, either, and neither is any other holiday. Why? Because people from all over the world use Outlook, and many of them celebrate a different set of holidays. In order to view your holidays in Calendar, you'll need to tell Outlook which ones you celebrate.
Inside the Calendar folder, select Tools, Options and click the Calendar Options button. Click the Add Holidays button, then click the check box next to each holiday set you'd like to include on your calendar. Click OK, wait a few seconds, then click OK twice more to close all open dialog boxes. Check your calendar for all the new additions.

OUTLOOK DOES MAPS.
On your way out the door for a business trip, but can't find that map you bought? Not to worry--you can still get there. Assuming you have an exact address, Outlook will map any route for you, with a little help from Microsoft Expedia Maps (providing you have Internet access.)
Inside the Contacts folder, double-click the contact you're going to visit and make sure his or her correct address appears in the address box. (If not, click the down arrow below the Address button and select Business, Home, or Other). At the top of the window, click the Display Map Of Address button (it looks like a yellow street sign with an arrow on it), or select Actions, Display Map Of Address. your browser window opens to Microsoft Expedia Maps, and in no time at all displays a map of that exact address.
But how do you actually get to point B from point A? Why, with directions, of course. Still on the Microsoft Expedia Maps page, click the Driving Directions link. Fill in the Starting Point and Destination, then click Go. (Note: You may be prompted to fine-tune these locations. If so, select the appropriate locations from the lists given, then click Go again.) Wait a few minutes and you've got your directions (including time estimates at given intervals).

SEND MESSAGES WITHOUT STOPPING IN THE OUTBOX.
When you click the Send button after composing a new message, by default it goes to the Outbox folder. There it sits until you perform a Send And Receive operation (or until Outlook does, based on the interval you've specified on the Mail Delivery tab of the Tools, Options dialog box).
Would you prefer to send your messages immediately, without putting them in the Outbox first? If you're confident that you don't need this safety net (in case you make a mistake and need to retrieve something from the Outbox), go for it.
Select Tools, Options and click the Mail Delivery tab. Under Mail Account Options, select Send Messages Immediately, then click OK. Now clicking Send in the New Message window initiates the Send And Receive operation immediately.

THE JOURNAL.
Remembering everything you've done during a day can be difficult, especially when it comes to things like which e-mail messages you sent, which phone calls you made, or what appointments you set up. Fortunately for you, Outlook comes with a Journal feature that automatically records all your tasks.
In addition to tracking Outlook items such as e-mail, you can keep track of every Office document you create or modify and also keep a record of any activity you want to remember. Even something that is not located on your computer, such as a phone conversation or a hand-written letter you mailed or received.

STORE SENT MESSAGES IN FOLDER OTHER THAN SENT ITEMS.
By default, Outlook 98 saves a copy of each message you've sent inside the Sent Items folder. (That is, assuming you haven't selected Tools, Options, clicked the E-mail Options button, and deselected Save Copies Of Messages In Sent Items Folder.) However, if you prefer to keep specific sent messages in a folder of their own you can do that too.
For example, suppose you'd like to keep personal messages separate from work-related ones. First create a new folder for storing them: Press Ctrl-Shift-E; type a name for the folder, such as Personal; select the parent folder; then click OK.
You must place each sent message in this new folder on an individual basis. After composing a message (but before you click Send), click the Options button. Under Delivery options, click the Browse button, select the desired destination folder, then click OK. Click Close and send the message as usual. Check inside your new folder, and there's the message.

If you prefer to automate this process, you can do so using the Rules Wizard, but only if you know something specific about the message you want to store in a certain folder. For example, you might opt to store all messages sent to a particular e-mail address in a given folder.
Select Tools, Rules Wizard and click the New button. Select Move Messages I Send To Someone. Then, one at a time, under Rule Description, click each of the highlighted items (People Or Distribution List and Specified), select the appropriate option, and click OK. Click Finish, then click OK. From now on, sending a message to the specified address will place a copy of it in the specified folder.
Tip: A copy of the message will also appear in the Sent Items folder unless you do the following: After composing the message but before you click Send, click the Options button, deselect Save Sent Message To, then click Close.

RESCHEDULE CALENDAR MEETING.
Need to reschedule a meeting you've already entered in your Calendar? Whether you need to adjust the date, time, or duration, changing it is a snap.
To change only the date of the meeting, click and drag the appointment from your schedule - Day, Work Week, or Week View - over to the Date Navigator (the calendar in the top-right area of the window) and drop it on the correct day.
To change the time of the meeting, switch to Day View, then click and drag the appointment up or down to the correct time. Let go, and it slides into place.
To change the duration of the meeting, still in Day View, hold your mouse pointer over the appointment's top or bottom edge. When the mouse pointer changes to a double-pointed arrow, click and drag up or down.

