Windows Mail is an e-mail and newsgroup client currently under development by Microsoft, and is scheduled to be included with Windows Vista. It was previously called Outlook Express. Microsoft previewed Windows Mail on Channel 9 on October 10 2005, slightly more than a month before it was included in Windows Vista build 5231.

Unlike Outlook Express, Windows Mail is not considered to be a component of Internet Explorer. As such, it will not be made available for earlier Windows operating systems. Windows Mail will also not be included with Windows Server "Longhorn".

The same development team that built Windows Mail is also working on Windows Live Mail Desktop, which will serve as both the replacement for Outlook Express for Windows XP, and as an upgraded version of Windows Mail.

Features

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Although the Windows Mail interface has only minor differences from the previous version such as the toolbar icons being replaced to reflect on Windows Vista's interface and some interface features incorporated from Outlook 2003 including the right-hand "reading pane", larger changes have been made under the hood.

• Mail messages are now stored in individual files instead of in a single database file. A transactional index database enables real-time searching and improves the stability and the reliability of the stored data. In case of corruption, the indexes can be rebuilt from the mail files.
• Account setup information is no longer stored in the registry. They are instead stored alongside the mail itself, making it possible to copy an entire Windows Mail configuration and mail store to another machine in a single step.
• The bayesian junk mail filter and top-level domain and encoding blocking.
• A phishing filter, also seen in Internet Explorer 7, has been incorporated as well, protecting users from web sites that have been identified as being malicious.
• Additionally, "Microsoft Help Groups" has been added, which is a pre-configured link to Microsoft's newsgroups. Some additional functionality has been layered on top of the standard newsgroup functionality to have individual threads be marked as a "question" or an "answered question". Postings can be rated as well.

External links

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• Channel 9 (Microsoft) - 'The new Outlook Express: Windows Mail demoed'

Microsoft Internet applications | Usenet clients | Windows e-mail clients

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