Top 10 quick Tips to Manage Outlook 2007 Video

10 Quick tips to manage Outlook 2007

The first time you open Outlook 2007 you might be disappointed to see that, on the face of it, Outlook does not display the new ribbon and new interface that you will see in the other major applications in the Office 2007 suite such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Dig a little deeper under the surface, however, and you'll see that the Ribbon and new interface are there in places, but more than this, Outlook is significantly improved both in terms of both functionality and features.

There's a lot to like about Outlook 2007 and plenty of new tools to help you be more productive. Here are our ten best tips for working with the new Outlook 2007:

This video gives basic tip on managing Email, Calender, reminders and meeting requests etc. this video goes along with outlook 2007 on Windows Xp and Windows 7

How to change a Scheduled meeting request.

change a Scheduled meeting request

 

Open the meeting request that you want to change in Outlook 2007.
 

Do one of the following:
    

A: Change options for a meeting that is not part of a series    
 

Change the options, such as subject, location, and time, that you want to change

       Click Send Update.
 

   B: Change options for all meetings in a series    
  

      Click Open the series.
 

      Change any options, such as subject, location, and time, that you want to change.
 

       To change recurrence options, 

     

       On the Recurring Meeting tab, in the OptionsRecurrence, 

       change the options, such as time, recurrence pattern, or range of recurrence, 

       and then click OK. group,

       Click Send Update.

C: Change options for one meeting that is part of a series    
 

        Click Open this occurrence.

        On the Recurring Meeting tab, change the options, such as subject, location,

         and time, that you want.

        Click Send Update.

 Tip: In Calendar, you can drag the meeting to a different date and you can also edit the subject by clicking the description text, pressing F2, and then typing your changes. 

This steps works for Windows Xp and Windows 7

Top Tips to Speed Up Outlook 2007

Top Tips to Speed Up Outlook 2007

 

 Tip 1: Disable unessential Add-ins in Outlook 2007

Click on Tools, Trust Center and Add-Ins. Now select one of the various options from the dropdown menu at the bottom and uncheck any add-ins that you don't use (which for me was an Adobe Acrobat one and Gotomeeting.com). Restart Outlook and see if this makes a difference.

Tip 2: No need for fax? Remove it!

If you do not send or receive faxes on your PC then uninstall the facility as this has been known to cause issues with Outlook 2007.From Control Panel select Add/Remove Programs, select Add/remove windows components and uncheck Fax Service.

Tip 3: Enable Outlook 2007 logging to see if anything is going wrong

Outlook has an error logging capability, which could be useful if something is going wrong. Click Tools, Options, Other, Advanced Options and then tick Enable Logging. Logs will be stored in C:\Documents and Settings\[Username]\Local Settings\Temp\Outlook Logging\. Look for any errors, especially in OPMLog.log - perhaps relating to the checking of email on one or more of your POP3 accounts Ex: Gmail
Tip 4: Compact your PST data files often

Use Outlook's compact facility to compress your folders, especially your main PST file. Click on top folder name (e.g. Personal Folders), right-click and select Properties. Now select Advanced and then click on Compact Now.

Tip 5: Run the Outlook 2007 Diagnostics check

Outlook has its own self-repair mechanism. Click on Help and Office Diagnostics, and then let Outlook run its diagnostic tests, which can take 15 minutes or so.

Outlook keeps crashing or running even after closing.

Outlook crashing  or running even after closing 

Outlook can't close properly if another application is accessing Outlook's message store.this are symptoms which indicate that Outlook is not closing properly include receiving an alert telling you that Outlook is checking the data file when you open it. If you use two Outlook profiles, when you switch profiles you aren't presented the screen to select the profile and Outlook opens directly to the first profile.

Step 1: Try starting Outlook in Safe Mode.

The Outlook safe mode is not equivalent to opening Outlook when your desktop or laptop is booted into safe mode either in Windows XP or Windows 7.