SET REMINDER FOR CALENDAR APPOINTMENT.
Are certain appointments in your Calendar more important than others? Attach reminders to those appointments you can't afford to miss, and Outlook will keep you on your toes (and punctual, too).
Double-click any existing appointment and select the check box next to Reminder. Click the down arrow next to 15 Minutes, select the amount of advanced warning you'd like, then click Save and Close. Now as long as Outlook is running, a reminder will appear onscreen the specified number of minutes (or hours) before your appointment. Not quite ready to go? Click Snooze, and you've got five minutes to wrap things up before the reminder appears again.

QUICKER ACCESS TO VIEWING OPTIONS (ADVANCED TOOLBAR).
Do you frequently use the commands in the View, Current View menu to sort or organise the contents of the current folder? With the Advanced toolbar onscreen (select View, Toolbars, Advanced), you can cut the View and Current View commands out of the equation. Just click the drop-down arrow next to the text box on the toolbar, and take your pick.

DISPLAY ONLY THE MESSAGE LIST AND PREVIEW PANE .
Is it possible to make Outlook 98 look and work like Outlook Express? Specifically, to see one frame showing a list of unread messages, and another showing the complete contents of the currently selected message.
You can accomplish this two-frame look with a couple of quick setting changes. First select View, Preview pane to display a preview of the currently selected message at the bottom of the window. (The message list will appear at the top.) Then, to get your folder list out of the way, deselect View, Folder List if you haven't already. (You can always display a drop-down folder list by clicking the name of the current folder below the New Mail Message icon.)

MEETINGS.
Switch to your Calendar and click Actions, Plan A Meeting, click Invite Others. Enter the name(s) of the person(s) or resource(s) you want at the meeting in the Type Name Or Select >From List box. Choose each name by clicking Required, Optional, or Resources (the Required and Optional attendees appear in the To box on the Appointment tab, and Resources, meaning conference rooms, appear in the Location box). Click OK. Choose a date, start time, and end time for the meeting, then click Make Meeting.
Enter a subject, choose a location and then click Send. The people you invited will receive a meeting request by e-mail.

Now that you're a pro at setting up meetings from your Calendar, you're ready to learn how to do it from outside the Calendar. If you're browsing through your contacts and want to set up a meeting, it would be a waste of time to have to switch back to the Calendar. Luckily, you don't have to. Simply select the contact, then click Actions, New Meeting Request To Contact. Enter a Subject and a Location, select the start and end times, and click Send.

WORKING WITH TASKS.
Outlook makes it easy to keep track of tasks. Let's get started by creating a task. Say you need to have a report done by noon tomorrow. Click File, New, Task. Or click Tasks in the Folder List, and click Click Here To Add A New Task. Type a name for your task in the Subject box. You can add any pertinent details in the window, set a start and end date, specify a priority, and track your progress. When you've finished choosing options, click Save And Close.

A task list is only helpful if you know what's on it. So for those of you who make endless to-do lists and then never look at them again Outlook 2000 offers a reminder feature for tasks.
Click Tools, Options and click the Other tab, then Advanced Options. Select Advanced Tasks. To have a reminder automatically turned on for new tasks, select the Set Reminders On Tasks With Due Dates check box. Now you'll automatically receive a reminder before your task is due. Remember, these reminder options only affect tasks that have a due date.

We all fall behind schedule once in a while, and we need a reminder to get us going again. Well, Outlook 2000 provides that reminder by turning a task red when it's overdue. But you don't have to go with red (if it seems a little harsh); you can choose almost any colour you wish for overdue task.
Select Tools, Options, then click the Preferences tab. Click Task Options. Choose a colour in the Overdue Tasks box, then click OK.

DOWNLOAD OFFICE ASSISTANTS.
In a previous tip, we showed you how to change the Office Assistant. Right-click the assistant's title bar, select Choose Assistant, click Next to view the two Office Logo options (one moves and one doesn't), then click OK.
Note: If you don't see the assistant, click the question-mark button on the right side of the Standard toolbar or press F1.
Want something even more exciting? Head on over to Microsoft's Office Update Web site for more options: http://officeupdate.microsoft.com/downloadCatalog/dldoutlook.htm Select one of the assistants, such as Kairu The Dolphin, then follow the download and installation instructions.
Tip: Look for the word Assistant in the Type column.

DOWNLOAD OUTLOOK TEMPLATES AND FORMS.
We pointed you to a list of Outlook 98 downloads at the Microsoft Office Update Web site:
http://officeupdate.microsoft.com/downloadCatalog/dldoutlook.htm Take a look at the Type column on the right side of the list, and you'll notice that it lists a good percentage of the downloads as Templates. A template, or form, is nothing more than a means of collecting information electronically. If you've ever sent an e-mail, you've used a form - the New Message template.
Scroll through the list of downloads and click the Download Now link below any form you might find useful--we'll use the Diet Record Form as an example. (Note: You'll need to complete the registration information, if you haven't already. Then go back and select the file you want to download again.) When the download is complete, double-click the resulting EXE file to install the form.

