- 1). Consolidate your accounts. Click "Tools," "Accounts," "Add" and then "Mail" to open the wizard. You'll need your email address, password and POP3 information from your email account to complete the wizard, which tells you where to find this information. Instead of using three or four different web-based emails -- one from your ISP, for example, one Hotmail and one Gmail account -- you can use Outlook Express to check all of your accounts simultaneously. The program has a built-in account setup wizard to step you through the process of adding an account and mailbox to your profile.
- 2). Enable fast-user switching. Outlook Express can manage separate accounts for the different users on your computer, but it can be a pain to have to log out of out one user account every time someone needs to check their email. Click "Start" and "Control Panel" to access your computer's settings, then click "Classic View" to toggle the Control Panel layout. Double-click "User Accounts" and then click "Change the way users log on or off." Check the box beside "Fast user switching" and then click "Apply Options." Now, in Outlook Express, you can switch between user accounts without logging in and out of Windows.
- 3). Master the short-cut keys. A program is only as fast as its user, and you can become faster by learning and using the keyboard shortcuts for Outlook Express. Press "F1" at any time to access help files. Press "CTRL" and a second key to perform the following tasks: "M" sends and receives all messages waiting to be sent or unread on the server; "N" opens a new message; "R" replies to a message; "F" forwards a message; "<" and ">" scroll to the previous and next messages, respectively; "I" opens your inbox; "U" opens the next unread message; and "Y" opens a list of your email folders. Press the "Esc" key at any time to close a message and return to your inbox.
- 4). Manage your junk mail. Whereas web-based email services have become pretty intuitive when it comes to blocking junk mail, Outlook Express relies on you. You can right-click messages and choose "block sender," but it's more efficient to set rules. Right-click on a spam message and choose "Create Rule From Message." You can then choose to block messages containing the words in the subject line of the selected message, the same words in the body of the message or from certain domains. Click "OK" to accept the rule.
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