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HOME » EMAIL » CLIENTS » OUTLOOK 2003

HOW TO USE OUTLOOK 2003 WITH GUMAIL: CREATING RULES

Rules can be highly customized and we cannot cover all their possible permutations. These instructions will take you through setting up a fairly common rule and should give you an overview of the process.

This rule will look for mail sent from Lori Briggs and put it into a special folder called "Lori" unless the body of the message includes the word "aardvark."  If the message includes aardvark, the rule will ignore it. (If you wanted to, you could then create a separate rule to process these "aardvark messages.")

 
  1. Start Outlook XP.

 

  1. Click on Tools. This brings up a menu.

 

  1. Click on Rules Wizard...
 
  1. This will bring up the Rules Wizard.
 
  1. Click on the New Rule button.
 
  1. Decide if you want to use one of the rule templates, or create one from scratch. Then click on the type of rule you want to create.

 

  1. Then click on the Next button.
 
  1. You'll be asked to choose the conditions for your rule. (Your rule will be applied when these conditions are met.)
 
  1. Click on the box(es) beside the conditions you want (you may choose more than one).

 

  1. Click on any underlined values in your description.
 
  1. In this case, we need to specify which people we want our rule to watch out for. (Obviously, if you had chosen a different condition, you'd be asked for different information).
 
  1. If the person is already in your Contacts list, click on the person's name, then click on the From button. Skip to step 18.

 

  1. If the person is not in your Contacts list, click on Advanced button, then click on New.
 

 

  1. Click on New Entry, then click on the OK button.
 
  1. Type in the person's name and e-mail address.

 

  1. Beside e-mail type, type html, then click on the OK button.
 
  1. The value you entered (in this case, the person's name) will now appear as part of the rule description.

 

  1. Click on any other underlined words in the description.
 
  1. In this case, we must specify which folder we want the message to go in. You can select an existing folder or create a new one.
 
  1. After you set the conditions, and tell your rule what you want it to do, click on the Next button.
 
  1. You'll be asked if you want to include any exceptions.
 

We want our rule to look for the word "aardvark" in the body of the message.
 
  1. If you choose to add an exception, you may be asked to supply additional information.
 

We add "aardvark" to our search list.
 
  1. Click on the Next button.
 
  1. Type a distinctive name for your rule.

 

  1. Decide if you want to apply it to the messages already in your Inbox.

 

  1. Then click on the Finish button.
 
  1. You can run your rule on other mailboxes using the Run Now Feature.

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