Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 can be used with several instant messaging services. These services allow you to see the current availability of others and to start a real-time, online conversation with them.

• About instant messaging services

• Services compatible with Outlook

• Turn online status on or off in Outlook

• Send an instant message

About instant messaging services

Instant messaging services have grown beyond just real-time text chats. You can now use audio and video with your chats, share applications, transfer files, and more.

Visual representations of other people's availability, called online presence or status, permit you to instantly know if a person is online and available for a real-time conversation. Functionality varies among the instant messaging clients, including text chatting, audio and video conferencing, file sharing, and remote assistance collaboration by allowing others to temporarily take control of your computer.

You control how your online status appears to others. For example, if you are busy and unable to talk, you can change your online status to Busy. Microsoft Office Communicator can also be connected to an organization's phone system allowing you to get on-screen alerts of incoming calls and reroute calls to another phone. When you are on the phone, your online status can automatically be changed to alert others that you are not available.

 Note   The online status choices available in each service vary. See the Help included with each service for available choices.

When you open a message in Outlook or when it is displayed in the Reading Pane, the online status of the sender is shown beside the sender's name. In addition, each name on the To and Cc lines displays the online status when you rest the pointer on the name.

 Top of Page

Services compatible with Outlook

Office Outlook 2007 can be used with several instant messaging services, including Microsoft Windows Live Messenger and Microsoft Office Communicator. With these services, you can communicate with your contacts in real time as you would during an in-person conversation. Additional collaborative features are included with each service as well.

• Microsoft Windows Live Messenger   With this successor to MSN Messenger 7.5, you can chat online via text, voice or have a video conversation — in real time — with your friends, family, or colleagues. Remote Assistance lets you connect to a friend or support professional who can view your computer desktop over the Internet and show you how to fix your problem. In some situations, you can also communicate with people using other instant messaging services. Windows Live Messenger is available as a free download from Microsoft.
• Microsoft Office Communicator   Microsoft Office Communicator is an integrated communications client enabling information workers to communicate in real time. As the recommended client for Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2005, Communicator integrates with Microsoft Office System applications and enterprise telephony infrastructure. In some situations, you can also communicate with people using other instant messaging services, including MSN Messenger, and from companies such as Yahoo! or AOL.
• Microsoft MSN Messenger   With MSN Messenger you can chat online via text, voice or have a video conversation — in real time — with your friends, family, or colleagues. Remote Assistance lets you connect to a friend or support professional who can view your computer desktop over the Internet and show you how to fix your problem.
• Microsoft Windows Messenger   Windows Messenger is included with Microsoft Windows XP. Windows Messenger lets you instantly communicate with friends and family all around the world from your computer, using text chat and even voice and video. Remote Assistance lets you connect to a friend or support professional who can view your computer desktop over the Internet and show you how to fix your problem. Windows Messenger gives you control over whom you talk to and when by letting you block certain users, view the typing status of online contacts, and control who adds you to their contact list.

For an Outlook contact, the online status is displayed when you rest the pointer on the person's e-mail address. In a new meeting request, the online status is displayed when you rest the pointer on the attendee's name.

Online status is available for any person whose instant messaging e-mail address you have added to your instant messaging contact list. In addition, online status is shown for people using Microsoft Office Communicator, regardless of whether or not they are on your instant messaging contact list.

 Top of Page

Turn online status on or off in Outlook

In Outlook, you can add the instant messaging address of each Outlook contact to the IM address text box for that contact. When this contact sends you e-mail from the e-mail address saved in your Contacts, the instant messaging address is used to determine their online status.

1. On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Other tab.
2. Under Person Names, select the Display online status next to a person name check box.
3. Optionally, select the Display online status in the To and Cc fields only when mouse pointer rests on a person name check box.

 Note   This option allows you to still see online status information, but only when you rest the pointer on a name.

 Top of Page

Send an instant message

You can send an instant message to any person whose online status indicates anything except an Offline status.

1. Next to the person's name, click the online status indicator.
2. Click Send Instant Message.
3. Compose your message, and then click Send.

   If you have an e-mail message open, you can reply with an instant message to the sender or the sender and all recipients of the message. On the Message tab, in the Respond group, click IM, and then click Reply with an Instant Message or Reply All with an Instant Message.

   

 Notes 

• Online status is available for any person whose instant messaging e-mail address you have added to your instant messaging contact list. In addition, online status is shown for people using Office Communicator, regardless of whether or not they are on your contact list.
• When you open a message in Microsoft Outlook, or when it is displayed in the Reading Pane, the online status of a person is shown beside the sender's name. In addition, if you enabled this option, each name on the To and Cc lines will display the online status when you rest the pointer on the name.

  See the Turn online status on or off in Outlook section for instructions on how to change this option.

 Top of Page