When you start Outlook in Safe mode, many of the customizations you have made to Outlook are not loaded. Instead, they are temporarily replaced with default settings. Also, COM add-ins and Exchange Client Extensions are not loaded so you significantly reduce the number of dlls that interact with Outlook and your data.

To start Outlook in Safe mode, use the /Safe command-line switch. You can tell you are running in Safe mode because the Outlook title bar indicates you are in Safe mode.

You may also see the following prompt when you start Outlook after a crash.

Outlook failed to start correctly last time. Starting Outlook in safe mode
will help you correct or isolate a startup problem in order to successfully start
the program. Some functionality may be disabled in this mode.

Do you want to start Outlook in safe mode?

If you click Yes to this prompt Outlook will launch in Safe mode.  

Step 2: Try disabling Add -ons

In Outlook 2007, you need to go to Tools then select Trust Center

Now select Add-ins, then Select COM Add-ins from the dropdown at the bottom of the dialog

Press Go. Uncheck the add-ins you suspect might be keeping Outlook open then Close the dialog.

Macros and Security Warnings on Outlook 2007

Macros and other Security Warnings

          
         If a when opening an existing file in an Office 2007 application you are presented with a Security Warning below the Ribbon (see example below), this means the file you are opening contains macros, visual basic code, or links to other files.









Image of Office Security Warning

Solutions:

    * If you trust the source, click on the Options... button to open the Security Options dialog from where you can enable the content.

      Note: If the file contains both macros and links to other files, you will have to enable each of these separately via the Security Options dialog.

    * If you want to permanently enable, or ‘trust’, the file source, then you can add the file type to your list of Trusted Locations*.

      Caveat: Do not place files whose source you are unsure of in your Trusted Locations. Macros can be used by others to maliciously damage your P.

      This example is for Excel, but the method is the same for other Office applications. Note, however, that when you change your settings, they are changed only for the Office application you are using at the time. The settings are not changed for other Office applications.

          o Click on the Office Button and select Excel Options from the lower right of 

             the  pop-up menu
          o From the menu on the left of the ensuing dialog, select Trust Centre
          o Click on the Trust Centre Settings... button on the right
          o Select Trusted Locations from the menu on the left
          o If the files in question are on a network drive, tick the Allow Trusted 

             Locations on my network checkbox
          o Click on the Add new location... button
          o Use the Browse button to navigate to the folder you wish to trust
          o Tick the Subfolders of this location are also trusted checkbox if appropriate 

             for your circumstances
          o Click OK to return to the Trust Centre dialog and then OK twice more to 

             return to the main Excel screen

You can follow same steps on Windows 7 and Windows XP

Is your Outlook 2007 running slow ?

Outlook 2007 running slow

        Outlook 2007 uses your existing account settings to create new ones for you. There are 4 files which contain information about add-ins, views, custom toolbars, and custom forms which may be corrupted in the upgrade process. You can safely delete (or rename) these as Outlook will recreate them without loss of data or settings, with the exception of outcmd.dat.






This file holds customized toolbar settings, but since Outlook 2007 uses ribbons, not toolbars, you'll need to redo any customizations anyway.

Extend.dat - 

Windows Xp: This file is located in C:\Documents and Settings\username\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook.

Windows 7:  C:\user\Username\Appdata\local\Microsoft\Outlook.

Views.dat and Outcmd.dat :

Windows Xp: These files are located at C:\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook

 Windows 7:  C:\user\Username\Appdata\local\Microsoft\Outlook.

Frmcache.dat :

Windows Xp: This file is located in C:\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data\Microsoft\Forms

Windows 7:  C:\user\Username\Appdata\local\Microsoft\Outlook.

Keep in mind that unless you customized Outlook or installed custom forms, some of these files may not exist. Also, the folders that these files are in are hidden.


If deleting the files doesn't help, try a new profile.

How to setup Email account on Mozilla ThunderBird

Configure Your POP or IMAP E-mail Address with Mozilla Thunderbird

      This steps will assist you set up the Mozilla Thunderbird e-mail client to work with your e-mail account.






