Word email editor ONLY in Outlook 2003?! Why?!

  • Thread starter Thread starter Gabby
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Gabby

I installed and configured Outlook 2003 today on my computer. What I
don't understand is why I can compose email messages in Microsoft Word
2003 ONLY from within Outlook 2003. But when I launch Excel 2003 et, I
can't get Word to be the email editor?! It launches Outlook 2003 message
editor. Why this behavior? I also noticed that Microsoft Word isn't
listed in the programs option in Internet Explorer settings for email
settings, only Outlook or Outlook Express. Clearly, I must be missing
something and I should be able to use Word as the primary email editor
regardless of which Office application I'm using, right?
 
No, that's not the way it works. When you use the File | Send (As Attachment) command, it invokes an interface called "Simple MAPI" that uses a really simple message editor. It can't use WordMail.

A possible solution is to write a little VBA code that (a) creates a new Outlook mail message (which will use WordMail if that's the editor) and (b) saves and attaches the current Excel document.

Word is not an option under email programs, because it is not an email program. It just works with Outlook to allow you to use Word feature when composing an Outlook message.
--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Outlook and Exchange solutions at http://www.slipstick.com
Author of
Microsoft Outlook Programming: Jumpstart
for Administrators, Power Users, and Developers
 
In other words, you're saying in polite language that Microsoft won't
allow one to use Word as the email editor UNLESS they have Outlook 2003
installed. But you're right about the VBA option. I could simply open up
Excel, Word, Access or PowerPoint and create a userbutton with a macro
calling Outlook to open and from there generate the email message. But
you are wrong about Microsoft Word 2003, though. Launch an instance and
if you have Outlook 2003 installed, you should see an email icon in the
Standard toolbar. Click on it and you'll see Word 2003 turn into
WordMail. Once you generate the email message, sending it via Word
doesn't automatically send it to the POP3 server. It goes directly to
the Outlook Outbox folder to be sitting there until you launch Outlook.
And depending on whether you chose the setting to allow it to send
anything immediately or not determines whether the message is
automatically sent out when you open Outlook 2003. Just thought you
should know. :)
 
In other words, you're saying in polite language that Microsoft won't
allow one to use Word as the email editor UNLESS they have Outlook 2003
installed.
Click to expand...

No, that's not what I'm saying at all. The File | Send To | Mail Recipient (as Attachment) command has always used Simple MAPI, which doesn't support WordMail.
you are wrong about Microsoft Word 2003, though. Launch an instance and
if you have Outlook 2003 installed, you should see an email icon in the
Standard toolbar. Click on it and you'll see Word 2003 turn into
WordMail.
Click to expand...

Actually, no, that's not technically WordMail. It's a different way of using Word as the editor to create a message that Outlook will send. This feature is sometimes called "Office Envelope." It takes the current Word document and uses it as the body of an email message. One way you can tell it from WordMail is that this type of message contains a small text entry area just below the Subject line where you can enter a cover note for the document.

This feature works very nicely in Excel, too, making it easy to incorporate an existing worksheet into the message body. I'm less impressed with the way it works with PowerPoint.

--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Outlook and Exchange solutions at http://www.slipstick.com
Author of
Microsoft Outlook Programming: Jumpstart
for Administrators, Power Users, and Developers
 
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