Search OutlookPower's 8,351 Outlook and all-things-email article archive 
Home
EasyPrint
News details Click here for the RSS feed's XML code. This is not a browser URL.
Articles-only Click here for the RSS feed's XML code. This is not a browser URL.
Twitter Feed Click here for the Twitter feed.
FIRST LOOK
Outlook 2007: What can you expect?
By Bill Mann

On May 23, Bill Gates announced the public availability of the 2007 Microsoft Office System beta 2. Naturally, we immediately dived in and started working with Office Outlook 2007. You can download the beta and check it out yourself if you like, or if you just want an idea of what the next version of our favorite application is like, you can read on.

WARNING: Office Outlook 2007 is still in beta. This means that things can and will change before the final product ships. This article describes the product as it stands today, but there's no guarantee that everything will be the same in the commercially released product.

User interface changes
You've probably heard about all the user interface changes in the new version of Office. Outlook 2007 features many of those common changes, along some of its own. The To-Do Bar now appears in the Mail view shown in Figure A, as well as in most other views. The To-Do Bar combines your Outlook Calendar, upcoming appointments, tasks, and flagged mail in one place, and helps you keep on track with the things you need to get done each day.

FIGURE A


The new Office Outlook 2007 Mail view with the new To-Do Bar. Roll over picture for a larger image.

Creating new content in Outlook (such as mail messages or appointments) brings you face-to-face with the biggest Office 2007 user interface change, the Ribbon. The Ribbon is meant to make using common features of Office applications easier and more intuitive. About the only place where you can create a new Outlook item and NOT see the Ribbon is a Note. Figure B shows a new mail message with the Ribbon.

FIGURE B


The Ribbon makes it easy to find the commands you need. Roll over picture for a larger image.

Some other user interface changes include:

  • The Office button is located in the top left corner of the Ribbon and gives you quick access to the most common file and system commands.
  • Category colors, which let you color-code any Outlook item, allow you to pick out certain kinds of items at a glance.
  • Attachment Preview lets you view attachments with a single click right within Outlook.

New and improved ways to connect
A Web-based calendar is a great way for groups to keep coordinated. Outlook 2007 supports standard Internet calendars, allowing you to subscribe to a group's Internet calendar and keep track of what's going on. You can also publish an Internet calendar yourself, either as a static snapshot of your calendar, or a dynamic one that automatically changes as your schedule does.

Turn your Contacts into electronic business cards you can share with others. Create a custom electronic business card and pass that along to your contacts to make yourself more easily identifiable in their crowded Contacts folder.


1  ·  2  ·  Next »
Other articles you might like
Home > Using Outlook (177 articles)
   Six brilliant ways to get more from Outlook 2007
   Why I like Outlook 2007 and you will too
   Troublesome changes to watch for in Outlook 2007
Home > Outlook 2007 (12 articles)
   What's the difference between Outlook 2007's To-Do's and Tasks?
   Six brilliant ways to get more from Outlook 2007
   Two essential Outlook 2007 books
Get Weekly Email Updates
Subscribe to our regular weekly email newsletter. It's packed with tips, reviews, deep analysis, and the latest news.
 
Recent OutlookPower Articles
Can Outlook run when it's not running (and other mysteries)?
Exploring the dark side of social networks
How not to screw up when you send email
How to separate email accounts and still manage them
How to convert a PST file from an old format to a new format
Visnetic MailFlow can automate your organization's mail processing
How to make Outlook launch an app at a specific time?
OutlookPower News Center
Touch in Windows 7: Just for show?
Windows XP User: I'm No Thief
Windows 7 May Get Family Pack Discount
Microsoft Unleashes Five Service Packs for Its Enterprise Security Wares
Give an Old Desktop New Life
Europe won't pay more for Windows 7. Really!
IT wish list for SharePoint 2010: Keep it simple
>> Read all the news
More from the ZATZ journals
Computing Unplugged: Eight steps to successful and reliable home backups
David Gewirtz Online: CNN commentary and analysis
DominoPower: What to look for in a Domino-based document management solution
-- Advertisement --

ONLINE GROUP CALENDAR - FOR UP TO 100 OF YOUR CLOSEST FRIENDS
Stay organized and in control with 24/7 access to all of your important events, projects and files --whether you're at work, at home or on the road.

You can share your calendar, projects and files so everyone in your office is up to date. Plus, search your entire group to find times when everyone is available to meet, manage company resources and much more.

Organize your entire team for as low as $9.95 per year (and yes, that's where the decimal place is supposed to be!)

Tap here to get started right away.

-- Advertisement --

Exclaimer Signature Manager for Outlook - Download Your Free Trial Today!
Exclaimer Signature Manager enables you to create great looking signatures for Outlook to carry your company's branding and legal disclaimers, or even campaign style banner ads, through all of your outbound Outlook email communications. An incredibly effective way of putting your brand in front of every person who receives your emails.

Visit Exclaimer Signature Manager today and download your free trial.
ZATZ Home  ·  News  ·  Back Issues  ·  Credits/Trademarks ·  Link To Us
The Power Magazine for Microsoft Outlook and Exchange Users at OutlookPower.com
Copyright © 1998-2009, ZATZ Publishing. All rights reserved worldwide.
Outlook is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
Editor's Login