Windows 10: Outlook for Windows rolls out its simplified user experience

Brink · May 30, 2019

Outlook for Windows has evolved through multiple generations of improvements to create a user experience aimed at making it easier for you to get things done and focus on what matters. Now, after rounds of validation and refinement through customer research and the Coming Soon preview feature, the updates to the user experience are rolling out as the default experience.

Customer informed updates

Many elements of the user experience have been in progress for over two years, undergoing research and design iteration. Available as a preview through Coming Soon for the last several months, we’ve given you a chance to try the new updates on your own time and provide feedback. This has been invaluable in helping us refine the experience.

Do these changes make Outlook better? Almost half a million users responded, with over three-quarters saying “yes,” often with further written comments and high praise for the simpler, cleaner, more modern design. Based on your feedback, we updated the entire canvas to bring you a powerful and simplified experience. These updates are now moving out of a preview mode (through Coming Soon) and are rolling out as the default experience to all Office 365 Monthly Channel subscribers in the coming days. Below is a more detailed description of the changes.

Customizable options

Based on user research, we learned that many of our customers enjoyed the smaller command-set on the toolbar to simplify the experience and reduce distraction. The optional, Simplified Ribbon provides a streamlined experience for Outlook with a core set of most commonly used commands in a single line and can be easily expanded anytime to the full, classic ribbon.

Figure 1 - Simplified Ribbon

Figure 2 - Classic ribbon

However, the “right” set of commands varies by user and work style; what may be a daily used feature for one user might never be used by another user. We made the Simplified Ribbon customizable so you can quickly personalize it by simply pinning and unpinning commands to tailor the experience for you.

Figure 3 - Menu to pin commands to the Simplified Ribbon

The updated user experience is designed for simplicity, to feel lighter and more open, and focus on getting things done faster. We made it easier to scan the message list with more separation between emails, added stronger treatment for flagged items which are more consistent with other Outlook end-points and updated the single line view to include an unread indicator.

Among the feedback we heard over the last several months is that for some users the ability to see the maximum number of messages at once is paramount, so we recently added an option in the View tab to adjust density. Now the default experience will include the option to choose tighter spacing to see more messages at one time in the message list. This is especially helpful for users who work in single line view and choose Use Tighter Spacing on the View tab.Using tighter spacing also gives you control of the space around Send/To/Cc/Subject when composing emails.

Designed for faster interaction

Reading and creating email messages and calendar events needs to be straightforward, fast, and uncomplicated. The updates we made are geared to help you quickly focus and take action in a snap.
In the reading pane and email windows, the Subject is now at the top of the header, so it stands out more clearly. Part of this update includes reducing the area for the email recipients, making them collapsible while still clearly delineating To, From, and Cc. All of this helps you focus and leaves more room for your content in the message body.

The response toolbar has been updated to bring additional actions into the message area, such as to Reply with Meeting, and Forward as Attachment. These commands are now in context of the space where you are working, and you can respond faster.

When you are writing or responding to an email, we’ve added more spacing around the To, Cc and Send buttons and removed some outlines to help the experience be less cluttered and therefore more usable.

We recently added new capabilities to Calendar in Outlook for Windows to make creating a new meeting easier. This includes changing the end to end flow of creating a New Meeting. Title is now the first field on the form and the Date and Time are BEFORE location providing smarter suggestions based on meeting room availability.

Thank you for your feedback

Thank you again for your feedback provided over the recent months while these changes have been available for preview. The Coming Soon button and toggle switch is going away for now. However, given the positive feedback we received about using Coming Soon as a tool to introduce change, we plan to bring it back when we are ready to introduce another new set of changes to preview.

We have simplified the Outlook for Windows experience and made it more powerful and customizable to help you stay organized and focused. As these updates are available to you, we hope they will save you time, help you get things done faster, and make Outlook more enjoyable to use. Please continue to give us feedback in-app and Outlook.uservoice.com.

Frequently Asked Questions:

Why have I not seen these changes and Coming Soon before?
The reasons you may not have seen these updates previously may be:

Your company may have restricted the option to preview the changes through Coming Soon

You may not have a subscription to Office 365 and therefore receive updates as part of the Monthly Channel subscription

Your company may not yet moved your email and calendar to the Office 365 cloud

Can I go back to the previous version of Outlook for Windows?

