Outlook Assistance

You can use the options available on the Options page in the Outlook Assistant dialog box to make the Outlook Assistant work best for you. Some of these options are activated by default.

The Outlook Assistant can be permanently disabled or enabled using the Use the Outlook Assistant option on the Options page in the Outlook Assistant dialog box. Under this heading, other options that can be selected include: Respond to F1 key, which opens the Outlook Assistant whenever you press the [F1] key; Move when in the way, which moves the Outlook Assistant as needed when screen elements (such as a dialog box) are open; and Guess help topics, in which the Outlook Assistant automatically displays help on the current task.

Under Show tips about, you can choose exactly which type of tip you want to display or hide, depending upon your individual needs. You can choose to show or hide tips about Using features more effectively, Using the mouse more effectively, and Keyboard shortcuts.

In addition, you can select the following options: Only show high priority tips, which shows only important tips (such as time-saving tips); and Show the Tip of the Day at startup, which opens an Outlook Assistant tip each time Outlook starts.

You can also reset your tips. This option allows you to review previous tips in the current Outlook session. This option does not affect other Outlook programs.

Other Outlook programs such as PowerPoint and Word, share the Outlook Assistant. Therefore, changes you make to the Outlook Assistant in Outlook affect all other Outlook programs.

The Gallery page in the Outlook Assistant dialog box allows you to preview and select other Outlook Assistants. Additional Outlook Assistants can be downloaded from Microsoft’s Web page on the World Wide Web.

Procedures

You can query the Outlook directly with any questions you may have regarding Outlook. When you query the Outlook Assistant, help topics related to your question appear. You can select any available help topic to view additional information. If there are more topics than can be displayed at one time, you can use the See more and the See previous commands to scroll through the available topics.

The Outlook Assistant provides the best answers when you enter a complete sentence or question in a query, rather than just a word or phrase. For example, it is better to enter How do I send a message? rather than just sending. The last query remains in the Office Assistant until you create a new query or exit Outlook.

STEPS

1. Open the Outlook Assistant.

2. Click the Outlook Assistant

3. Type the desired question or sentence.

4. Select Search.

5. Select the desired help topic

Hiding/Displaying the Outlook Assistant

You can display or hide the Outlook Assistant as desired. Hiding the Office Assistant removes it from view, but does not disable it. The Outlook Assistant continues to monitor your activities and, if it detects that you are using procedures that can be performed more efficiently, the Outlook Assistant button on the toolbar displays a light bulb, or it may appear automatically to offer assistance.

You may want to hide the Outlook Assistant if you are not using it, find it distracting, or require a larger working area.

Discussion

To assist you in quickly and efficiently getting comprehensive help on any Outlook feature, you can use the Outlook Assistant. The Outlook Assistant appears in the application window as an animated graphic with a balloon attached. The balloon contains shortcuts for accessing additional topics and tips. When you select the Outlook Assistant, the balloon automatically appears. In addition, the Assistant automatically provides tips and help on tasks as you work. By default, the Outlook Assistant moves when it is in the way.

The Outlook Assistant provides helpful hints called tips to help you get the most from Outlook. A typical tip might provide a keyboard combination that quickly displays a particular dialog box or a more efficient way to accomplish a task. When the Outlook Assistant has a tip for the current activity, a light bulb appears next to the Outlook Assistant. If the Outlook Assistant is not displayed when a tip is available, a light bulb appears on the Microsoft Outlook Help button on the Standard toolbar. You can click the Microsoft Outlook Help button to open the Office Assistant and view the tip.

After you have read the tip, you can close it; however, tips are not available for all Outlook functions. In addition, if the topic you are looking for does not appear, you can ask for more help from the Web.