Applies to
Microsoft Outlook® 2002

Because all e-mail programs are not alike, your message may not look the same in your recipient's e-mail program as it looked when you composed it in Outlook 2002. Following are some e-mail problems you may need to work around for some of your recipients.

HTML formatted message arrives unformatted

If the recipient sees only an unformatted version of an HTML formatted message you sent, or sees an unformatted version with an attachment that repeats the message text, it's because the recipient's e-mail program doesn't understand HTML.

This problem can occur when you send e-mail to recipients who use e-mail programs that can't display HTML. Instead, these programs can only display the plain text version of the message. However, some e-mail programs will also attach the HTML version, in case the recipient wants to use their Web browser (which does understand HTML) to see the fully formatted version of the message.

Recipient's mail supports HTML, but message arrives without formatting or pictures

One of the following might have occurred:

• On the way to the recipient, your message might have been routed through an e-mail server that doesn't support formatted messages. Check with your e-mail system administrator about using the HTML message format.
• After you created the initial message in HTML, you changed the message format, or you created the message in another format and then clicked HTML on the Format menu before sending.
• If a picture is missing, it might be because it wasn't actually stored in your message. Instead, it might be stored on the Internet and appears in the message because of a reference to the picture's location. If your recipient doesn't have access to the Internet, the picture won't appear. By default, Outlook sends a copy of the picture with the message, but you may have changed the default to send the reference to the picture instead. You can resend the message with a copy of the picture. In your Sent Items folder, open the sent message. On the Format menu, click Send Pictures from the Internet. On the Actions menu, click Resend This Message.

To prevent this from happening in the future, reset the default to always add a copy of a picture from the Internet instead of adding a reference to its location. From the main Outlook window, on the Tools menu, click Options. Click the Mail Format tab, and then click Internet Format. Under HTML options, select the When an HTML message contains a picture located on the Internet, send a copy of the picture instead of the reference to its location check box.

HTML formatted message arrives with HTML tags in it

Some older e-mail programs, such as older versions of the PINE e-mail program, have problems displaying the HTML format. The problem in PINE was fixed in later versions, though, so the recipient should consult their e-mail system administrator about upgrading. In the meantime, send messages to this recipient in plain text format.

RTF message arrives unformatted and with attachment named Winmail.dat

The message arrives without formatting or any of its original attachments, but it has a new attachment named Winmail.dat. This occurs when you send a message in Outlook Rich Text format (RTF) but the recipient's e-mail program doesn't understand RTF. If you have Outlook set up to preserve Rich Text format when sending to recipients over the Internet, you can change this setting to convert these messages to a format that works best for the majority of your Internet recipients. Or, if this problem occurs only for a particular recipient, convert RTF messages only for that recipient.

To convert all RTF messages to another format when sent to any Internet recipient

1. From the main Outlook window, on the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Mail Format tab.
2. Click Internet Format.
3. Under Outlook Rich Text options, select the format you want. The recommended setting is Convert to HTML format because most e-mail programs understand this format. It also preserves text formatting, pictures, and other such features in your message.

Note  If you use Convert to plain text format, the message will lose any text formatting (bold, italic, paragraph styles, and so on) that you added.

To convert RTF messages to another format only when sent to a specific Internet recipient

1. If you haven't already done so, add the recipient as a contact.
2. With the contact open, in the E-mail box, double-click the contact's e-mail address.
3. In the Internet Format list, select the format you want to use for messages to this recipient. The recommended setting is Let Outlook decide the best format.

   Note  If you use Plain text, the message will lose any text formatting (bold, italic, paragraph styles, and so on) that you added.

Recipient's mail supports RTF, but message arrives unformatted

You might not have actually sent RTF to that recipient. Even if you created the message using the RTF message format, by default, Outlook converts all RTF messages to HTML when sent over the Internet. However, you can change this default so Outlook preserves the Rich Text format for all of these types of messages that go to an Internet recipient. Only do this if you know that the majority of these recipients use Outlook or the Exchange Client.

To preserve RTF format for messages sent to any Internet recipients

1. From the main Outlook window, on the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Mail Format tab.
2. Click Internet Format.
3. Under Outlook Rich Text options, select Send using Outlook Rich Text format.

To preserve RTF format for messages sent to a particular Internet recipient

1. If you haven't already done so, add the recipient as a contact.
2. With the contact open, in the E-mail box, double-click the contact's e-mail address.
3. In the Internet Format list, select Send using Outlook Rich Text format.

Note  If you create messages in plain text or HTML, this setting will also convert those messages to RTF when sent to the specified contact.

If you're using Microsoft Outlook with Microsoft Exchange Server, the Exchange system administrator might have prohibited sending RTF formatted messages to Internet recipients.

I sent a meeting request over the Internet, but the recipient received a regular message.

Meeting requests are created in Rich Text format, but by default, Outlook 2002 converts them to Internet (iCal) format when you send them over the Internet. One of the following situations may have occurred.

The request was sent in iCal format, but the recipient is using Outlook 98 or 97, which only support RTF format for requests. Do one of the following:

To reserve RTF format for a request sent to a particular Internet recipient

1. If you haven't already done so, add the recipient as a contact.
2. With the contact open, in the E-mail box, double-click the contact's e-mail address.
3. In the Internet Format list, select Send using Outlook Rich Text format.

To preserve RTF format for a specific request

• While you're in the request, on the Actions menu, click Forward as iCalendar to clear the check mark.

You changed the default so that requests are sent as Rich Text format, but the recipient's e-mail program only understands iCal. Create a new request and enable the setting that converts it to iCal format. While you're in the new request, on the Actions menu, click Forward as iCalendar to select the setting. (A check mark indicates the option is selected.)

Some recipients can't see form fields in messages that I send.

If you use Microsoft Word as your e-mail editor and you send a message that contains a form field, such as a drop-down list, only recipients who are also using Word as their e-mail editor will be able to see the form field. If you want recipients who are not using Word as their e-mail editor to see a form field, attach a document containing the form field to the message.

My e-mail messages look different on other computers.

If you use Microsoft Word 97 as your e-mail editor, recipients of your messages who don't use Word as their e-mail editor might not be able to see some formatting, such as borders, highlighted text, numbered lists, and floating drawings. Also, other e-mail editors might display tables as tab-delimited text and all bullets as round bullets.