Computer and Library Learning (Archived)

(Credit: YouTube – Microsoft “Scroogled” Gmail ad)

(Credit: YouTube – How to migrate your complete GMAIL account to Microsoft OUTLOOK.com email account)

(Credit: YouTube – Microsoft makes switching from Gmail to Outlook.com easier)

(Credit: YouTube – Microsoft Launches Outlook.com Preview Email with Skype Integration Review610)

Now that 2013 has drawn to a close, email users may wish to reflect upon what system they use in comparison with the alternatives, taking into consideration any recent developments. Many people use one of the big three web-based email options, viz.: Google’s Gmail, Microsoft’s Outlook.com (formerly Hotmail), and Yahoo’s Yahoo Mail. The competition between these three options remains strong with attempts to lure users away from one of them to one of the others. First of all, let me say that I have personal email accounts with each of the big three so I will try and remain objective as I write this. Since we already took a quick look at Gmail and Yahoo Mail, now let us do the same for Microsoft Outlook.com (formerly Hotmail.com):

2013 seemed to be the year that Microsoft Corporation was going all out against Google Inc., whether the topics were email, search engines, or otherwise. In February 2013, Microsoft, using its Scroogled.com campaign, criticized Google for showing advertisements inside Gmail accounts based on keywords within the messages, although Google stated that the process is automated rather than being reviewed by a human monitor. Microsoft stated that the advertisements showing up in Outlook.com accounts are not targeted and do not focus on subject lines or email content. Nonetheless, privacy is a legitimate concern for email account users but Microsoft should answer concerns from Outlook.com users why Microsoft-owned Skype is not mentioned by Microsoft in late 2013 promises to protect users from surveillance by the National Security Agency.  

The jury is out on the effectiveness of negative advertising although Microsoft used this approach in 2012 to criticize Google for instituting a pay-for-play shopping search. However, Danny Sullivan of Search Engine Land found that Microsoft’s Bing Search was doing essentially the same thing. Furthermore, Brad Reed of BGR.com wrote on October 2, 2013 that the evidence did not support Microsoft’s claim from the “Bing-It-On” Challenge that people preferred Microsoft’s Bing search engine over the Google search engine by a 2 to 1 margin but found 53% preferred Google to 41% for Bing while 6% liked both or were undecided. ) Even Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates criticized Google in early August 2013 for not doing enough in the area of philanthropy, making the point that people in less developed countries may be less interested in internet connectivity through Google’s high altitude balloons than dealing with diseases such as malaria. Fair enough. What has Outlook.com got going for it that might appeal to email users?

Microsoft’s Outlook.com has been making a big push to attract Gmail users. A December 11, 2013 blog post on the Outlook Blog entitled “Outlook.com makes it even easier to switch from Gmail” provides detailed instructions on how to forward email messages from a Gmail account to an Outlook.com account. (Email users must have both accounts in order to contemplate this task.)  There are several good articles that explain how to use the Outlook.com import tool from Gmail. (Please see these articles from Laptopmag.com, Mashable.com, PCMag.com, and TheVerge.com.)

Technology writer Ed Bott wrote on ZDNet.com on October 29, 2013 an article entitled “The case against Gmail” that Gmail was stale and “past its prime” as the service approaches its tenth anniversary on April 1, 2014, in addition to not working well with third-party clients. Bott was a big user of Gmail for several years until Microsoft began improving its Hotmail.com/ Outlook.com service and began using that service again. He now has his Gmail.com email account forwarded to his Outlook.com account.

Microsoft has provided the following information pages on its Windows website (Outlook.com Help section) to assist email users in adding their other email accounts to their Outlook.com account:

Add all your email accounts to Outlook.com: Gmail

(URL: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/gmail )

Add all your email accounts to Outlook.com: POP (including Yahoo!)

(URL: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/pop-email ) 

Microsoft also updated Outlook.com’s 2-step verification security in December 2013 to include recovery codes, security notification control, and a newly-minted recent history view.

For Toronto Public Library customers interested in enrolling in free Email Made Easy workshops, click on Programs, Classes & Exhibits on the Toronto Public Library website, then select Computer & Library Training and narrow the search to Email and Social Networking to find branch locations, dates and times. Otherwise, contact your local library branch staff for information.

(See also: Email at Year-End 2013: Where Does One Go From Here? Part 1: Gmail )

(See also: Email at Year-End 2013: Where Does One Go From Here? Part 2: Yahoo Mail )