To Set Up Your E-mail Account in Mozilla Thunderbird

   1. In Mozilla Thunderbird, from the Tools menu select Account Settings.

   2. Select Email account, and then click Next.

   
3. Enter your name and e-mail address.
 

   4. Select POP or IMAP as the type of incoming server you are using. Click Next.

   5. Enter your e-mail address for the Incoming User Name, and Outgoing User Name. Click Next.

   6. Enter a name for your email account and click Next.

   7. Verify your account information and click Finish.

Please follow same steps for Windows Xp and also Windows 7

Known Issue in Openning PDF attachment in ThunderBird

Problems Opening PDF Attachments in Mozilla Thunderbird

       Mozilla Thunderbird is a free e-mail client that brings all your web, corporate and exchange mail through one exchange server that routes the mail directly to your desktop. Although Mozilla Thunderbird is not as popular as Microsoft Outlook (the most popular email client) it has a devoted user base. If you are having trouble opening PDF attachments in Thunderbird, there are a few root causes that could be impacting its performance.



    
Adobe Acrobat is not Installed

 
   1. The most standard issue you may run into when trying to open PDF files in Mozilla Thunderbird is that you do not have the  reader. Though this may seem like a painless step, if you have recently upgraded, converted, or reinstated your operating system, you may not have Adobe Reader installed anymore.

 To download Adobe reader click here

 
    
Associations Claim to Be Reset
   

    2. If you have Adobe Reader installed, but you still can't open PDF files, your attachment associations may need to be reset. Associations can become fused up after downloading add-ons or downloading software updates. To reset these associations back to default option, go to the "Tools" menu and select "Options.


 

 Then click on the "Attachments" menu and select the reset associations button.

     
Please follow same steps for Windows Xp and also Windows 7 

Known Issue in Downloading new Email's on ThunderBird

Problems Downloading New Mail

Sometimes Thunderbird has trouble downloading new mail. When this happens, the status bar shows "Building Summary File for Inbox." You may receive new messages that are empty when you try to open them, or multiple entries for the same new message in the inbox, or reported unread messages that cannot be found.







This problem occurs when you do not perform routine maintenance on your inbox. From time to time, you need to compact it. Right-click on the inbox and select "Compact This Folder."

If that doesn't work, close Thunderbird. Using Windows Explorer or Finder, search for a file titled "Inbox.msf" in your Thunderbird application folder. Delete the file, and restart Thunderbird.

If that still doesn't solve the problem, you may need to delete your old account, but you can create a new account with the same settings and transfer all your messages over so you don't lose any of your information.


Please follow same steps for Windows Xp and also Windows 7 

Known Issue on Sending and Receiving Emails

Frequent Issues:

Problems Sending and Receiving Messages

         



           One common problem Thunderbird users experience is an inability to send messages. If you are unable to send messages, try deleting the outgoing mail (SMTP) password for your account. 

You can do this by going to

Click on "Tools" in the file menu, then selecting the "Options" menu.

Select "Security Passwords," then "Saved Passwords." 

Select the URL for the SMTP password (it will have "smtp" in the address) and click "Remove."

Another possible fix is to reset your SMTP password. To do that, you'll have to go to your Internet Service Provider's (ISP's) support website and find a form to reset your email password.

Your ISP's spam settings may also interfere with your ability to send or receive messages in Thunderbird. Check the spam settings, and change the port that Thunderbird uses to send and receive data if you need to.


Please follow same steps for Windows Xp and also Windows 7 

About To - Do Bar in Microsoft Outlook 2007

 New To-Do Bar in Outlook 2007

        

        The new To-Do Bar, which shows you everything on your plate at a glance. There are a lot of features packed into a tiny space, so we’ll go through some of them with you.

 

To-Do Bar Display Options

        To turn on the To-Do bar in Outlook, just click on View \ To-Do Bar, and then choose from Normal or Minimized to open the bar.

 

 

           In Minimized mode, the To-Do Bar docks to the right side of the Inbox, but you can click on the little arrows at the top to expand it.