These updates are now the default experience for Outlook for Windows however you can choose to keep the classic ribbon which provides 3 levels of commands versus the single line of commands in the in the Simplified Ribbon. Additionally, if you Use Tighter Spacing, the wider spacing around messages and Send, To, Cc and Subject will be removed.

What are all the changes I should be aware of with this new user experience?
The changes are described above however here is a list of all the changes with additional images to help you identify where the updates have been made across the Outlook for Windows canvas.

Simplified Ribbon – see Figure 1 and 2 above

Option to remove or pin commands to the Ribbon

Overflow of commands used less often now found with a drop down ellipses

Adaptable ribbon that scales the visible commands based on the size of your window

Message List updates and layout density

Additional spacing between messages

Stronger visual cues for flagged messages

Unread indicator in the Single Line View – see Figure 4

Option to Use Tighter Spacing

Classic ribbon

Simplified Ribbon

Tighter spacing option for composing new messages

Reading pane – see Figure 4 above

Subject moved to the top

Smaller area for From, To, Cc

Long recipient lists are collapsible (not shown on Figure 4)

More response options are now in the message reading pane (instead of exclusively on the ribbon) with additional options to take action in a drop down ellipses

Meetings and Appointments

Subject change to Title

Title is now the first field

Required and Optional attendies are on the New Meeting form, instead of a single To field

Date and Time are before Location

Additional Timezones included as an option on the New Meeting form

Scheduling Assistant is now an option as a ribbon tab

Click to expand...

Source: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/...ce/ba-p/653734

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Brink · May 30, 2019

Outlook for Windows new user experience updates

The most prominent update coming to Outlook for Windows is the new Simplified Ribbon and it’s showcased with the new Coming Soon feature pane. Over the last two years we’ve been talking, concepting and co-creating with customers and are now ready to introduce an exciting number of updates that simplify the user experience, while keeping with the familiarity of Outlook. These updates are aimed at making it easier for you to get things done and focus on what matters with a customizable experience that keeps you in control.

Customize your Outlook experience with a Simplified Ribbon

Since Microsoft introduced the ribbon we’ve learned a lot about how customers use this tool in Outlook. At the top of that list is this notion that how you work is highly personal. For example, people generally use the same ten commands most of the time but still need a level of customization for that 11th, 12th and 13th command, which are all different based on a user’s personal preference and what they work on most.

The Simplified Ribbon is both easily customizable and adaptable. The single row of commands can be quickly personalized to suit your work style and preferences—simply pin or remove commands from the ribbon that are important to you. You can always click back into the classic, full ribbon to access the complete set of commands anytime. You will also find that the Simplified Ribbon is now adaptive. It scales to fit different window sizes, adjusts icon labels and moves commands out of the way and accessible via new ellipses and menu drop down experiences.

Watch this video to see the Simplified Ribbon and more updates coming to Outlook for Windows:

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Focus on what matters

Many small changes in the message list help highlight the things that matter. For example, names are bolded and flagged messages stand out with a yellow background. And with a little more padding and text treatment to create a clearer visual hierarchy, scanning your inbox is easier and focusing on important messages is easier than ever.

Message subjects are more prominent in the reading pane and the header now takes up less space, leaving more room for your content.

Updates to message list and reading pane

Similarly, we made the commands you need for rich content creation available when you Pop Out your message response so you can easily access the power of the full ribbon in Outlook at any time.

And email and calendar response options, such as Reply or Accept buttons, are contextual to where you are working.

Stay organized

In the familiar folder pane, where email messages may be distributed across Favorites, Folders and Groups, special icons make each of them easy to spot. We learned that customers who frequently use Office 365 Groups needed quicker access to the group folders. In this update, we’ve elevated Groups to show up as a peer of personal folders under each account so now they will be accessible even if you hide your Folders list.

To give you more time back in your day, updates in Outlook Calendar help speed up the process of sending a meeting request. Both Required and Optionalattendees can be quickly added. And with a clean, reorganized meeting request form, by setting the meeting time first, you make the suggested Location or conference rooms time-aware.

