Figure C |
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| Changes to the Start menu are more subtle. |
You'll notice a few new built-in programs on the Start menu. These include Windows Mail (replacement for Outlook Express), Windows Contacts (new address book), and Windows Calendar. No, Vista doesn't quite give you all the functionality of "big Outlook." But it does provide enough personal information management (PIM) functionality out of the box for most home users and many small business users, in some cases eliminating the need to purchase Outlook.
Windows Mail
Windows Mail is more robust than OE. I was impressed with
the Account Setup wizard. I entered the information for my Exchange server, and
WM immediately began downloading my mailboxes. It took only a minute or two to
configure and there were all my Exchange folders. They're displayed in the left
folder tree along with the Local folders, as shown in Figure D. As with
Outlook 2003, you can place the preview pane either at the bottom or on the
right side.
Figure D |
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| Windows Mail displays your Exchange folders along with local folders. |
The Instant Search function (which also appears in Outlook 2007 and is available throughout Vista lets you quickly search through thousands of messages. Along with the junk mail filters familiar to OE users, Windows Mail includes a phishing filter to help you identify fraudulent Web site links. Like OE, Windows Mail also serves as a newsgroup reader.
Best of all, according to Microsoft, Windows Mail users will no longer have to contend with the problems that OE users encountered if their saved e-mail files grew large.
Windows Contacts
The Windows Address Book in XP has been replaced by Windows
Contacts. The Contacts feature does everything the old Address Book did and
more. For example, you can add photos to your contacts, as shown in Figure E.
Figure E |
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| Windows Contacts allows you to view photos of your contacts. |
When you upgrade from XP, the contents of your address book is automatically converted to .contact files and stored in the Vista Contacts folder. Or you can import Windows Address Book (.wab) files from another computer. You can also import contacts stored in the following file formats:
- CSV (comma-separated values)
- LDAP (Light Directory Access Protocol-based directory servers
- VCF (vCard)
Windows Calendar
While XP has e-mail and contact functionality, it lacks a
built-in calendaring solution. Vista solves
that problem with the Windows Calendar. Although not a replacement for the
Outlook calendar, it provides good, basic appointment and event scheduling that
you can view in a daily, weekly, or monthly layout, as shown in Figure F.
6%
1%
Vista is the biggest rip off of OSX. It has features that have been in linux and OSX for ages. Instead of ripping of ideas off other companies and infecting your pc with viruses how about some real innovation for Microsoft.