 

 

          You can also right-click on the To-Do bar to choose which options you want to show. I wanted to show the calendar and task list, but didn’t want to see the appointments.

 

Create Appointments by Dragging to the Calendar

          If you want to create an appointment, all you need to do is drag an email or task item to the calendar, and it will open up a new appointment window already keyed to that day.

 

I find this feature alone incredibly useful.

Adding New Tasks Quickly

To add a new task for today, just type into the task bar and hit the enter key.

 

 

The task will then appear under the Today column.

Marking Tasks Complete

      To mark a task complete, simply left-click the red flag. You could also right-click to quickly change the due date or add a reminder.

 

Organizing with Categories

        Categories are assigned by color so you can visually see the importance of each task at a glance.

 

 

     To customize the category list, you can right-click the categories and then choose All Categories from the menu.

      This will take you to a screen where you can customize the colors and category names, and even better you can assign a shortcut key.

 

    Hovering your mouse over a to-do list entry will show you all the most important information for a task. You can see that the category is “Important” as well as the due date, which is easier than having to open each task.

 

 

You can follow same steps on Windows 7 and Windows XP

How to Categorize Notes in Outlook 2007

Categorize Notes

       
 
      The easiest way to categorize a note is to right-click it, select "Categorize" and pick the category. If you accidentally selected the wrong category or want to remove a category, pick the category again and Outlook will deselect the category.

         
When you categorize a note, the note receives the color of its category. Any note without a category receives the color selected in the Notes Options. The default color is yellow. Change the default color, size and font by doing the following:

1. Click Options from the Tools menu.

2. Click Note Options.

3. Click the down-arrow next to Color and Size to change each option.

 
   

4. Click Font to open Font options and change the font, font style, size, effects and color, and click OK.

5. Click OK twice to exit Options.

      Existing notes won't change color even if they're the previous default color. New notes, however, reflect the new color you selected from the Notes Options.


You can follow same steps on Windows 7 and Windows XP

Microsoft Outlook Hotmail Connector

Microsoft Outlook Hotmail Connector 

    

         Microsoft Outlook Hotmail Connector (formerly named Microsoft Office Outlook Connector) is a free add-in for Microsoft Outlook that allows users to access Windows Live Hotmail or Office Live Mail accounts through Microsoft Outlook.

         With this add-in, one can access e-mail messages and contacts in any Hotmail account for free. In version 12, access to tasks and notes and online synchronization with MSN Calendar is only available to MSN subscribers of paid premium accounts.

        Outlook Connector works with only Outlook 2003, 2007 and 2010 in Windows XP, Windows Vista or Windows 7.

       Outlook Connector uses DeltaSync, a proprietary Microsoft communications protocol.

Outlook Hotmail Connector enables you to use your Live Hotmail accounts within Outlook:

    * Read and send your Office Live Mail/Windows Live Hotmail e-mail messages.
    * Manage your contacts in Windows Live Hotmail.
    * Use advanced options for blocking junk e-mail messages.
    * Manage multiple e-mail accounts in one place.
    * Manage, and synchronize multiple calendars, including shared calendars to Windows Live Calendar from Outlook.



If you use the Outlook Hotmail Connector with Outlook 2010 you gain these additional benefits:

    * Your Safe Sender List/Blocked sender list/Safe Recipient lists are synchronized between Outlook and Hotmail.
    * Send/receive works like your other Outlook accounts.
    * Your Hotmail account status appears in the Outlook status bar.
    * Rules work with the Hotmail account in Outlook even if it’s not your primary account.

You can follow same steps on Windows 7 and Windows XP

Link to Download Microsoft Outlook

Quick Flags on Outlook 2007

            

          Outlook 2007 makes some improvements to the Quick Flag feature. Outlook 2003 provided six colored flags. Unfortunately, you couldn’t customize the names of those flags. A purple flag was always a purple flag, even if you used it for items related to your department budget. Outlook 2007’s flags are arranged by date. You can flag an item for Today, Tomorrow, This Week, or Next Week, or you can create a custom flag. Outlook 2007’s Mail view still contains the Quick Flag column, as shown in Figure 1.10. You can click the Quick Flag column to instantly flag an item for Today, or right-click the Quick Flag column and choose from any of the available flags or create a custom flag.