Outlook Calendar updates

The updated Outlook for Windows experience is simpler and more customizable so you can work faster and get back to the things that matter most. Outlook helps you connect, organize and get things done. We’re excited about these changes and look forward to your feedback.

Coming Soon and the user experience updates are rolling out to customers in the Monthly Channel (Targeted) release program in the next few weeks then later rolling out more broadly to all Office 365 customers.

When you see Coming Soon, turn it On, explore the updates and let us know what you think.

To stay up-to-date, follow us on Twitter or keep an eye on the Office roadmap to see what is coming. You can also read about the updates coming to Outlook on the web.
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Source: Designed for Simplicity: User experience updates to Outlook for Windows - Microsoft Tech Community - 241590

See also: New Outlook updates enable you to customize your experience and help you stay focused and organized - Microsoft Tech Community - 238891

Brink · May 30, 2019

Outlook on the web user experience gets simpler and more powerful

Starting next week, if you are a Targeted Release customer who wants to try the early version of the new Outlook on the web, simply click on the “Try the new Outlook” toggle on the top right corner of your inbox. When you click the toggle, you’ll see all new Outlook on the web modules for Mail, Calendar, and People. Opt-in and out as often as you want.

Find the toggle on the top right of your inbox

Let’s look at some of the new features you can try when you opt in to the early version of Outlook on the web.

Search – No time to search? Outlook anticipates what you’ll need based on recent conversations and people with whom you work the most.

Updated search for Mail, Calendar, and People

Files – Trying to find a file in your inbox can be a time-consuming exercise, to help you with that we have added a Files module that will show you all the files that you received or sent in your inbox.
Pro tip: Use Favorites to make sure you always find files from important people.

Use Files to find all the files and docs in your inbox

Suggested replies – The new Outlook brings intelligent technology to your inbox to save you time. Focus on what matters more and let Outlook help with you the rest. Use suggested replies when you need to respond with a short message, just a couple of clicks and off you go.

Select a response, edit it if you need to, and send!

Simplified event creation — You can now quickly add events to your calendar with updated event icons, so you can quickly identify events and see location suggestions to get address details.

Updated event icons let you quickly identify events

Smart room suggestions – Intelligent technology in Outlook now helps you find the best room for your meetings based on the attendees, time, availability, and your preferences.

Outlook will recommend rooms for you

Simplified add-in experience — We’ve simplified the way you access add-ins while giving you more control. Outlook add-ins bring your favorite apps right to your inbox, so you can accomplish tasks faster—including saving an email directly to your notebook, translating emails on the fly, or paying your friends. You can access popular apps and and services like Boomerang, Evernote, GIPHY, Gfycat, Microsoft Translator, MojiLaLa, PayPal, Trello, and more right from your inbox.

If you were using add-ins in the classic Outlook on the web experience, they will show up pinned next to mail actions or in the drop-down menu once you open an email in the new experience. You can also install more add-ins from the Office Store—simply open an email, click the drop-down menu, and select Get Add-ins. Once installed, add-ins will show up in the drop-down menu. You can also choose to pin frequently used add-ins.

More ways to use and manage groups in Outlook – Group-based collaboration, powered by the Office 365 Groups service, is an integral part of working in Outlook. We received a lot of valuable feedback on groups in the past and based on that we are excited to announce we have improved existing features such as faster and simpler group creation, richer group card, more efficient group email triage, and we are also introducing new features such as group Files view that focuses on the latest file activity and group management in the People module.

See a list of all your groups, take membership actions, or favorite a group – all in one place

Favorites makes things front and center – Many things at work are important and then there are the ones you can’t miss like an email from your manager or a project’s requests and updates. Favorites is perfect for those times, just add specific folders, people, or categories to your Favorites to keep them only a click away.

Add the things you can’t miss to Favorites

More ways to keep up with your groups - Groups cards can now be used from anywhere inside Outlook to view membership information, and group owners can take membership actions as well, or navigate to group apps or group resources such as Files, Planner, and SharePoint site.

See group information and membership with group cards

Take these features for a spin, and tell us what you think in our UserVoice channel.
Stay tuned to additional enhancements that will come over the next few months, including new and updated features. Based on your feedback, we’ll iterate, improve, refine, or discard them. To stay up-to-date, follow us on Twitter or keep an eye on the Office roadmap to see what is coming. But wait, there is more! We're also rolling out updates in Outlook for Windows.

