10 Minute Guide to Outlook 97 - 1 - Navigating Outlook In this lesson, you learn to start and exit Outlook, identify parts of the Outlook screen, and use the mouse to get around the program. Starting Outlook You start Outlook from the Windows desktop. After starting the program, you can leave it open on your screen, or you can minimize it. Either way, you can access it at any time during your work day. To start Microsoft Outlook, follow these steps: 1. From the Windows desktop, click the Start button and choose Programs, Microsoft Outlook. (If you have customized your Start menu, Outlook may appear within a folder, such as a Microsoft Office folder on the Programs menu.) Or if you have one, you can double-click the shortcut icon on the desktop. 2. If the Choose Profile dialog box appears, click OK to accept the default profile and open Microsoft Outlook. Figure 1.1 shows the Outlook screen that appears. (In Windows NT, Outlook cannot detect an existing e-mail provider. The user is prompted to set up the profile. If you need help, see your system administrator.) Plain English: Profile Information about you and your communications services that is created automatically when you install Outlook. The profile includes your name, user ID, post office, and so on. Figure 1.1 The Outlook screen includes many icons and items you'll use in your daily routine. Timesaver Tip: An Office Welcome If the Office Assistant Welcome to Microsoft Outlook box appears, just click OK. Understanding the Screen The Outlook screen includes items you can use to navigate and operate the program. If you do not see some of the items listed below on your screen, open the View menu and select the command for the appropriate element (such as Toolbars, Status Bar, Folders List, or Outlook Bar). A check mark in front of an item means the item is currently showing. Table 1.1 describes the elements you see in the opening screen. Table 1.1 Elements of the Outlook Window Element Description Title bar Includes the name of the application and current folder, plus the Windows Minimize, Maximize, and Close buttons. Control-menu button Provides such commands as Move, Size, Minimize, and Close, with which you control the Outlook window. Minimize button Reduces the Outlook window to a button on the taskbar; to restore the window to its original size, click the button on the taskbar. Maximize button Enlarges the Outlook window to cover the Windows desktop. When the window is maximized, the Maximize button changes to a Restore button that you can click to return the window to its previous size. Close (X) button Closes the Outlook program. Menu bar Contains menus of commands you can use to perform tasks in the program. Toolbar Includes icons that serve as shortcuts for common commands, such as creating a new message or printing a message. (See the inside back cover for a description of each tool.) Folders List Displays the current folder. Click this to display a list of Personal Folders you can open. Outlook Bar Displays icons representing folders: Inbox, Calendar, Contacts, and so on. Click an icon to change to the folder it names. Status bar Displays information about what's in the main part of the window. Timesaver Tip: Finding a Toolbar Button's Purpose You can hold the mouse pointer over any toolbar button to view a description of the tool's function. Using the Mouse in Outlook As with most Windows-based programs, you can use the mouse in Outlook to select items, open mail and folders, move items, and so on. In general, clicking selects an item, and double-clicking selects it and performs some action on it (like displaying its contents). In addition to clicking and double-clicking, there are some special mouse actions you can use in Outlook. First, to move an object to another position on the screen (to transfer a mail message to another folder, for example), you can drag the object with the mouse. To drag an object to a new location on-screen, point to the object and press and hold down the left mouse button. Move the mouse pointer to the new location, and then release the mouse button. As another example, you can display a shortcut menu by clicking the right mouse button when pointing to an item. For instance, you can right-click a folder in the Outlook Bar or a piece of mail. A shortcut menu appears, offering common commands relating to that particular item. Finally, you can act upon multiple items at once by selecting them before issuing a command. To select multiple contiguous items, hold down the Shift key and click the first and last items you want to select. To select noncontiguous items (those that are not adjacent to each other), hold down the Ctrl key and click each item. Timesaver Tip: If You Must Use the Keyboard You can use the keyboard to move around Outlook and to access many, but not all, of its features. For example, to open a menu with the keyboard, press the Alt key and then press the underlined letter in the menu name (press Alt+F to open the File menu, for instance). This book concentrates on using the mouse to perform tasks in Outlook; however, I'll include some keyboard shortcuts in tips along the way. Exiting Outlook When you're finished with Outlook, you can close the program in a couple of different ways. To close Outlook, do one of the following: Choose File, Exit (to remain connected to the mail program). Choose File, Exit and Log Off (to disconnect from the mail program). Double-click the application's Control-menu button. Click the application's Control-menu button and choose Close from the menu. Press Alt+F4. Click the Close (X) button at the right end of Outlook's title bar. Panic Button: Do I Need to Log Off or Not? You will eventually need to log off; however, you may want to remain attached to the mail server to receive mail during your work day. In this lesson, you learned about the Outlook screen, how to start and exit Outlook, and how to use the mouse to get around the program. In the next lesson, you will learn to open menus, select commands, and use dialog boxes and the toolbar.

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