Quick Flagging a Message

 
           Outlook 2007 changes the way messages are flagged. Previous versions of Outlook had six different colored flags. Outlook 2007’s flags are arranged by time. The available flags are

■ Today
■ Tomorrow
■ This Week
■ Next Week
■ No Date
■ Custom

        

      
           By clicking on the Quick Flag column in the Inbox, you immediately flag an item for Today. If you want to flag an item with another flag, right-click the item and choose from any of the available flags.
 

    

     To mark a flag complete, click the Quick Flag column again. The flag changes to a check mark, indicating the flag has been completed. If none of the available flags meet your needs, choose the Custom option to display the dialog box.
 

       

             You can flag an item with a custom flag. You can customize the type of flag, start date, and end date; plus, you can add a reminder. After you have customized your flag, click OK to save your changes. If you want to add a reminder to an existing flag, right-click in the Quick Flag column and choose Add Reminder to display. Then you can pick a date and time for your reminder.

You can follow same steps on Windows 7 and Windows XP

7 Key tips to manage your contacts on Outlook 2007

            

       One common question is how to manage business contacts in Outlook.  There are seven important keys to succeeding in doing this well.  You spend most of the day using Outlook - these tips will help you do it better.

1. Storing Customer Email Addresses

           Outlook can store up to three email addresses per business contact. This is one of the hidden keys to keeping track of contact relations, and the cornerstone of creating a history of correspondence, communications, and actions associated with your clients.

2. Views

          These built in ways to see contact data allow you to see information you might not have noticed before.  For instance, if you choose to view by company, you'll see all the contacts in your Outlook directory who work for the same company.  Choose to view by flag status, and you'll be able to see all the contacts which have been flagged.

3. Categories

          Use one or more of Outlook's default categories, or create your own custom ones.  Viewing by categories allows you to see all the contacts associated with a particular keyword.  If you use categories, this view allows you to do a lot more with your contacts. And now that you can associate colors with categories, it makes things a whole lot more fun and interesting!

4. Actions

         This is the best way to start up just about anything.  While I miss the simplicity of the Actions menu from the prior Outlook version, you can still find the same features in an open contact item within the Contact Tab > "Communication Group", and the Insert Tab > "Include group" and "Links group". If you're looking at your contacts list but don't have a contact item open, then select (not the same as open) a contact item and look in the Actions menu for Create > New "x" for Contact. 

              Use these in every contact record to start relating correspondence and other items to that specific contact.  There are lots of things you can associate with a contact using these.  If you start any action from here, the item will automatically be linked with the contact record.

5. Contacts Link Field

         You can use the contacts field to associate one contact with another contact.  Do you have an existing appointment item that you'd like to associate with another contact?  Simply click the contacts like button and it's done! What? You don't see the Contacts link field in your Outlook 2007? Not to fear. Simply activate it by going up to 

           Step: Tools menu > Options > Contact options > check the check box for "Contact Linking". 

            

         Now it will always show up in all your contacts.

6. Activities Tab

         If you click the activities tab on the record for any contact, it automatically looks for items in your default folders that are related.  Customize settings for this tab and it'll look in other Outlook folders, too.  You can choose to see only email items - both email received and email sent.

7. Mail Merging

         Categories are a useful way to find contacts you need to use a mail merge on.  Use the mail merge process in word to see what letters will look like.  This gives each contact their own email with their own email address in the "To" field, rather than a long list of CC and BCC addresses.  Use the activities tab to track the letter record associated with each contact you've performed a mail merge on.  That's how to use mail merge to make bulk letters to many individual contacts while still linking the item to the right contact record.


You can follow same steps on Windows 7 and Windows XP