What's new in Microsoft Entourage 2004

To learn more about a specific Microsoft Entourage 2004 feature, search for the feature in Entourage Help.

Project Center

Microsoft Entourage 2004 introduces the Project Center, which provides a single, consolidated view of all information related to a project. At a glance, you can see all the e-mail messages, people, meetings, documents, and Scrapbook clips associated with a project. You can also share project data with other Entourage 2004 users, making it easier for everyone to keep current with the latest project information.

To open a project in Entourage 2004, click the Project Center icon.

You must use Entourage 2004 to create a project, but you can connect to the Project Center in Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, or Microsoft Excel by using the Project Palette. To use the Project Palette, on the Tools menu, click Project Palette, and then click Go to Project Center.

Junk E-mail Protection

The easy-to use Junk E-mail Protection in Entourage 2004 identifies and filters out more unwanted messages than ever before, allowing you to focus on the e-mail messages that matter most. Junk E-mail Protection is set to low by default, but you can choose from different levels and options to determine the level of protection that is right for you.

To set Junk E-mail Protection options in Entourage, on the Tools menu, click Junk E-mail Protection.

Preview Pane improvements

Entourage 2004 makes managing even the largest Inbox fast and easy. With the improved Preview Pane view, you can now display e-mail messages in a three-column view and quickly view the contents of a message without opening the message in a separate window.

To switch to Preview Pane view, on the View menu, point to Preview Pane, and then click the option you want.

Archiving

Entourage 2004 makes it easy for you to identify and manage your archived data. You can now archive your mail, tasks, contacts, Calendar, and notes in a single package that you can save and access later. In addition, you can also archive your Project Center information.

Entourage Setup Assistant improvements

Start sending and receiving e-mail faster in Entourage 2004 by using the improved Entourage Setup Assistant. The Entourage Setup Assistant walks you through the account setup process step by step and helps you to automatically configure your e-mail accounts and begin using Entourage without entering a lot of information.

The Entourage Setup Assistant appears the first time you open Entourage, but you can also start it later. On the Tools menu, click Accounts, and then click New.

MSN Messenger integration

With the Microsoft MSN Messenger for Mac 4.0 instant messaging program, you can have a real-time conversation with a group of friends. Combined with Entourage, MSN Messenger allows you to do the following:

• When new e-mail messages arrive in your e-mail accounts, MSN Messenger automatically alerts you to new mail.
• When you create a new contact in Entourage or MSN Messenger, you have the option of adding the contact information to both programs; MSN Messenger addresses are added to the Names E-mail tab in the Entourage Address Book.
• Each contact card in the Entourage Address Book contains an integrated MSN Messenger menu so that you can quickly sign in to MSN Messenger, send an instant message to the contact, or view recent instant message conversations.
• If you have signed up for Microsoft .NET Alerts from a .NET Alerts provider, these alerts now appear in MSN Messenger.

Word integration

In Microsoft Office 2004, you can send your document via e-mail, right from Microsoft Word. Word gives you the full range of formatting options, such as tables and styles, which allows you more control over how your e-mail looks. Once your message is formatted the way you want, Word converts the document to HTML and sends it through Entourage, with no extra steps required.

To send a Word document via e-mail, in Word on the File menu, point to Send to, and then click Mail Recipient (as HTML).

Calendar view

Print better-looking calendars than ever before in Entourage 2004! You can choose which calendar information you want to print, such as tasks, items in a certain project, items in a certain category, and so on.

To change the information that appears in your Entourage calendar, click Calendar , and then choose the options you want from the pop-up menus on the right of the screen.

MapPoint integration

Entourage 2004 now offers MapPoint integration. You can view a contact's address on a map and get driving directions directly from Entourage. MapPoint now supports more countries than ever before.

To view a map or get driving directions, open a contact in Entourage, and then choose the option you want from the Address Actions menu.

Improved threading and grouping

In Entourage 2004, you can:

• Group messages by subject thread and by other information such as date, subject, and size.
• Group all messages about the same topic, indenting replies and producing a cascading "waterfall" effect that makes it easier to follow the flow of discussion.
• Sort, collapse, or expand your threads or groups to make it easier to locate and manage important items in even the most cluttered Inbox.

Exchange server support improvements

If you are part of an organization that uses an Exchange server to store information, such as e-mail messages, contacts, and Calendar items, you can now access this information from your Macintosh computer. All of your Entourage messages are continually and automatically synchronized with the information on your Exchange server. The new Account Setup Assistant makes setting up an e-mail account easier than ever and verifies your settings for you.

Message security

You can use encryption to protect the contents of the messages you send. You can also use digital ID signatures to assure message recipients that the message is really from you and to verify the sender of signed messages you receive.