Timesaving Microsoft Outlook tips
Published: 13 Apr 2004
Most of us have to use Outlook for our day-to-day organisation and communication, so it's a good idea to learn some of its secrets. Here's a guide to get you started.
When it comes to Microsoft Outlook, the 80/20 rule means that 80 percent of us use it, but 20 percent of us spend our days cursing its limitations and intricacies. If you're a frequent traveller, for instance, the chances are Outlook's handling of time zones in its calendar has driven you crazy at least once. If you synchronise with a Palm OS device, the aggravation increases exponentially.
Similarly, formatting views and playing with category lists may be tedious, but these tweaks are essential for optimal day-to-day operation. Without them, simple tasks such as finding information quickly or keeping your business and personal information separate become Sisyphean endeavours. In addition, spending a little time with up-front organisation may help you recover from synchronisation accidents by providing you with easy-to-spot indicators that something's gone horribly wrong. You can take steps to minimise the problems you'll encounter, as well as find ways to use Outlook's many features to their full advantage.
Indeed, Outlook has many useful features you probably didn't know existed; this is particularly true of Outlook 2003, which is probably the only real reason to upgrade to Office 2003. In this guide, we cover a broad range of topics. For our examples, we use Outlook 2003, but you'll find many of these features and options in earlier versions, too.
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