We think the time is right to reimagine personal email. So today, we're introducing a preview of Outlook.com - modern email for the next billion mailboxes. We realized that we needed to take a bold step, break from the past and build you a brand new service from the ground up. You already know Outlook via the Outlook desktop application-for PCs and Macs-as the world's most popular application for reading email, managing a calendar, and connecting to people. And you may have used the Outlook Web App connected to Exchange Server in your organization. Now, in addition to a desktop application and a service for businesses, we're offering Outlook as a personal email service - Outlook.com.

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This morning we became aware of a Twitter campaign run from the website http://fixoutlook.org . This campaign is intended to provide Microsoft with feedback about our decision to continue to use Microsoft Word for composing and displaying e-mail in the upcoming release of Microsoft Outlook 2010. The Email Standards Project , which developed the website that promotes the current Twitter campaign, is backed by the maker of “email marketing campaign” software . First, while we don’t yet have a broadly...

Since we launched the Outlook.com preview a few days ago, we've been humbled and amazed by the reception and by the number of people who have upgraded. In fact, in just the first few days alone, we've seen several million people upgrade to Outlook.com. Over the next week we'll write a series of posts covering upgrading and using Outlook.com, starting with this post covering upgrading from Hotmail, and then followed by posts discussing upgrading from Gmail, Yahoo, and other services. These are all written by Dick Craddock, who runs the Program Management Team for Outlook.com.

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When designing Outlook 2010, we worked hard to ensure that the colors, shapes, and text used within the product provide a pleasant experience and make it easy for you to get work done. We have done this by redesigning parts of the user interface to give Outlook a clean, crisp, high-quality look that is free from distracting visual elements. By simplifying many parts of the user interface, we’ve allowed your e-mail messages and meetings to shine in the foreground better than ever before! Let’s...

Update: We have heard that some Microsoft Outlook 2010 Beta users are experiencing crashes when trying to use the new Outlook Social Connector (OSC) Beta (February Update) that was released today along with the LinkedIn Provider for Outlook. The OSC that was included with the Outlook 2010 Beta must be uninstalled before installing the new OSC Beta (February Update). After the February OSC update is installed, the LinkedIn Provider for Outlook can then be installed. This information is included on...

Hello Blog Readers, Do you have questions about Microsoft Office 2010 or Windows 7? For the first time ever MVPs from both Windows and Office have come together for a special live chat . Two of our very own Microsoft Outlook MVPs - Diane Poremsky and Ken Slovak - will be on hand to share their expertise of how to make the most of Outlook! This event is a great opportunity to tap into the vast knowledge of these industry professionals who are regarded as the best in their field. All levels of experience...

One of the things we have improved in Outlook 2010 is IMAP accounts. IMAP is a protocol that is used by many e-mail services, including Gmail and AOL. If your e-mail service supports IMAP, you can use Outlook to access your e-mail. Here are some of the IMAP improvements in Outlook 2010: Automatic configuration If you have an e-mail account that supports IMAP, your account can be automatically configured in Outlook 2010. All you need to set up your account in Outlook 2010 is your e-mail address and...

The To-Do Bar is brand-new to Outlook 2007, and enables you to track your time and tasks wherever you are in the application. We hope you’ll find the post below informative, and in the coming months we will posting more about tips and tricks about using the To-Do Bar. Enjoy! Instead of looking at scraps of paper, notepads, planners, and the Outlook Inbox, you can see everything you need to do simply by looking at the To-Do Bar. The To-Do Bar shows a Date Navigator (a small monthly calendar), your...

We're excited to announce a major upgrade for our Outlook.com app for Android devices that overhauls the entire user interface and provides a number of new features. Read on to learn more and download the latest app.

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As many of you know, the Microsoft Office Outlook Connector for Windows Live Hotmail recently exited beta. This blog has seen a lot of traffic and has received many comments about the connector since it first arrived. It is great to see such enthusiasm! Since the community was so active during the beta period, we were able to track down and fix more issues and ultimately release a better product. Since the connector shipped, we’ve gotten a lot more great feedback and questions. Answers to lots of...