DOWNLOAD OUTLOOK FIXES & ADD ONS.
You can find this update on the Microsoft Office Update Web site at http://officeupdate.microsoft.com/downloadCatalog/dldoutlook.htm.

WORKING WITH FAXES
E-mail is a great tool, but it hasn't taken over completely. We still need to fax actual documents once in a while. With Outlook 2000, it's just as easy as sending an e-mail.
To create a fax message from Outlook 2000, select File, New, Fax Message. Type the recipient's name in the To box. Outlook automatically uses the fax number from your contact list, but if it's not there, you can enter it in directly. Type a fax number in the To box in the following format: fax@insert fax number If you need to dial a number to get an outside line, type it and the letter w before the fax number (e.g. fax@9w123-456-7890.) Type a description of the fax in the Subject box, then type your message in the message window. Click Send.

You can make sure that Outlook 2000 inserts your personal information as a cover page whenever you send a fax. Click Tools, Options, then select the Fax tab. Outlook will automatically insert your name, company name, phone number, and fax number. To change this personal information, click Tools, Options, Fax, and then click Edit and change the information.

RESTORING BACKED-UP FOLDERS .
To back up individual Outlook 98 folders you export the contents to a *.pst file: Select File, Import And Export. Then select Export To A File and click Next. Select Personal Folder File (.pst), click Next, select the folder you want to back up (and select Include Subfolders, if necessary), and click Next again. Choose an option for handling duplicates, click Browse and navigate your way to the destination file (most likely a floppy disk), and name the *.pst file you're about to create. Click OK, Finish, and OK.
Now let's suppose you need to restore this information. Switch to the destination folder - Inbox, for example - and select File, Import And Export. Select Import From Another Program Or File, click Next, select Personal Folder File (.pst), and click Next again. With the floppy disk containing the file you want to import in the drive, click Browse, select your floppy drive, select the *.pst file, and click Open. Click Next, select the folder to import from, select Import Items Into The Current Folder, and click Finish. Those Inbox messages are right back where they started.

SEND SOMEONE A VIRTUAL BUSINESS CARD, OR VCARD.
Can't figure out how to get your business card through your computer screen and into your e-mail message? The next time someone asks for your card, send a vCard attached to an Outlook message. The vCard format is (according to Microsoft, anyway) "the Internet standard for creating and sharing virtual business cards.
First, enter yourself as a new contact (unless you're already in there): Select File, New, Contact, fill in the resulting dialog box, and click Save And Close. From inside the Contacts folder, right-click yourself and select Forward As VCard. Presto--the new message dialog box opens with your business card, or vCard, attached as a *.vcf file. Finish the message as usual and send it off, card included.
So now the question is, what do you do if you receive a vCard? Assuming you want to keep the information around, you can add it to your Contacts folder in a simple drag-and-drop operation.
First, make sure you can see your folder list. (If you can't, select View, Folder List.) Then, with the message that contains the vCard open in a separate window (not the preview pane), click and drag the vCard icon over to the Contacts folder and let go. A Contacts dialog box appears. Complete any other desired fields for the contact, then click Save And Close.

COLOR-CODE YOUR MESSAGES.
Is there a certain someone whose messages are more important than those of others (for example, a contact at your big account)? Make sure you never overlook them by colouring those messages a nice shade of, say, lime green.
From inside your Inbox or Sent Items folder, click the toolbar's Organize button on the right side of the toolbar. On the left side of the organising area, click Using Colors, then complete the necessary information to the right. For example, you might create a rule that says, "Colour messages from Larry Lamb in Lime." Click Apply Color.
The next time you receive a message from (or send one to) the specified person, it will appear in that colour in the message list.
(Note: The change is retroactive - you just need to close and reopen Outlook before existing messages appear colour-coded.)

MARKING A MESSAGE PERSONAL.
It's generally not a good idea to send your personal information via e-mail, but we do it all the time. First, compose your new message. Select View, Options. Set Sensitivity to Personal, Private, or Confidential. Then, click Send.

DELETE ALL HOLIDAYS AT ONCE.
Pull down the View menu and select Current View, Events. Then click the Location column to sort the holidays by country. Click the first holiday you want to delete, then hold down Shift as you click the last. Right-click the selection and choose Delete, or click the toolbar's Delete button.

