Why Windows Live Mail??

[James Ivey]

Long-time Outlook Express user.

Got a new Vista laptop on the way. Do I want to use Windows Live Mail or
Windows Mail??

James

 

[Michael Santovec]

Microsoft wants you do use Windows Live Mail (WLM).

Like Outlook Express, Microsoft has dropped development of the Vista
Window Mail (WM) other than security fixes and possibly some minor
updates.

WLM is the only free mail client that Microsoft is moving forward with.

As for some other differences, WLM supports HTTP and WM does not.

On the other hand, if you are big into stationery, WM has better support
than WLM.

 

[Frank Saunders MS-MVP IE,OE/WM]

Long-time Outlook Express user.

Got a new Vista laptop on the way. Do I want to use Windows Live Mail or
Windows Mail??

James

Hotmail works on Windows Live Mail, but not on WinMail. I have WLM for that
and one POP3 account, just to be fair. I strongly dislike WLM

 

[R. C. White]

Hi, James.

There are those who prefer Windows Mail - which is installed whether you
want it or not. It's a built-in part of Vista, just as Outlook Express is
built into WinXP. OE won't run on Vista; WM won't run on WinXP.

But many of us, including myself, prefer Windows Live Mail, which is a free
download from http://get.live.com/wlmail/overview

Installing WLM appears to uninstall WM, but not really. It just deletes the
WM icon and shortcut. You can still navigate to C:\Program Files\Windows
Mail\WinMail.exe and run it; you also can recreate the icon and shortcut if
you choose.

WLM will run side-by-side with either OE or WM. Many of us chose to run
both for a few weeks to see which we like best, being sure to leave both set
to "Leave messages on the server" (the default) for at least a few days to
be sure that both databases get updated.

As with any new app, there will be a learning curve, but you can read all
about that on these two newsgroups where you've cross-posted.

RC
--
R. C. White, CPA
San Marcos, TX
(e-mail address removed)
Microsoft Windows MVP
(Running Windows Live Mail 2008 in Vista Ultimate x64 SP1)

 

[D. Spencer Hines]

I strongly dislike WLM.

An Honest Man...

 

[James Ivey]

Thanks Michael. Appreciate your reply.

What do you mean by "supports HTTP"? What does that do for me?

Not big into stationery, but I do use it on occasion and have created a few
for those occasions. Does WLM support stationery at all?

James

 

[James Ivey]

Thanks Frank.

Could I get you to elaborate a little on why you dislike WLM?

James

 

[Robert Reed]

I am glad I am not the only one that strongly dislikes WLM!

--
Robert Reed

I strongly dislike WLM.

An Honest Man...

 

[James Ivey]

Thanks R. C. Appreciate your reply.

Is WLM web-based? Or does it actually store the email on your harddrive?

Can you tell me if either one supports newsgroups, like OE?

James

 

[Frank Saunders MS-MVP IE,OE/WM]

Thanks Frank.

Could I get you to elaborate a little on why you dislike WLM?

James

Hotmail works on Windows Live Mail, but not on WinMail. I have WLM for
that and one POP3 account, just to be fair. I strongly dislike WLM

My biggest gripe is that they waste so much space between the Message List
and the Preview Pane.

 

[mac]

Thanks R. C. Appreciate your reply.

Is WLM web-based? Or does it actually store the email on your harddrive?

Can you tell me if either one supports newsgroups, like OE?

They both support newsgroups.

Too many 'bells & whistles' in WLM for me.

 

[Gary VanderMolen]

HTTP is a generic description for the email protocol used by webmail
services such as Hotmail and its siblings (MSN and Live.com email).
WLM (but not WM) allows you to set up Hotmail accounts in it.

 

[Gary VanderMolen]

No, WLM is not web-based. It is a stand-alone desktop email
client like Windows Mail. Yes, it supports newsgroups, just
like OE and WM.

 

[Gary VanderMolen]

My biggest gripe is that they waste so much space between the Message List
and the Preview Pane.

Agreed, and for that reason I keep the 'message header' part of the preview pane turned off.

 

[R. C. White]

Hi, James.

While there are some differences (I did mention a learning curve, right?),
overall, my daily use of WLM is very much like my use of several versions of
OE over the past decade. The Tools | Options screens will look very
familiar; the View menu still offers to Group by conversation; you can still
create Message Rules, and so forth. The Storage Folder structure does take
some getting used to, and so do Quick views. Newsgroup support is not
exactly like OE, but it will look very familiar.

A major difference from OE to WLM is in the storage of the messages on our
hard drive. OE created a few "folders" with names like Family.dbx and
stored many messages in each .dbx file. WLM stores each message as an
individual file: an .eml file for each email and a .nws file for each
newsgroup message. With OE, a thousand 1 KB messages from your Mom might
add up to a single 1 MB Mom.dbx file. WLM will create 1,000 .eml files;
because NTFS knows some storage tricks for small files, they might take much
less than 1 MB. But the important point is that a single bad byte in a .dbx
file might cost you the whole 1,000 messages; a bad byte in an .eml file
would cost you only that one message. (As Paul Harvey says, "Don't ask me
for details. I've already told you more than I know." But other experts
here can explain it to both of us if necessary.)

I've never used an HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) or IMAP mail account,
so I can't tell you anything about those. I've had several POP3 accounts
over the years and now monitor 3 daily.

Try both WM and WLM for a week or two and see which YOU like better.

RC
--
R. C. White, CPA
San Marcos, TX
(e-mail address removed)
Microsoft Windows MVP
(Running Windows Live Mail 2008 in Vista Ultimate x64 SP1)

 

[James Ivey]

Just installed Windows Live Mail.......

hmmmm.... can't say I'm impressed. Don't much like all my accounts in
separate folders. But maybe it just takes some getting used to.

Frank, I agree. All that dead space in the Preview Pane header... what were
they thinking?

James

 

[D. Spencer Hines]

Good Post...

Very Candid.

Thanks.

DSH

 

[James Ivey]

Thanks R. C. Good post and I appreciate it.

I just downloaded and installed WLM and I'm going to give it a go. I'm not
crazy about the way the folder list lays out... separate folders for each
email account. I've got several accounts, and it’s a little cumbersome.

Probably just take some getting used to.

Yes, I discovered the store folder and the way it stores individual .eml
files. Interesting.

Thanks again for your considered reply.

James
Dallas, TX

 

[Gary VanderMolen]

Comments inline.

Just installed Windows Live Mail.......

hmmmm.... can't say I'm impressed. Don't much like all my accounts in
separate folders. But maybe it just takes some getting used to.

Keep the account folders collapsed to one line each.
Do your email reading in the Quick view folders. That way it mimics
OE/WM behavior.

Frank, I agree. All that dead space in the Preview Pane header... what were
they thinking?

View, Layout, Message header, uncheck "Show message header in reading pane".

--
Gary VanderMolen, MS-MVP (Mail)

 

[Ron Sommer]

There is a default account in WLM, but the setting is only used when you
want to send an email from another program.
If you open an email composition window, the From address will be for the
account with the currently viewed folder.