Outlook FAQs
Outlook Exchange Online FAQ
Since the District-wide migration to Office 365 Cloud based services, we have continued to use familiar products like Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook mail. We have also had the opportunity to expand our use of the Microsoft product line by exploring such products such as OneDrive, Yammer, Sites, and Sway to name a few. As is with all new versions of Microsoft products, features are removed and some new features are added.
To provide clarity to some of the new features in MS Exchange Online, we would like to take this opportunity to provide an overview of one new features, “Clutter”, as well as a review of a feature that has been with us for a while, “Junk Mail”. Both of these features are part of the Microsoft Outlook Mail client, that are part of the Online (cloud), and offline (desktop) versions. Below is an FAQ to provide clarity. In addition, please feel free to reach out to the site technician.
Q. What is the new Feature called “Clutter”?
A. Microsoft developed clutter as an Artificial Intelligence feature in Outlook mail to be somewhat of a personal assistant for a user in processing incoming emails. It learns what the user considers important and less important. In the process, it gradually starts to filter lower priority items into the “Clutter” folder. Nothing is deleted, just moved, so as to keep your inbox, as Microsoft puts it, “CLUTTER FREE”.
Q. What is “Junk Mail”?
A. Where Clutter builds its Knowledge or database, based on user email reading habits, choices and actions within the email client, the “Microsoft Junk Mail” database has been built over the years based on what Microsoft considers to be junk\spam. Thus, the user does not initially have control over what gets put in the Junk Mail folder. However, the user can "teach" the mail client to reroute wanted mail back to the In Box. See Junk Mail Settings on how this is done.
Both of these features, Clutter and Junk mail, can be more easily compared to for example to yet another Microsoft Outlook feature that a user may be more familiar with called “Rules” (or Inbox Rules).
Q. What are “Inbox Rules”?
A. Inbox rules allows users to reroute mail or respond to mail automatically. For example, if a user wants all of their emails from their immediate supervisor to go to a specific folder, they can create a rule to route mail to a folder they created called Supervisor. Also, the "Out of Office" automatic reply is a type of rule.
All three of these features can be classified as Spam Filters, the only difference is who\what, decides\creates, the rules for each item that arrives in your Inbox.
Q. How do all of these feature compare with one another?
A. “Junk Mail” are Rules Microsoft creates and manages.
“Clutter “are rules created Automatically based on a users’ email reading habits, choices and actions within the email client. It is probably a good place to mention that “these rules are not managed or influenced in any way by the Educational Technology and Support team”. It is simply based on your personal email reading habits, choices and actions within the email client.
“Inbox Rules” are rules the user creates Manually.
Q. As new emails arrive in a users’ inbox, with all these features working at the same time, which one has priority,
and who decides what happens in each rule?
A. “Junk Mail” Rules take first priority. As emails arrive, if a user has added specific emails or domains, back into their Inbox.
“Inbox Rules” are next to be processed.
“Clutter “rules are processed last.
Q. How do I turn Clutter On and Off?
A. Sign in to Office 365 > Select the MAIL App > Click on the Settings Gear > Options > Mail > Automatic processing > Clutter.
> To turn on – Select Choose Separate items identified as Clutter, then Save > To turn off – Select Choose Don't Separate items identified as Clutter, then Save
Q. How do I "teach" Microsoft Outlook Mail to route messages out of Junk Mail to the Inbox?
A. Sign in to Office 365 > Select the MAIL App > Click on the Settings Gear > Options > Mail > Accounts > Block or Allow > Safe Senders > > In the box the reads " Type in a sender or domain here", the user types in a specific email address or domain name that should not be processed as Junk mail.
Examples:
@intel.com or [email protected]
It is recommended that the user type in a specific email address of a known recipient, as opposed to choosing to designating an entire domain as not Junk mail.
Q. How do I create an "Out of Office Reply"?
A. Sign in to Office 365 > Select the MAIL App > Click on the Settings Gear > Automatic Replies
Q. How do I create a rule to route mail to a specific folder?
A. Sign in to Office 365 > Select the MAIL App > Click on the Settings Gear > Options > Mail > Automatic processing > Inbox and Sweep rules
Q. How do I create a signature?
A. Sign in to Office 365 > In Office 365, choose the Mail app> Options > Mail > Layout > Email Signature
Q. How do I add my picture to my profile?
A. Sign in to Office 365 > In Office 365, choose the user photo box
> Change > Click Browse > select the picture, and select save.