MAKE YOUR OWN HOLIDAY SET.
In our last tip, we showed you how to delete a set of holidays you've added to Outlook's Calendar: Select View, Current View, Events; click the Location column (to sort the holidays by country); select the holidays you want to delete; then click the Delete button.
Just for fun (and because you want to be so organised this year), want to create your own set of holidays-- for example, the birthdays of everyone you know? All it takes is some quick typing additions to the outlook.txt file.
Open any Windows folder window and navigate your way to the Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office folder. Inside, you'll find outlook.txt. Open this file using a text editor, such as Notepad. At the end of the file, type a name for the holiday set, such as Birthdays, in brackets. Then type a space and the number of holidays you plan to create. Press Enter, then type each holiday using the following format:
Description, yyyy/mm/dd

So for example, you might type the following:
[Birthdays]
My Birthday, 1999/12/15
My Birthday, 2000/12/15
Bill's Birthday, 1999/5/02
Bill's Birthday, 2000/5/02
Joe's Birthday, 1999/10/07
Joe's Birthday, 2000/10/07

(Note that you need to type an entry for each year.) When you're finished, close and save outlook.txt. Then apply the new holiday set to your Calendar as you would any other: Inside Outlook, select Tools, Options; click the Calendar Options button; click Add Holidays; select your holiday set; then click OK.

TURN A RULE ON OR OFF.
From the Inbox, click Tools, Rules Wizard. In the Apply Rules In The Following Order box, clear the check box next to the rule to turn it off. To turn it on again later, simply check the box next to the rule, then click OK.

SPACEBAR TO PAGE DOWN IN PREVIEW PANE.
Here's a trick you may wish to try while viewing multiple messages in the preview pane: To scroll down through the message a page at a time (this is the same as pressing the PgDn key in a word processing document), press the spacebar. From the end of a message, press spacebar, and you jump to the beginning of the next message.
Want to go backward through messages (still in the preview pane)? Don't reach for that mouse just yet. Press Shift-spacebar to jump to the beginning of the current or previous message.
Note: If this trick doesn't work for you, select Tools, Options, select the Other tab, click the Preview Pane button, and make sure "Single key reading using space bar" is selected.

MODIFY A RULE.
Let's say you have a rule that forwards to your assistant e-mails received while you're at lunch every day from noon to one. Now let's say you want to create a rule that forwards messages received on the weekends to your home e-mail address. Rather than creating a new rule, simply change the old one.
From the Inbox, click Tools, Rules Wizard. In the Apply Rules In The Following Order box, click the rule you want to change. Modify it to send messages to your home e-mail address (and any other changes you wish), then click OK.

CALENDAR'S PRINT STYLE DEPENDS ON VIEW.
Outlook defaults to printing a daily calendar only if you select the Print command while Calendar is in the Day view. If you switch to the Month view and THEN select the Print command, you'll find that the Monthly Style calendar is selected. (Of course, either way, it takes an extra click to get what you're after!)

CHANGE THE ORDER IN WHICH RULES ARE APPLIED TO MESSAGES.
It's your Inbox, and you should be able to arrange it any way you choose, right? So why not decide which mail rules will run first? Happily, it's easy to change the order in which rules are applied.
From the Inbox, click Tools, Rules Wizard. In the Apply Rules In The Following Order box, click the rule you want to move. Click Move Up to move it up in the list, or Move Down to send it lower. Then, click OK.

CREATE NEW SHORTCUT GROUP ON OUTLOOK BAR.
When you display the Outlook Bar on screen (select View, Outlook Bar), you see two groups in which to store your shortcuts--Outlook Shortcuts and My Shortcuts. Want to divide them up even further? Create a new group.
Right-click a blank area of the Outlook Bar and select Add New Group. At the bottom of the bar, you'll see the words New Group highlighted. Type a name for the group, then press Enter. You can now add shortcuts to (or delete them from) this group as you would in any other group.

ARCHIVE ITEMS MANUALLY.
Why keep old e-mail messages cluttering up your Inbox and folders? Why not simply archive them? That way, you can still get them if needed.
To archive items manually, click File, Archive. To archive all your folders, choose Archive All Folders According To Their AutoArchive Settings. Type a file name for the archived items to be transferred to, or click Browse to find an existing archive file. Enter a date in the Archive Items Older Than box. Any e-mail or item from before the specified date will be archived. Then, just click OK.

IMPORT ARCHIVED ITEMS.
The biggest advantage to archiving old e-mails rather than deleting them is that you can retrieve them if necessary. So how do you go about getting them back?
Click File, Import And Export. Choose Import From Another Program Or File, and click Next. On the next screen, choose Personal Folder File (.pst), then click Next. In File To Import, enter the name of your archive file. If it's not automatically displayed, click Browse to find it. Click Next.
Under Select The Folder To Import From, click on Archive Folders if you want everything. But if you know which folder's archives you want to restore, choose only that folder. If you want to send it back to that folder, choose Import Items Into The Same Folder In, and make sure that Personal Folders is selected in the box. Click Finish.

