Psssst. Wanna read your favorite website without leaving Microsoft Outlook? I’m not talking about subscribing to its newsfeed in Outlook, but setting up an Outlook folder that actually points to the website. Then, when you click on the folder you’ll be presented with a web page you can access right from within Outlook, rather than a list of emails.
Why do this? Well, since you likely have Outlook open all day, accessing oft-used websites through your already-open Outlook window will save the extra step of opening your browser to get to a site. And every minute saved is a minute more to add to your day!
It’s quick and easy to add a website to Outlook, here’s how:
- Create a new folder in Outlook as you normally would for email. (Click Folder, click New Folder, name it and click Okay.)
- Right-click on the new folder, then click on Properties in the fly-out menu.
- Paste or type the desired website address into the Address box under the Home Page tab.
- Click in the box for “Show home page by default for this folder” to turn it ON. (The checkmark must be showing.)
- Click Okay and there you are, looking at the website right from within Outlook.
Now, each time you click on the website folder, Outlook will display the actual website. Think about how helpful it might be to add even more websites to Outlook so you don’t have to open your browser to access them. To add more sites, simply follow the instructions above for each one. The only difference will be the particular website address for each website and the Outlook folder name. You might consider adding a top-level folder to house the individual website folders, just to ensure your sites are grouped together nicely.
Note: Some of the websites you add to Outlook may give you a scripting error on access—just click through the error and the website will appear. If your site is one of the rare few that just do not play nicely with Outlook, however, it will refuse to load properly and you’re out of luck.
Adding a Site to Your Outlook Favorites
If you have a website or two that you access every single day, you can add those Outlook website folders to your Outlook Favorites for extra-easy access from your Favorites in Outlook Mail View:
- Right-click on Folder to display fly-out menu.
- Click on Show in Favorites.
That’s all there is to it!
Vivian Manning is the IT Manager at Burgar Rowe PC in Barrie, Bracebridge and Cookstown, Ontario. Prior to moving into IT, Vivian practiced law at Burgar Rowe primarily in the area of municipal land development, with a total of 17 years in private practice before switching to the IT end of the law office. She currently indulges her love of teaching tech through her blog Small City Law Firm Tech, where she provides “tips of the day.”
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