Entourage Separate Window for To:, Cc:, Bcc:. Why?

M

mizu

I have used all of the PC Outlook versions for the past twelve years
including Outlook 2007 which is the default on my PC.

I was wondering why Entourage 2004 has a separate window for the To:,
Cc:, and Bcc: fields.

I'm sorry, but this really drives me nuts from a usability standpoint.

Does anyone know how come this was designed this way and what the
advantage is?

Thank you.

Kurt Vander Bogart
 
A

Adam Bailey

mizu said:
I have used all of the PC Outlook versions for the past twelve years
including Outlook 2007 which is the default on my PC.

I was wondering why Entourage 2004 has a separate window for the To:,
Cc:, and Bcc: fields.

I'm sorry, but this really drives me nuts from a usability standpoint.
Click to expand...

I don't understand what you mean by "separate window." Entourage's method of
addressing is quite similar to Outlook - separate fields in the same
window. Entourage's addressing section expands while you're editing it,
which is great for usability since you can see more.

How exactly does it drive you nuts? Please be more specific.
 
D

Diane Ross

I have used all of the PC Outlook versions for the past twelve years
including Outlook 2007 which is the default on my PC.

I was wondering why Entourage 2004 has a separate window for the To:,
Cc:, and Bcc: fields.

I'm sorry, but this really drives me nuts from a usability standpoint.

Does anyone know how come this was designed this way and what the
advantage is?
Click to expand...

Could you send me a screen shot off list?

Remove the words nospam and invalid before sending.
<[email protected]>
--
Diane Ross, Microsoft Mac MVP
Entourage Help Page
<http://www.entourage.mvps.org/>
The Entourage Blog lists the EHP as one of the top five Microsoft Entourage
resources.
<http://blogs.msdn.com/entourage/>
 
W

William Smith

Adam Bailey said:
I don't understand what you mean by "separate window." Entourage's method of
addressing is quite similar to Outlook - separate fields in the same
window. Entourage's addressing section expands while you're editing it,
which is great for usability since you can see more.
Click to expand...

Really, these aren't separate windows, but separate fields. I'd never
thought of this before, but I do like Outlook's "layout" of these fields
better.

Instead of a "To" field above a "CC" field above a "BCC" field, Outlook
has three long fields across the width of the message window that allow
you to type your addresses from left to right (one after the other)
rather than top to bottom (which results in a scroll bar rather quickly).

To answer the OP's question: it's a "design" thing. Changing the design
would be a great feature request. Be sure to give feedback to Microsoft
using Entourage's Help --> Send Feedback on Entourage menu.

Hope this helps! bill
 
I

incogenator

i have repeated this many times before but will say it again: outlook
is better layed out and better viewable but entourage's 'engine' works
better.

would love to see an outlook front end (its more customizable than
entourage) on entourage.

maybe in their upcoming universal binary version?

-----
 
B

Barry Wainwright [MVP]

I have used all of the PC Outlook versions for the past twelve years
including Outlook 2007 which is the default on my PC.

I was wondering why Entourage 2004 has a separate window for the To:,
Cc:, and Bcc: fields.

I'm sorry, but this really drives me nuts from a usability standpoint.

Does anyone know how come this was designed this way and what the
advantage is?

Thank you.

Kurt Vander Bogart
Click to expand...

From a usability point of view, you can 'tab' between fields
(auto-completing addresses at the same time), or hitting return (or enter)
will close the address fields and move the cursor to the subject line.
 
A

Adam Bailey

William Smith said:
Instead of a "To" field above a "CC" field above a "BCC" field, Outlook
has three long fields across the width of the message window that allow
you to type your addresses from left to right (one after the other)
rather than top to bottom (which results in a scroll bar rather quickly).
Click to expand...

Except I like Entourage's implementation better when you get a long list of
recipients. Outlook's gets unwieldy fast. Good luck finding one recipient in
that soup.
 
M

mizu

I appreciate the feedback from the original post.

Don't get me wrong; I believe that Entourage is a great product under
the hood. However the user interface is not built for speed - unlike
Outlook 2007, 2003, XP, 2000, 97, 95.

Perception wise, what I call a "window" adds a dimension of complexity
to the product because of the "window" overlaying the message area.

Another thing that drives me nuts is doing a "command F" to bring up a
separate find box. Give me Outlooks built in find any day.

Again, Thank you for the intellengent feedback.

Sincerely,


Kurt Vander Bogart
 
L

Larry

I have Entourage 2004, but I can't get the Bcc: fields to show. I can't find
a preference, and the Help is no help. How do I get the Bcc: fields visible?
 
W

William Smith

Larry said:
I have Entourage 2004, but I can't get the Bcc: fields to show. I can't find
a preference, and the Help is no help. How do I get the Bcc: fields visible?
Click to expand...

Hi Larry!

At the top of the email message where you see the "To:" and "Cc:"
fields, click there and you'll be presented with all three fields for
addressing. If you add something here to the "Bcc:" field then it will
automatically appear below the other two fields when you're finished
addressing.

Hope this helps! bill
 
L

Larry

Oh, I see it now. I'm used to Apple's Mail, where it was an option to show
the Bcc: field, and if selected, the Bcc field was always present as a
separate field. I thought I had clicked in the To: field, but apparently not,
because otherwise I would have seen the Bcc: field. Thanks!
 
Top