FIND MESSAGES WITH LARGE ATTACHMENTS.
You know all those elf-bowling games and holiday cards your friends sent you over the holidays? Well, all those huge attachments are hogging precious drive space. So why not find the messages with the biggest attachments and get rid of them?
Begin by clicking Tools, Advanced Find. Click Messages in the Look For list. Select the More Choices tab. In the Size (Kilobytes) list, click Greater Than. Type 1000 in the box next to the Size box. Then, click Find Now. Outlook will find the messages with huge attachments, and you can delete them from there.

PRINT A BLANK MONTHLY CALENDAR.
Say you're heading to a meeting to map out your plans for the next quarter. Why not go prepared with blank monthly calendars to take notes?
Select File, New, Folder. Type a name for the folder, maybe "Blank Calendar." In the Folder Contains drop-down list, choose Appointment Items. Click Calendar in the Select Where To Place The Folder list. Click OK.
Click the new folder, which is called Blank Calendar, in the folder list. Click File, Page Setup, and choose the Monthly Print Style. Then, click Print.

EXPORT INFORMATION TO OTHER OFFICE PROGRAMS.
It's always a good idea to save your important documents in a safe place, and that goes for Outlook items, too. Whether it's an e-mail folder, your Calendar, your Address Book, or Notes, you can export it to a file for safekeeping.
Click File, Import And Export. Choose Export To A File, then click Next. Choose which file type you want to create. If you're going to use your exported file in Microsoft Word, choose Comma Separated Values (Windows) or Tab Separated Values. There's also an option for Microsoft Excel. Click Next. Choose the folder or set of items you want to export, and click Next. Navigate to where you want the file saved, name it, then click OK. Click Finish.

SPECIFY THE FOLDER TO OPEN WHEN YOU START OUTLOOK.
When you fire up Outlook in the morning (or whenever), is your Calendar the first thing you look at? Why not set it up so that it opens automatically when you start Outlook? It will save you a few clicks.
Click Tools, Options. Select the Other tab, and click Advanced Options. Select the folder you want to appear upon start-up in the Startup In This Folder Box - in this case, it's Calendar. Click OK twice.

POSITIONING TOOLBARS ON THE SAME ROW.
Until you can afford a bigger monitor, you're locked in the never-ending battle for more screen space--a few pixels here, a few button-widths there. Well, you've probably noticed that all those toolbars at the top of the screen, while useful, are stacked on top of each other. What if there was a way to condense them?
Take heart - there is! You can position them right next to each other on the same row. Do you see the little vertical line at the far left side of each toolbar? Position your cursor over it - see how it changes into a four-headed arrow? It's called a move handle - click and hold it, and you can move the Advanced toolbar right next to the Standard toolbar. If there isn't enough room for all your buttons, the ones you've used most recently are displayed.

PRINT ATTACHMENTS WITH ITEMS.
When you select an e-mail and press Print, only the actual e-mail is printed. But what if you want to print the attachment that's been sent with the e-mail? You don't have to save the attachment and then open it to print it. You just have to tell Outlook what to do.
Select the e-mail that contains the attachments you want to print. Click File, Print. In the Print Style box, choose Memo Style. Select the Print Attached Files option, then click OK.

PRINT MY CALENDAR WITHOUT THE TASKS OR NOTES.
When you print out your Calendar, the default style is to print out the Tasks and Notes for that day, too. But if you just want your appointments, you will have to tell Outlook to forget about the extra stuff.
Click Calendar. Select File, Page Setup, then click the style you want to use (Daily, Weekly, etc.). Clear the TaskPad and Notes check boxes, then click OK.

ENTER A NEW CONTACT IN THE ADDRESS BOOK.
Just received a message from someone you'd like to add to your list of contacts? Don't waste time typing that person's e-mail address into your Address Book. As long as the address is part of the message header, Outlook will enter it for you.
With the message that contains the address in a separate window, right-click the address and select Add To Contacts. A new contact window appears with that address already entered. Complete the other fields as necessary then click the Save And Close button.

SET AN APPOINTMENT REMINDER.
We know, you're a busy person. It's not your fault if you forget to check your Calendar and forget about appointments, is it? Well, actually it is, but never mind that. If you set a reminder for each appointment on your Calendar, you won't have to make any excuses.
To set a reminder, open the appointment or appointment series (if it's recurring) by double-clicking it. Select the Reminder check box and enter how far in advance you want Outlook to remind you. You can choose any length of time, from 5 minutes to two days. Then, click Save And Close.