Thank you!

Gabriel.
Click to expand...

Source: Designed to be fast - The Outlook on the web user experience gets simpler and more powerful - Microsoft Tech Community - 234909

List of features not yet available in the early version of the new Outlook on the web

On September 10th, when Targeted Release customers can opt-in to the early version of the new Outlook on the web, there will be some features that won't be available yet in that early version of the new experience.

If you need to use a feature that is not yet available you can opt-out of the early version and opt-in again later, as often as you want.

See below for features not yet available on September 10th.

Mail

1. Reading Pane and Mail Compose

No chat or call functionality integrated in your inbox

Edit "Send From" address

Policy tips - Policies will be respected and actioned but users will not see prevention tips.

2. Folders and Message List

Shared Folders - No ability to share individual folders across mailboxes.

Folder retention policies - No support for administrators being able to set how long emails are retained in certain folders. Ex: Changing how long emails stay in Junk email before being automatically deleted

Calendar

1. Forms

Not able to add or remove time zones.

No Mailtips available in Calendar while reading/composing

No ability to propose a new time from the meeting invite

No email reminders

2. Calendar Surface:

No ability to open calendars from organization's directory (in classic experience known as: to add a calendar "From directory")

Public folders - No suppport to create a calendar in a public folder or manage/share it

No out of office (OOF) toast message that shows up in the form, if at least one of the attendees that you are trying to schedule for is OOF

No ability to publish calendars to an HTML link (that others can view) or an .ics endpoint (that others can subscribe to).

Weather settings - no ability to set your weather location(s)

No support for printing calendars

Fundamentals

No keyboard shortcuts + accessibility

People

Public Folders – ability for multiple people in the company to access a given folder is not yet supported

We are working to bring these features soon but you can always use them by opting out of the early version of the new Outlook on the web.

Please, give us feedback and help us prioritize our work through our UserVoice channel.

Thanks!

Gabriel
Click to expand...

Source: List of features not yet available in the early version of the new Outlook on the web - Microsoft Tech Community - 240457

An early version of the new Outlook on the web will be available through an opt-in toggle

In June we announced updates to the Office 365 user experience, including a simpler and more powerful Outlook on the web, which would show up later in the summer. Starting September 10th, we’ll roll out an opt-in toggle so users can try this early version of the new web experience. Users who try this early version of the new Outlook on the web can go back to the classic experience as often as they want.

Users will see “Try the new Outlook” next to the toggle and can opt in (and out) of the trial as often as they want. However, we also want to ensure that admins can control whether their users see this toggle.

If you’re an Office 365 admin and you don’t want your users to have access to the opt-in toggle, you need to complete the following steps prior to September 10th, 2018:

1) Connect to Exchange Online PowerShell.
2) Review the OWA mailbox policies that have been created previously. To do this, run Get-OwaMailboxPolicy.
3) This will output all the policies that have been created. If you have multiple policies, you will want to adjust each policy that you want to block the new experience opt-in toggle.
4) Most tenants will have a single policy, and they should run the following command to turn off the toggle:
Set-OwaMailboxPolicy "Policy Name" -OutlookBetaToggleEnabled $false

After this is complete, Outlook on the web will honor the policy and not show the “Try the new Outlook” toggle.

If you want to know more about the new experience, please review this post.
We’re looking forward to you trying the early version of the new Outlook on the web.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Source: An early version of the new Outlook on the web will be available through an opt-in toggle - Microsoft Tech Community - 225338

qubit · May 30, 2019

How to install outlook express on windows xp with explorer 8?

This is an awkward problem to solve and one I don't think is worth the time and effort.

The OP would be better off either using a modern webmail service like gmail or outlook.com or using a modern email client like Windows Live Mail like FX-GMC suggested or Thunderbird from Mozilla. If nothing else, Outlook Distress was notorious for corrupting its data files and losing all your email in one easy step. Not worth it.

Windows 10: Outlook for Windows rolls out its simplified user experience

Outlook for Windows rolls out its simplified user experience

Outlook for Windows rolls out its simplified user experience

Outlook for Windows rolls out its simplified user experience

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