Microsoft Outlook Tips & Tricks

Outlook Organize Outlook Messages By Sender

To quickly and easily organize the messages in your Microsoft Outlook Inbox according to who sent them, on the View menu, point to Current View, and then click By Sender. Now, your messages display in a list grouped by sender.

Delay Delivery of an Outlook Message

If you are responsible for sending out information on a regular schedule, here is a way to do that even if you have to be out of the office.

To delay delivery of a message:
   1. In Outlook, create a new message.
   2. On the File menu, click Properties.
   3. On the General tab, click Send Options.
   4. Click the Microsoft Exchange Server tab.
   5. Under Send This Item, select In, type a number, and select a time interval from the drop-down
         menu. For example, if you want the message sent in two days, type 2 and select days from the list.
   6. Click OK twice. 7. Click Send to place the message in your Outbox for processing.

Editor's Note: This procedure only applies if you've installed Outlook with the Corporate Workgroup/Other option. To determine your installation type, on the Help menu, click About Microsoft Outlook. You will see "Corporate" in the About Microsoft Outlook dialog box if you have the Corporate Workgroup installation

Change Your Calendar Display in Outlook

You can use the mouse to customize the number of days displayed in the Day/Week/Month view of the Outlook Calendar. Instead of displaying the Calendar in one of the standard views (Day, Work Week, Week, or Month), you can use the mouse to display two days at a time, or 20.

To change your Calendar display:
   1. Click the Calendar icon.
   2. If you are not already in Day/Week/Month view, on the View menu, point to Current View, and
           then click Day/Week/Month. In Date Navigator (the small calendar next to the appointment area),
           drag to select the dates you want to display.

Recover Deleted Items in Outlook

Have you ever deleted mail from your Deleted Items folder and then wanted to retrieve it?

In most cases, you can with Microsoft Outlook 2000.

To recover deleted items:
  1. In the Folder list, click Deleted Items.
  2. On the Tools menu, click Recover Deleted Items.
  3. Click the item you want to recover.
         To select multiple items, click the first item, and then hold down CTRL and click additional items.
  4. Click the Recover Selected Items button.

The items will be returned to your Deleted Items folder, and then you can move them to other
folders. However, some items may no longer be recoverable if your system administrator has limited the amount of time that deleted items can be stored on the server. Also, if you have Microsoft Exchange Server version 5.5 or later, your administrator will need to enable this feature.

Editor's Note: This procedure only works if you've installed Outlook with the Corporate Workgroup/Other option. To determine your installation type, on the Help menu, click About Microsoft Outlook. You will see "Corporate" in the About Microsoft Outlook dialog box if you have the Corporate Workgroup installation.

Outlook Create an Outlook Message Signature Using FrontPage

You can spruce up your Outlook 2000 message signature using Microsoft FrontPage 2000 (or your default HTML editor).

To create a message signature using HTML:
   1. In Outlook, on the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Mail Format tab.
   2. Under Message format, select HTML from the Send in this message format drop-down menu. Then
           click the Signature Picker button.
   3. In the Signature Picker dialog box, click New.
   4. In the Enter a name for your new signature box, enter a name.
   5. Under Choose how to create your signature, select Start with a blank signature, and then click Next.
   6. Click the Advanced Edit button. Outlook will then launch FrontPage 2000 (or your default HTML
           editor), and you can take full advantage of the features in the editor to create your signature.
          You can embed graphics, add hyperlinks, or even animate your signature using DHTML.
   7. When you have finished creating your signature, save your changes and exit FrontPage. Click OK twice.

Outlook E-Mail Stationary

If you use HTML as your new message format in Outlook 2000, you can use stationery to change the background and fonts used in the message.

First, make sure you are using HTML as your default message format.

To do this:
   1. On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Mail Format tab.
   2. In the Send in this message format list, select HTML, and click OK.

Now, whenever you want to use stationery to give your e-mail a custom look:
    1. Click Inbox.
    2. On the Actions menu, point to New Mail Message Using, and then click More Stationery.
    3. In the Select a Stationery box, select the one you want to use and click OK.

Map the Address of an Outlook Contact

This is a very cool, little-known Outlook trick. Outlook can automatically map the address of one of your Outlook contacts by looking it up on the Expedia.com Maps Web site.

  To see a map of a contact's address:
    1. Make sure you are connected to the Internet.
    2. Click Contacts on the Outlook Shortcuts bar.
    3. Double-click the contact whose address you want to locate.
    4. Under the address button, click the down arrow, and then click the type of address you want to find
           on a map-Business, Home, or Other.
    5. On the Actions menu, click Display Map of Address.
           Your Web browser will open up and display a map of the contact's address using the Expedia.com
           Maps Web site.

Drag Addresses Between To, Cc, and Bcc Fields in Outlook

When composing or replying to an e-mail message in Microsoft Outlook, you can easily rearrange the names of the people receiving the message by dragging their e-mail addresses between the To, Cc, and Bcc address fields. Just select the name or names you want to move and drag them into the destination field. Editor's Note: If you have errant semicolons in the To, Cc, or Bcc fields, you can remove all them by pressing ALT+K.