VIEW MORE THAN ONE FOLDER AT A TIME.
Did you know Outlook 98 offers an Open In New Window command, just like your favorite browser? That means you can view the contents of more than one folder--for example, Inbox and Calendar--on the screen at the same time.
Switch to the first folder you want to open; then, using the Outlook Bar or the folder list, right-click the second folder you want to open and select Open In New Window. (Note: You must have the folder list stuck to the screen in order to access its right-mouse commands.) Repeat these steps for each folder you want to open, then size or move the open windows as necessary to view their contents. (Tip: Right-click the Taskbar and select one of the window-arranging options.)
All done with those open items? Before you start closing each one individually, try this: Select File, Close All Items. All open windows disappear in one fell swoop.

SWITCH BETWEEN OFFLINE AND ONLINE.
You've probably set Outlook to check for new mail at regular intervals. But what if you're working in Outlook and don't have an Internet connection open? Outlook will keep looking for a way to get your mail and will keep returning error messages. To let Outlook know you want to work offline, click File, Work Offline. As long as you're working offline, Outlook will connect to your server only when you specify, and it will hang up immediately after sending and receiving messages.

DOUBLE-CLICK TO CREATE NEW MESSAGES.
You can double-click the blank area at the bottom of the message pane - the one that lists messages in a folder, to create a new message quickly. If you have a lot of messages in a folder, you would have to scroll to the bottom of the folder to find a blank area to double-click. Otherwise you end up selecting a message.
This technique works in other folders, too, not just message folders. For example, inside the Notes folder, double-click a blank area at the bottom of the Notes list to create a new note.

CONVERT PLAIN-TEXT MESSAGE TO HTML.
Suppose you've set your message format to Plain Text (most likely because your recipients prefer this format). You're halfway through a plain text message, and suddenly you remember this recipient can receive HTML messages without a problem. Do you start over, or apply all your favourite formatting options - font, size, colour, and so on--by hand, one at a time? Neither. Just switch to HTML, and you can apply all of your defaults to the in-progress message in one easy step
From inside the new message dialog box, select Format, Rich Text [HTML]. Select all of the existing body text then select Format, Style, Normal. The text now sports the default font, colour, and so on. Complete your message (any new text you type will display the same defaults) and send it off as usual.

USE THE SPACEBAR TO SCROLL DOWN IN THE PREVIEW PANE.
If you're using the Preview Pane to look at your messages, you can read all the messages in your Inbox without ever touching your mouse.
To scroll down through the message a page at a time, simply press the Spacebar (it's the same as pressing the Page Down key). If you've reached the end of a message, pressing the Spacebar will jump you to the next message in your Inbox.

VIEW MESSAGE PROPERTIES.
Want to view a mail message's properties? If you're used to Outlook Express, you might try to right-click a message and select Properties, but in Outlook 98 this command isn't available. To view a message's Properties, double-click the message to open it (in a separate window), then pull down the File menu and select Properties.

FLAG IMPORTANT MESSAGES FOR FOLLOW-UP.
If you're like most people, you get more email than you know what to do with. Don't let important messages slip through the cracks. Flag the important ones, so you don't forget to follow up.
First, select the messages you want to flag. Click Actions, Flag For Follow Up. In the Flag To box, select Follow Up (you can flag a message with several different messages, including Forward, No Response, and Call). Enter a date in the Due By box. Then, click OK.

SEND REPLIES TO SOMEONE ELSE.
Say you're sending out a group message but don't want to deal with the replies (for example, an office survey your assistant will tally). Outlook 98 can direct responses to the recipient of your choice.
Compose the message as usual, but before sending it off, click the Options button (or select View, Options). Under Delivery options, select Have Replies Sent To. Click the Select Names button, select a recipient, and click the Reply To button. (Repeat these steps to select multiple recipients if desired.) Click OK, then click Close and send the message off as usual.

PROCESS RECEIPTS ON ARRIVAL.
If someone sends a request for a receipt along with a message they send to you, have the manners to send that receipt promptly. Or just have Outlook take care of it for you.
From the Outlook desktop, select Tools, Options and click the Preferences tab. Click the Email Options button, click Tracking Options, and select the Process Receipts On Arrival option. From now on, receipts will be sent automatically.

SEND A TASK REQUES.
To create a task request, press Ctrl-Shift-U (or select File, New, Task Request). Type the recipient's address on the To line; if he or she is already in your address book, click the To button, double-click the recipient, and click OK. Now just complete the remaining fields: Type a Subject, select a Due Date and Start Date, and so on. Type any instructions in the big white box at the bottom. When you're finished creating the task, click the Send button and off it goes.

RECEIVING A TASK REQUEST.
If you happen to be on the receiving end of a task, you have two choices: Accept it or don't. Open the task message and click either Accept or Decline. Click Send The Response Now, then click Send. If you have something to say about this task, click Edit The Response Before Sending, type your message, and click Send.

