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Outlook is getting a huge redesign – Here’s a sneak peek
When you want to discuss a promotion with your boss, you send an email. When you want to file a complaint with a company, you send an email. Email carries weight and formality lacking in other forms of communication such as text messages.
You’re bound to make the occasional mistake no matter how well-planned and well-composed a message is. You’re familiar with that dread when you click send and realize you made an error. Fortunately, you have some time to take it back and make fixes. Tap or click here to learn how to unsend an email.
Outlook is a popular free email client from Microsoft that’s been around since the late 1990s. The Windows version has a simple interface that hasn’t evolved much over the years, but that’s about to change.
Outlook is getting a big makeover
Microsoft recently announced a beta version of the new Outlook for Windows. The company says it is “designed to bring consistency across our Windows and web codebases to help you be more productive and stay in control of your inbox.”
In a nutshell, Outlook for Windows will look and function more like the web version.
Keep them in the loop
The new Outlook will work with Microsoft Loop, an app that helps you organize, share, and collaborate. In this context, you’ll be able to edit and share your work and thoughts across Outlook and Teams. Loop components, which include lists, reports, reviews and more, will always stay in sync, keeping everyone up to date.
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Find and attach files quickly
If you want to attach something to an email message but can’t remember where it’s located, just type the @ symbol followed by the filename and you’ll get a list of options. Note that the files and documents need to be stored in the cloud for this to work.
Important reminders
If you missed a message that Outlook considers important, you’ll get an automatic reminder with the option to respond. This will be pinned at the top of your inbox until you dismiss it.
Your to-do list comes to Outlook
Sometimes you get a message you want to respond to at a later time. The new Outlook for Windows lets you drag and drop messages into a to-do list so you can come back to them whenever you want.
You can also use the My Day feature to drag and drop a task into your calendar, so you’ll be reminded later. Speaking of which…
Updated calendar
The Outlook calendar board view lets you organize work in one view. You can add calendars, files, To-Do lists, notes, goals and more to the board.
Remote or in person?
The new Outlook RSVP takes into account the hybrid nature of many workplaces and social events. You can let people know whether you’ll be attending in person or virtually.
Pin your messages
Lists and sticky notes, virtual or physical, help us keep organized and remember important events. Outlook has brought this practice to your inbox, allowing you to “stick” emails to the top of your inbox. They’ll remain there until you unpin them.
Keep things clean
A cluttered inbox makes it harder to work and keep track of everything. You can scan each message and delete them or set rules for messages with Sweep.
This tool lets you dictate what happens to incoming messages. For example, you can set a rule to delete all messages from a specific address. Sweep also enables you to move all your current emails in batches.
Change is not easy
We understand that longtime Outlook users might not like these modifications, but change is inevitable. It may take some time to adjust, but it will be helpful in the long run to have a consistent feel across the desktop and web versions of Outlook.
Companies constantly update their wares to keep up with the competition. And with Gmail being the big winner, don’t be surprised to see other email services taking inspiration from it even as Google’s email client itself goes through change.
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Tags: calendar, communication, complaint, email, Gmail, Google, Microsoft Windows, Outlook, promotion, reminders, reviews, text messages, to-do list, unsend
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