Composing HTML Email in Windows Live

[sureword]

How can I create an html email in Windows 7 (Windows Live) Mail?????? There are no tabs at the bottom of the email to do that like in Vista Windows Mail. Is there a way?????? I need to be able to create html emails with this new Windows 7 computer. HELP.

 

[MyWin7]

this may help

HTML and Windows Live Hotmail Sending Help? - Yahoo! Answers

 

[sureword]

Thank you. I visited the link. I am not using my hotmail account....but using Windows Live in Windows 7.......I cannot believe they have taken away the HTML option tabs at the bottom of new emails that a person wants to compose!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That was one of the greatest options in Outlook Express and Windows Vista.......this is soooooooooooo discouraging to me. Is there a way to let the Windows 7 people know I want that option back!!!!!

 

[TimStitt]

Hi sureword,

I'm not sure if you are having problems on setting up your email, or sending (and looking for an HTML function). If the first, try this:
1. Open windows live mail and press ALT for the hidden menu.
2. Select the TOOLS menu and then ACCOUNTS
3. Click ADD
4. Select EMAIL account, click NEXT
5. Fill in the EMAIL ADDRESS, PASSWORD, & DISPLAY NAME.
6. TICK the 'manually configure settings.....' tick box, click NEXT
7. in the 'My incoming server is a..' drop down box, select HTML
8. Click NEXT and FINISH.

Good Luck.

 

[TimStitt]

Per my post above, if you want HTML options for configuring your emails:
1. Click NEW to start a new email
2. Press ALT for the hidden menu and choose FORMAT (there is an HTML option)

 

[MyWin7]

Just install Thunderbird as mail client and no fuss about that

It just works and html is default

...
2. Press ALT for the hidden menu and choose FORMAT (there is an HTML option)

wow, a hidden feature :sarc:

 

[sureword]

Composing HTML in Windows Live

Yes I thought about Thunderbird but that's a real bummer that the html option is not available anymore in Windows Mail. A person shouldn't have to have two different email programs on a computer. That's such a pain. (My humble opinion).

My email account is already set up and my alt option has already been chosen to bring the hidden menu up and also I had already chosen html format which does nothing.

Is there a place that we can give our suggestions for the next new windows email program?

Thanks for all of your help ya'll. Have a Merry Christmas.

 

[MyWin7]

...

Is there a place that we can give our suggestions for the next new windows email program?

...

It's Microsoft, ya know, give it some time and it will be back - latest when they find out no one is using their email client any more

 

[TimStitt]

It's Microsoft, ya know, give it some time and it will be back - latest when they find out no one is using their email client any more

@MyWIn7 - LOL

@sureword - Can you please explain what functionality you expect to find but can't. Live mail is html enabled by default (so you can change colours, font etc). You can see the difference if you choose PLAIN TEXT from the menu and use that. I don't usually use live mail (or it's predecessors so I may be missing something obvious here).

 

[sureword]

Cannot creat html emails with windows live

Yes I can explain.......all through the years......using Outlook Express.....then Windows Mail.....whenever you compose a new message, there has been three tabs at the bottom of the email......edit, source and preview. The source tab allows you to place html code within that email and when you go back to the edit tab, you can see what it all looks like. Very nice feature. When I bought a new computer with Windows 7 on it using Windows Live......these 3 tabs are not at the bottom of an email when creating a new email. Therefore, there is no way to create an email in Windows Live Mail with html (source tab) feature.

I have not clue why they removed this feature from their email program. This was excellent for those of us who still use the source tab feature to create html emails.

 

[MyWin7]

Ah, you miss the editable source code feature - well, no email client is having that.
Yes, was a nifty feature of old OE but rarely used.

 

[TimStitt]

Ah, now I understand exactly. I'll take a look and get back to you.

 

[TimStitt]

You are absolutely right, the 'Source Edit' button no longer exists and Microsoft has removed the feature in WLM.

I already sent Microsoft some feedback via the help menu / send feedback, you may wish to do this too.

An API just come out in beta for WLM, this means that developers can create basic 3rd party plugins; but Microsoft is yet to release a complete library to enable us to do much more than change the look of it. Some developers are decompiling WLM to make their plugins work, so cross your fingers for that too. FOr the record, this issue has been marked active since 2007, so MS do know that people want the source edit functionality back.

Two steps forward, one step back again MS.This reminds me of when they 'forgot' to add Harvard Bibliography to MS WORD 2007 and I had to cook it up in XML myself.

 

[cbakeman]

The only way I have found to create an HTML Email via Windows Live Mail is as follows:

1. Begin a new Email message
2. Save the message as a file (if you don't have this menu option, you may need to customize your menus)
3. Open the message file with a text editor (Wordpad will work) and replace the HTML contents with your desired contents
4. Save the changes you made
5. Double-click on the .eml file and make sure the HTML contents looks correct
6. Send the message

It's very much a hack, but it does work...

 

[mumble]

What Outlook Express had, which worked fine and which is gone

It's Microsoft, ya know, give it some time and it will be back - latest when they find out no one is using their email client any more

@MyWIn7 - LOL

@sureword - Can you please explain what functionality you expect to find but can't. Live mail is html enabled by default (so you can change colours, font etc). You can see the difference if you choose PLAIN TEXT from the menu and use that. I don't usually use live mail (or it's predecessors so I may be missing something obvious here).

With Outlook Express, you could create, in HTML code, any number of stationery templates using all the functionality of HTML. One of these was set as the default stationery, but you could select any of the others to start a new e-mail. I had one with my bank details, one with my home address, one for business, and so on, and all personally formatted through being able to code in HTML.

It was the biggest selling point Outlook Express had. You could format paragraph spacing, use em-dashes, specify colours and fonts, insert and format tables, the whole nine yards: anything HTML can do, you could put in your e-mail.

But now, with Windows Live Mail, you can't even so much as, for example, invoke the "noshade" option in a horizontal rule. It is a perplexing, frustrating and infuriating backward step in offered functionality.

 

[IdealDatabase]

Solution:
Create your message
[CTRL] + "S" so save it in Drafts
Go to C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Live Mail\{Account Name}\Drafts
Find the only file in the folder (should be the case)
Open the file by right clicking and selecting NotePad to open it with
Edit as you wish
Save and close
Re-open it in Live Mail