NOTIFY YOU WHEN NEW MESSAGES ARRIVE.
It's easy to get so engrossed in your work that you forget to check your email, so have Outlook send you a message every time you get new email. Begin by clicking Tools, Options. Select the Preferences tab, then click Email Options. Select the option Display A Notification Message When New Mail Arrives. Then, click OK twice. Now you'll see a little pop-up window every time you get new mail.

FLAG MESSAGE FOR FOLLOW-UP.
Wish you could highlight certain messages to remind yourself to follow up on them? Outlook offers something even better - flags.
Right-click any message that requires follow-up action and select Flag For Follow Up. (You could also select the message, then choose Actions, Flag For Follow Up.) Select a follow-up action, such as Reply or Call, in the drop-down list next to Flag To, then click OK. Back in the message list, you'll see a red flag next to that message.

MAKE AN APPOINTMENT RECURRING.
If you have a regular appointment that always happens on Mondays at 2:00, don't bother entering a new appointment every week. If you've entered it once, simply make it a recurring appointment.
Open the appointment. Click Actions, Recurrence (or click the Recurrence button). Select Weekly Occurrence then select the options you want. By default, Outlook will choose the same day and time as the original appointment. Click OK, then click Save And Close.

TURN NOTE INTO DOCUMENT.
Just as you might deem a note important enough to send to someone in an e-mail, you might decide a note should become its very own document (for example, if the notes you were taking for a report suddenly looked pretty close to a final version).
Inside the Notes folder, select the note you want to save as a file and choose File, Save As. Navigate your way to the desired location, type a name for the file, choose a file type (for example, Rich Text Format saves it as a Word file), then click Save. You can open and edit that note, now a document, inside your word processor.

CHANGE MEETING INFORMATION AFTER SENDING THE INVITATION.
Have you ever sent out an invitation to a meeting using Outlook, and then the details changed. Rather than sending out an email to everyone you invited, simply change the meeting information and re-send the invitation.
First, open the meeting. Change the information you need to change, then click Send. If you're using Outlook on a Microsoft Exchange Server, the meeting will be automatically updated on your invitees' calendars.

CHANGE COLOR OF OVERDUE MESSAGES.
Outlook displays that overdue message in red. You can also display overdue messages in any colour (or font or point size) you choose.
Select View, Current View, Customize Current View. In the resulting dialog box, click the Automatic Formatting button. Select Overdue E-mail, then click the Font button, and use the resulting dialog box to change the appearance of overdue message text. Click OK twice.

CREATE A SHORTCUT ON THE OUTLOOK BAR.
The Outlook Bar isn't just for shortcuts to Outlook features like the Inbox and Calendar. You can also create a shortcut to any file folder on your hard drive. Say you keep all your marketing reports in a folder called "Marketing." If you want easy access to those documents when you're sending a status report to your boss, why not put a shortcut to that folder on the Outlook Bar?
On the Outlook Bar, click the group to which you want to add the shortcut. Right-click anywhere in the grey background of the group and select Outlook Bar Shortcut from the context menu. Click File System in the Look In box. Navigate to your Marketing folder and select it. Click OK. Now that folder shows up in the Outlook Bar. When you click on it, its contents are displayed in the Folder List window.

You can also add a shortcut to a Web page, so you won't have to switch between Outlook and your browser.
Go to the Web page you want to create a shortcut to. (You must have the Web Toolbar displayed to do this. If you don't see it, click View, Toolbars, Web.) Click File, New, then select Outlook Bar Shortcut To Web Page.

As you know, when you install Outlook 2000, the Outlook Bar has three groups: Outlook Shortcuts, My Shortcuts, and Other Shortcuts. But there's no rule that says you're limited to three. You may want to add more groups--perhaps to keep your business and personal shortcuts separate.
To add a new group to the Outlook Bar, right-click the background and select Add New Group from the context menu. Type a name for the group and press Enter. Now your new group is ready for you to add shortcuts to it!

USE CTRL-ENTER TO SEND MESSAGES.
Tired of reaching for the mouse to click the Send button every time you're ready to send a message? Then try this keyboard equivalent: Press Ctrl-Enter.
The same shortcut works for posting sticky notes to a folder: Assuming you've already created the note, press Ctrl-Shift-S, then type a Subject and body, press Ctrl-Enter instead of clicking the Post button.

VIEWING MESSAGES BY CATEGORY.
You can organise your folders and Inbox by assigning messages to particular categories. So how can you make use of this feature and view all your related messages together?
Select View, Current View, Customize Current View. Click Group By in the View Summary dialog box. In the Group By dialog box, select Categories from the first drop-down box. (Notice that you can select further groupings by date, subject, and so on.) Click OK.

