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Microsoft Outlook 2003

Managing Email with Folders

If you have a large quantity of messages or messages related to various projects that you want to keep together for easy reference, you may want to use folders to organize them.

return to topCreating a New Folder

Outlook allows you to create a new folder and then manually move items in and out of that folder.

  1. From the File menu, select New » Folder...
    OR
    From the File menu, select Folder » New Folder...
    The Create New Folder dialog box appears.
    Create New Folder dialog box

  2. In the Name text box, type a name for the folder

  3. In the Select where to place the folder scroll box, select a mailbox in which your new folder will be located
    NOTE: It is a good idea to use the Inbox as the parent folder to keep your email together in one location.

  4. Click OK
    The new folder is created and appears in your Folder List.

return to topSelecting Multiple Messages

To save time while transferring a group of messages, you can select the whole group at once, rather than one at a time.

Selecting Contiguous Messages

  1. Click to select the first message

  2. Hold down the [Shift] key

  3. Click to select the last message of the group

  4. Release the [Shift] key
    The first, last, and all messages in between are selected and can be modified as a whole.

Selecting Non-contiguous Messages

  1. Click to select the first message

  2. Hold down the [Ctrl] key

  3. Click to select the next message

  4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 until all the messages are selected

  5. Release the [Ctrl] key
    The selected messages can now be modified as a whole.

return to topMoving Messages to Folders

When you transfer your messages to a folder, you may move them to a new folder, created specially for a certain group, or to an existing folder.

Moving Messages to a New Folder

The following steps will allow you to transfer the message and create a new folder at the same time. There is no need to create a new folder prior to this process.

  1. Open or select the message(s) to be transferred
    HINT: You can select and transfer multiple messages at once. For more information, refer to Selecting Multiple Messages.

  2. From the Edit menu, select Move to Folder...
    OR
    Right click the message » select Move to Folder...
    The Move Items dialog box appears.

  3. Select the parent folder in which the new folder will be located
    NOTE: It is a good idea to use the Inbox as the parent folder to keep your email together in one location.

  4. Click NEW...
    The Create New Folder dialog box appears.

  5. In the Name text box, type the folder name

  6. Click OK

  7. Click OK

Moving Messages to an Existing Folder: Menu Option

  1. Open or select the message(s) to be transferred
    HINT: You can select and transfer multiple messages at once. For more information, refer to Selecting Multiple Messages.

  2. From the Edit menu, select Move to Folder...
    OR
    Right click the message » select Move to Folder...
    The Move Items dialog box appears.

  3. Select the desired folder

  4. Click OK

Moving Messages to an Existing Folder: Drag and Drop Option

  1. From the Go menu, select Folder List

  2. In the Navigation Pane, from the Folder List, locate the target folder

  3. Click and drag the message(s) to the target folder
    HINT: You can select and transfer multiple messages at once. For more information, refer to Selecting Multiple Messages.

return to topOpening Folders

You can easily view your folders by using the Folder List in the Navigation Pane.

  1. From the Go menu, select Folder List

  2. In the Navigation Pane, from the Folder List, locate the desired folder

  3. Select the folder
    The contents of the folder are displayed to the right of the Navigation Pane.

return to topCreating Favorite Folders

In order to access frequently used folders more quickly, you can add them to the Favorite Folders list:

Creating Favorite Folders: Quick Menu Option

  1. To display Favorite Folders, from the Go menu, select Mail
    The Favorite Folders list appears in the Mail panel of the Navigation Pane.
    Favorite Folders in the Mail panel

  2. Within the All Mail Folders list, locate the desired folder

  3. Right click the desired folder » select Add to Favorite Folders
    The folder is added to Favorite Folders.

Creating Favorite Folders: Drag and Drop Option

  1. To display Favorite Folders, from the Go menu, select Mail
    The Favorite Folders list appears in the Mail panel of the Navigation Pane.
    Favorite Folders in the Mail panel

  2. Within the All Mail Folders list, locate the desired folder

  3. Drag the folder to the Favorite Folders list
    The folder is added to Favorite Folders.

return to topRemoving Folders from Favorite Folders

  1. To display Favorite Folders, from the Go menu, select Mail
    The Favorite Folders list appears in the Mail panel of the Navigation Pane.
    Favorite Folders in the Mail panel

  2. Right click the desired folder from the Favorite Folders list » select Remove from Favorite Folders
    The folder is removed from Favorite Folders.

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