Create a Meeting Request with a Contact in Outlook

To quickly schedule a meeting with an Outlook contact or members of a distribution list:
    1. Open your Contacts folder, and drag a contact or distribution list onto the Calendar icon on your
             Outlook Shortcuts bar. This will automatically create a new meeting request addressed to the
             person or group.
    2. Enter start and end times for your meeting, and select any other options you want. Then click Send.

Editor's Note: You can also drag contacts into your Inbox to create new messages addressed to them or into your Tasks folder to assign them a task.

Forward Outlook Contacts to Others

Here's a quick way to send one of your colleagues or friends a contact from your Contacts folder: 1. In your Contacts folder, right-click the contact you want to send, and then choose Forward from the shortcut menu. Outlook will automatically create a new message with that contact included as an attachment. 2. Enter the recipient's address. Then fill in any other information you want, and click Send. When your e-mail message arrives, the recipient simply drags the attached contact to the Contacts icon on the Outlook Shortcuts bar and the contact will be added to that person's Contacts list.

Delete Unwanted E-mail or Automatically Move It To Another Folder

The Microsoft Outlook Rules Wizard will let you automatically deal with e-mail when it comes in.
You can check messages when they arrive, check messages after sending, flag messages from someone, notify yourself when you get messages from someone, assign categories based on content, and delete or move messages to other folders automatically based on subject, sender or content.

To use the Rules Wizard to automatically delete any e-mail with the subject "ILOVEYOU":
   1. Click Inbox. Then, on the Tools menu, click Rules Wizard.
   2. Click New.
   3. Click check messages when they arrive, and then click Next.
   4. Select the check box next to with specific word in the subject.
   5. In the text area below, click the blue, underlined phrase specific words.
   6. Here you can specify which words Outlook should look out for.
          For example, in the Add New text box, enter ILOVEYOU and then click Add.
          Repeat for any additional terms you want to check for.
          When you're done, click OK and then click Next.
   7. Select delete it.
   8. Click Finish.

To apply the rule to e-mail already in your Inbox, click Run Now. In the Select rules to run list, select the check box next to the rule you just created, and click Run Now. This will delete all e-mail in your inbox with the subject "ILOVEYOU." When the process is complete, click OK.

Now, anytime you get e-mail with the subject "ILOVEYOU," Outlook will automatically move it to your Deleted Items folder. The e-mail will still be available in your Deleted Items until you empty the folder.

Editor's Note: This tip will not protect you from all types of e-mail-borne viruses. To guard against viral attacks that travel in e-mail attachments, Microsoft strongly recommends that you download the Outlook E-mail Security Update from the Office Update site. Users should review the documentation before installing.

To recall a message after you've sent it

If you use Microsoft Exchange Server as your e-mail server, and the recipient uses Outlook, you can recall the message before the person has a chance to read it.

  1. Open your Sent Items folder.
  2. Double-click the message you want recalled.
  3. On the Actions menu, click Recall This Message.
  4. To recall the message, click Delete unread copies of this message.
       To replace the message with another one, click Delete unread copies and replace with a new
        message, click OK, and then type a new message.
  5. To be notified about the success of the recall or replacement for each recipient, select the Tell me if
        recall succeeds or fails for each recipient check box.
  6. Click OK.

Use Outlook to Track Long-Distance Calls

At my job, I must keep track of my long-distance telephone calls and then bill clients for the cost of those calls. I have found the Phone Call feature in my Microsoft Outlook Journal to be the best way to gather this information.

To track your calls in the Journal:
  1. Go the Contacts folder and double-click the contact you are going to call.
  2. On the Actions menu, click New Journal Entry for Contact.
  3. When you begin the call, click the Start Timer button. While you're talking, you can record notes from
         your call in the space provided in the Journal Entry.
  4. When you're done, click Pause Timer and save your entry.

To view a list of all the phone calls in your journal:
  1. Go to your Journal folder.
  2. From the View menu, choose Current View, and then click Phone Calls.

Editor's Note: In Outlook 2000, you can also use the new Contact Activity Tracking feature to get a list of all the phone calls, e-mails, or meetings related to a contact.

To view all the Journal items related to a contact:
  1. Open the contact you want to view.
  2. Click the Activities tab. 3. In the Show list, click Journal.

Outlook 2000 Add Contacts Quickly in Outlook 2000

If you receive an e-mail message from a person whom you want to add to your Outlook contact list, here's a quick way to do it:

  1. Open the e-mail message that contains the name you want to add to your contact list.
  2. In the From box, right-click the name you want to make into a contact, and then click Add to
         Contacts on the Shortcut menu.

This creates a new contact with that person's name and e-mail address already filled in. You can also fill in any additional information you have about that person, such as a phone or fax number, and then save it in your Contacts folder for easy access.

Display two time zones in your Outlook calendar

Do you work with people in another time zone and want to keep track of what time it is there? Add a second time zone to your Outlook calendar. To do this, right-click above the time bar that displays the hours in your calendar and choose Change Time Zone. (Or choose Tools/Options from the menu bar, click the Calendar Options button, and click on the Time Zone button.) In the Time Zone dialog box, select the Show An Additional Time Zone check box and select a time zone from the Time Zone dropdown list. In the Label text box, type the name of the area to remind you which time zone you're looking at. Then click OK until you're back to the calendar. Now you'll see the second time zone next to the current time zone.