Outlook provides 20 ready-made categories, but at some point you'll want to create your own. For example, you might want to group messages by a specific activity or project.
Begin by selecting one or more messages to assign to a category. Choose File, Categories (or right-click the items and choose Categories from the context menu). Click in the Item(s) Belong To These Categories box and type the new category name (if you want to type more than one, separate the names with a comma). Click Add To List, then click OK.
Your Inbox (or whatever folder you're working in) should now be organised by category. To get it back to its previous format, right-click the floating category box and choose Don't Group By This Field.

VIEW TASKS YOU HAVE ASSIGNED TO OTHERS.
If you're working on a large project (or lots of little ones), assigning tasks to others is the most efficient way to get things done. But it can be difficult to remember which tasks you assigned to which people, unless you know the trick to do it with in Outlook 2000.
To view tasks in your Task List by assignment, click Tasks in the Folder List. Select View, Current View, and then click Assignment. All tasks will now be organized according to the assignments.

SEND A STATUS REPORT FOR A TASK.
What's the best way to let the boss know you're on top of things? Send a status report letting the higher-ups know what kind of progress you're making.
Open the task by double-clicking it. Choose Actions, Send Status Report. Enter recipient names in the To box. The person who assigned you the task is automatically added to the list. Finally, click Send.
Note: This feature will work only if you're using Outlook on an Exchange Server.

VIEW GROUPS LIST.
Do you have a really long address book with lots of group names? Rather than scanning through your list of Address Book entries trying to locate the right one, opt to view a separate group list. Inside your Address Book, select View, Groups List. The window splits in two, with a list of groups in the left pane.

SEND MESSAGE TO ENTIRE ADDRESS BOOK.
Here's a quick way to send a message to everyone in your Address Book: press Ctrl-Shift-B, press Ctrl-A (for Select All), and click the Send Mail button. Now compose your message and send it off as usual.
If you're a group user, you'll want to deselect the groups before clicking Send Mail so people don't receive multiple copies of your message. Hold down Ctrl as you click each group (or entry, for that matter) you don't want to include in your mailing), then click Send Mail and so on.

DISPLAY APPOINTMENT TIMES USING ANALOG CLOCKS.
Switch to Calendar and select View, Current View, Customize Current View. Click the Other Settings button, and under Week or Month (or both), depending on the view you use, select Show Time As Clocks. Click OK, then check out your appointments (in Week or Month view). Before each entry, you'll see the start and end times represented by good old-fashioned clocks.

DISPLAY CALENDAR TASKPAD AND MONTH VIEW SIDE-BY-SIDE.
When you view your Calendar in a Month view, you have to do without the TaskPad and the Date Navigator, right? Wrong. By default, they don't appear when you select this view, but you can certainly add them to the screen.
Hold your mouse pointer over the right edge of your Calendar window, and when it changes to a double-pointed arrow (with two lines in the middle), click and drag left until the line has made two jumps. Let go, and the TaskPad and Date Navigator appear on your screen.
Note: This arrangement sticks only until you switch to another view.

TURN AUTOMATIC NAME CHECKING ON OR OFF.
Outlook automatically checks names in the To, Cc, and Bcc boxes against your address book and will let you know if there are multiple matches. If you'd rather not have this feature activated, you can turn it off.
Click Tools, Options. On the Preferences tab, click E-Mail Options, then click Advanced E-Mail Options. Then, deselect the Automatic Name Checking option.

AUTOMATICALLY ACCEPT MEETING REQUESTS AND PROCESS CANCELLATIONS.
If you're working on an Exchange Server, Outlook can be very useful in scheduling group meetings. But it can be tiresome to have to respond to each meeting request, especially if you end up accepting each one. Save yourself a few minutes and have Outlook automatically accept meeting requests. It will then put them right on your Calendar.
Click Tools, Options, and select the Preferences tab. Click Calendar Options, and then click Resource Scheduling. Select the option Automatically Accept Meeting Requests And Process Cancellations. Then, click OK three times.

REMOVING A MESSAGE BACKGROUND.
It's nice to be able to decorate your emails with fancy text and backgrounds, but if you go overboard, it can make reading the message difficult!
If you receive a message that's hard to read because of the bright pink background and red letters, just get rid of the special effects. Change the message to plain text by clicking anywhere in the message and pressing Ctrl-Shift-O.

MAKE YOUR OWN FAX MACHINE.
Did you know you can send and receive faxes in Outlook 98? All you have to do is download the appropriate add-on (a scaled-down version of WinFax) from Microsoft's Web site.
Exit all programs, then open the Control Panel. Double-click Add/Remove Programs, and on the Install/Uninstall tab, select Microsoft Outlook 98.