Microsoft Outlook Tips #7



*1. THE TEXT AND NOTHING BUT THE TEXT

In our last tip, we showed you how to convert an in-progress, 
plain-text message to HTML (complete with all your formatting 
defaults): In the New Message dialog box, select Format, Rich 
Text [HTML]; then select any existing body text and select 
Format, Style, Normal.  

Do you want to convert a half-completed Fuschsia, Desdemona, 
HTML message to plain text? You can make the switch even faster 
than converting from plain text to HTML. Simply select Format, 
Plain Text, then click Yes to confirm. The entire message goes 
back to basics.


*2. DON'T WRITE BACK

Are you sending out a message to lots of recipients, but you 
don't want to deal with the replies (for example, you might be 
sending out an office survey that your assistant will tally)? 
Outlook 98 can help 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 the 
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. 

When a recipient clicks the Reply button, the return message's 
To field lists the address to which you want replies sent. As 
long as he or she doesn't redirect the message to you, you'll 
never lay eyes on that response. You may want to include a note 
in the message mentioning that the recipient of the reply will 
not be you.


*3. READY...SET...SEND THAT MESSAGE!

Did you just complete a message you don't actually want to send 
until noon three days from now? One option would be to save the 
message in the Draft folder, but then you might forget to send 
it at the appropriate time. Instead, ask Outlook 98 to hold 
that message in your Outbox until the date and time you 
specify. That way you'll be sure it gets mailed. 

Compose your new message as usual, but before sending it off 
click the Options button (or select View, Options). Select "Do 
not deliver before," then click the down arrow and select a 
date. Type over the listed time with the time of your choice, 
if necessary, then click Close. Outlook 98 sends the message as 
soon as the specified date and time arrive, and not a 
minute sooner.  

Outlook needs to be up and running to send the message. Also, 
if you don't have Outlook set to send and receive mail 
automatically, it sends the message the first time you click 
Send And Receive AFTER the specified time.


*4. THIS IS A STICKUP

Do you keep the folder list hidden, to allow for maximum 
viewing of your message list and message preview pane? If you 
ever change your mind and want the folder list back on the 
desktop, there's no need to go anywhere near that View menu. 
Just click the name of the folder currently open to display the 
drop-down folder list--it'll have a small down arrow next to 
it. When the folder list opens, click the pushpin in its 
upper-left corner to make it stick. When you're done, click the 
"X" in the folder list's upper-right corner to send it back 
into hiding.


*5. START UP CONNECTED

Reader F. Shooshani writes:

"How do I make Outlook 98 automatically connect to the Internet 
(using my dial-up connection) when I start the program? Right 
now, it doesn't connect until I click Send and Receive." 

Launch Outlook 98 and select Tools, Options. Click the Mail 
Delivery tab, and under Dial-Up Options, select "Automatically 
dial when checking for new messages." Click OK, and from now 
on, Outlook will establish a connection whenever you start the 
program--or, assuming you've disconnected, whenever Outlook 
checks for new messages as defined on the Mail Delivery tab. 

Note: This tip does not apply if you've deselected "Check for 
new messages every XX minutes."


*6. WHAT, NO PROPERTIES?

Reader D. Gao asks:

"Is there any way I can view a mail message's properties, just 
as in Outlook Express? (In Outlook Express, you can right-click 
a message and select Properties.)" 

While the Properties command is not available when you 
right-click a message in Outlook 98, it IS available from an 
open message window. 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.


*7. SOUND-CODE YOUR MESSAGES--PART 1 OF 2

Reader D. Clifton asked the following question regarding 
Outlook Express:  

"I have three mail accounts. Is there any way to play three 
different sounds (one for each account) when mail comes in?" 

Although this fine-tuning isn't possible in Outlook Express, 
you can do it in Outlook 98. You can set the Rules Wizard to 
check incoming messages, and based on the receiving address, 
Outlook will play the sound of your choice. 

First, though, you have to do some preparation. Outlook usually 
plays Windows' default sound when you receive new messages. You 
must turn off the setting that tells Outlook to play this sound. 

Select Tools, Options, and on the Preferences tab, click E-mail 
Options. Click Advanced E-mail Options, deselect Play A Sound, 
then click OK three times to exit all dialog boxes.  

