News

Microsoft has begun sending out upgrade notices for the Outlook Connector. However, it appears that the download link given still points to the old Outlook Connector version (version 12.1).

To get rid of the endless loop, download the latest version of the Outlook Hotmail Connector (version 14.0) from the correct location;

Download: Outlook Hotmail Connector 32-bit

Download: Outlook Hotmail Connector 64-bit

Note: You will only need to install the 64-bit version when you are using the 64-bit version of Outlook 2010.

A new Hotfix has been released for Outlook 2007 that solves 16 issues in total.

The most notable fix is for people that sync with a Windows Mobile device. Here it could happen that a yearly recurring event created on your Windows Mobile device turned into a recurring event of once every 12 years (instead of once every 12 months).

For the full list of issues solved see KB981048

In addition to this language generic hotfix, 2 language specific hotfixes have been released;

KB982337 : Update for the Spanish version of Outlook (es-es).

KB981980 : Update for the English and Hebrew version of Outlook (en-us) (he-il)

Since these are hotfixes and not regular updates, you won’t be offered this update via Microsoft Update but will have to request it. You can do this at the information page of each hotfix.

If you are not (seriously) effected by any of these issues, it is recommended to wait for the next Service Pack or regular Rollup Update which will most likely contain all these fixes as well.

The Outlook Hotmail Connector 14 has come out of the BETA stages as well. The Outlook Hotmail Connector can be used to sync your Live Hotmail emails, contacts and calendar items with Outlook 2003, Outlook 2007 and Outlook 2010.

Download: Outlook Hotmail Connector 32-bit

Download: Outlook Hotmail Connector 64-bit

Note 1: You will only need to install the 64-bit version when you are using the 64-bit version of Outlook 2010.

Note 2: If you are using an earlier version of Outlook, you can still connect to your Live Hotmail account via POP3.

If you are an MSDN or TechNet subscriber, you can now download the RTM release of Office 2010 Professional Plus in both the 64-bit and 32-bit edition. The version number is; 14.0.4763.1000

Besides English, the following languages can be downloaded as well;

Fresh, German, Spanish, Dutch, Italian, Portuguese-Brazil, Russian, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), Korean and Japanese.

I’m sure I’ve overlooked a couple of languages (it’s a long list) so take a look for yourself if you’ve got a subscription. If you don’t have a subscription, see this post including all the release dates to determine when it will become available to you.

Looking forward to Office 2010? You can already download the Office 2010 Product guides to see what’s new in the Office 2010 applications including Office Web Apps and Office Mobile. The Outlook 2010 Product Guide alone counts 65 pages.

Download: Office 2010: Product Guides

With over 16.000 votes on the printing poll, I thought it was about time (actually way overdue) to start a new poll.

So, now that Office 2010 has reached the RTM status, when will you upgrade?

You can cast your vote on the front page or view the results of the current and past polls on the poll archive page.

The Office Team has announced that Office 2010 has reached release-to-manufacturing (RTM) milestone! This means that development work is done and that they are now preparing product packaging and making it available to you.

The following launch dates have been announced;

-April 22: Office 2010 RTM will become available for MSDN and TechNet customers.

-April 27: English version will be made available to Volume License Customers with Software Assurance (SA).

-May 1: Volume License Customers without SA will be able to purchase the new Office 2010 products.

-May 12: Official launch of Office 2010 for business customers.

-June (15): Office 2010 will become available for for everyone.

Note: The Office 2010 BETA will expire on October 31, 2010.

Together with Microsoft Security Bulletin MS10-024 came out updates for all major Exchange versions. While the security vulnerability does not have a security impact for Exchange 2007 and Exchange 2010, the released update rollup do contain fixes for these issues. As they are update rollups, they also contain fixes for other issues (non security related).

Security Update for Exchange 2000 Server Service Pack 3

Download details Security Update for Exchange 2000 Server (KB976703)

MS10-024 Description of the security update for Exchange 2000 Server April 13, 2010

Security Update for Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 2

Download details Security Update for Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 2 (KB976702)

MS10-024 Description of the security update for Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 2 April 13, 20

Update Rollup 10 for Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1

Download details Update Rollup 10 for Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1 (KB981407)

Description of Update Rollup 10 for Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1

Update Rollup 4 for Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 2

Download details Update Rollup 4 for Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 2 (KB981383)

Description of Update Rollup 4 for Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 2

Update Rollup 3 for Exchange Server 2010

Download details Update Rollup 3 for Exchange Server 2010 (KB981401)

Description of Update Rollup 3 for Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 Release to Manufacturing

Cleaning up your mailbox… Like many, it’s probably a chore you putt of usually because you don’t know where to start and thinking that it will take forever to do it. This really doesn’t have to be the case.

I’ve updated my guide with strategies on how to clean up your mailbox quickly and effectively. With the tips in this guide, you can make your mailbox much more manageable again and have the benefits of finding things back quicker, a more responsive Outlook and shorter backup times. Don’t you wish you had done it sooner now?

View HowTo guide: Tips for cleaning up your mailbox

The popular FAQ article “Outlook doesn’t start” has been rewritten completely and now includes more details, screenshots and step-by-step instruction to assist you with getting Outlook back to work again in case it won’t start for you.

Since there are a plethora of reasons why Outlook doesn’t start and each have their own solution, the guide now starts of with a few easy questions to determine the scope of the issue and recommends you where you should start troubleshooting. This way you won’t have to waste time with solutions that won’t apply to your issue.