You're good to go. In our next tip, we'll show you how to 
assign specific sounds to specific e-mail accounts.


*8. SOUND-CODE YOUR MESSAGES--PART 2 OF 2

In our last tip, reader D. Clifton asked:

"I have three mail accounts. Is there any way to play three 
different sounds (one for each account) when mail is received?" 

The answer is yes. You can set the Rules Wizard to check 
incoming messages, and based on the receiving address, Outlook 
will play the sound of your choice. We also pointed out that in 
order for this technique to work, you must first turn off the 
option that instructs Outlook to play a Windows sound when you 
receive new mail: Select Tools, Options, and on the Preferences 
tab, click E-mail Options. Click Advanced E-mail Options, 
deselect Play A Sound, then click OK three times to exit all 
dialog boxes.  

To assign particular sounds to different e-mail accounts, 
select Tool, Rules Wizard. Click the New button, then select 
"Check messages when they arrive" and click Next. Click the 
check box next to "With specific words in the recipient's 
address." Under Rule Description, click the Specific Words 
link. In the Search Text dialog box, type a unique portion of 
your address (for one of your three accounts), click OK, then 
click Next.  

Under "What do you want to do with the message?" select "lay A 
Sound. Now click the link labeled A Sound in the Rule 
Description field. In the Select A Sound To Play dialog box, 
navigate your way to a sound and select it. Click the Open 
button, then click Next. Click Next one more time (unless you 
want to set any exceptions), type a name for the rule, 
and click Finish. 

Back in the Rules Wizard dialog box, click New and repeat the 
above steps for each of your other two accounts. When you 
finish, click OK to close the Rules Wizard.  

-From now on, your incoming messages will be sound-coded! 
Outlook will play one of three different sounds, depending on 
the account receiving the message.


*9. BACKING UP OUTLOOK 98 FOLDERS--PART 1 OF 3

In April, we ran a tip explaining how to back up your Outlook 
98 mail folders. However, by mistake, we discussed the 
technique for backing up Outlook EXPRESS folders. We apologize 
for the oversight. Over the next two tips, we'll discuss the 
correct procedures for backing up your Outlook 98 folders. 

To back up all your Outlook 98 folders in one fell swoop 
(assuming you have a medium that can handle a very large 
file--for example, a Zip drive), copy your Personal Folders or 
PST file--typically in 
C:\Windows\Application Data\Outlook\outlook.pst--to your 
location of choice. 

In the event of a disaster, you can restore all of this 
information to Outlook 98 by copying the backed-up outlook.pst 
file to its original location. 

In our next tip, we'll show you how to back up (and restore) a 
single folder.  

Note: This tip assumes your Outlook 98 information is stored on 
your hard drive in Personal Folders, not stored in a mailbox on 
a Microsoft Exchange Server.


*10. BACKING UP OUTLOOK 98 FOLDERS--PART 2 OF 3

In our last tip, we showed you how to back up all the 
information in your Outlook 98 folders: Copy your Personal 
Folders file--typically 
C:\Windows\Application Data\Outlook\outlook.pst--to your 
location of choice. In the event of a disaster, you can restore 
all of this information to Outlook 98 by copying the backed-up 
outlook.pst file to its original location. 

If you don't have a means of backing up such a large file (ours 
is over 18MB), you can back up your important folders such as 
Inbox individually and store them on floppy disks.  

Inside Outlook 98, select File, Import And Export. Select 
Export To A File, then click Next. Select Personal Folder File 
(.pst) and click Next again. Select the folder you want to back 
up (select Include Subfolders, If Necessary), then click Next 
again. Choose an option for handling duplicates (we left 
Replace Duplicates With Items Imported selected), and with a 
floppy disk in your floppy drive click the Browse button. 
Select your floppy drive, then type a name for the *.pst file 
you're about to create. (For example, you might store your 
Inbox contents as inbox.pst on a floppy disk.) Click OK, click 
Finish, then click OK.  

In the next tip, we'll show you how to restore your files to 
Outlook 98. 

Note: This tip assumes your Outlook 98 information is stored on 
your hard drive in Personal Folders, not in a mailbox on a 
Microsoft Exchange Server.
