Solved Opening Outlook.com mail from the Windows 8 desktop

I rarely use my name@outlook.com email account for email, but once in a while I need to as Microsoft sends and email there.

I can get to it no problem via a web browser, going to hotmail.com or outlook.com

Other than a shortcut, is there no way to open email from Windows 8 desktop, like is done for Calendar and Contacts? When I click on the Mail icon, the most obvious icon of choice, all it does is prompt me for other email accounts. It wont take me to my inbox.

Not a big deal, and I get the email forwarded, but just curious.

You can add the outlook account to your mail app (which is not on the desktop). I don't know if you've set up any account previously or not, but here is how you set it up: Setting up email - Windows tutorial

What I've done for some is to go to the Outlook.com Web page for E-Mail then click and drag the small icon at the left end of the Address onto the Desktop, much the same as dragging it to the Favorites Toolbar if it is showing.

As DustSailor said. Use the default mail app in windows. Then simply set it up using the outlook account

I personally don't care for the built-in mail app so I installed Windows Live Mail and use that instead.

You could install any number of mail clients. Thunderbird is another possibility.

Using the default mail app for Windows is precisely what I am trying to do.

But, I am in a Microsoft madness circle. When I go to Accounts, it already displays the outlook address ( ie its already added) And if I try go add other email account, and explicitly add that outlook address, it of course tells I cant as its already in use, which it indeed is, And I cannot delete my main account, as then i will never ever be able to log in to my machine ever again.

When I try to launch Mail, ,as per my original post, all it does it ask me to add other accounts. It does not launch an email app. Is there some hidden top secret invisible icon on that page that I am supposed to know about?I've been using Outlook 2010 for email, so I will just stick with that.

Thanks to all for trying.

Hey mate,

You might try 1. troubleshooting the app and 2. troubleshooting your account within the app.

See: Troubleshoot problems with an app - Windows Help to troubleshoot apps, Troubleshooting the Modern Mail App on Windows 8 - TechNet Articles - United States (English) - TechNet Wiki to troubleshoot the modern mail app, and problems with windows 8 mail app - Microsoft Community to see solutions another had with the mail app, and possibly Mail app for Windows - Windows Help to go through and ensure it is set up correctly

Some of those links actually look familiar, I guess I was down this road before.

If I go to Mail, where I only see the add more accounts screen, I tried to add the outlolok account form there, but it said it was already added/..same issue as before...so as a test I added one of my gmail accounts, and lo and behold I now see the native Mail email app.

But now I cannot see where to remove the gmail account i just added, or for that matter add another. There is nothing obvious under Mail or Account.s this is typically Microsoft. You need to google or join a forum or read a dozen page tutorial, just to have half a chance at figuring anything out.

Mediaman09 said:

Some of those links actually look familiar, I guess I was down this road before.

If I go to Mail, where I only see the add more accounts screen, I tried to add the outlolok account form there, but it said it was already added/..same issue as before...so as a test I added one of my gmail accounts, and lo and behold I now see the native Mail email app.

But now I cannot see where to remove the gmail account i just added, or for that matter add another. There is nothing obvious under Mail or Account.s this is typically Microsoft. You need to google or join a forum or read a dozen page tutorial, just to have half a chance at figuring anything out.

Click to expand...

You can use the tutorial I posted earlier on how to do it, you just click 'remove an account' on the left side menu: Remove an account - Windows Help - But I wonder if you'll just be in the same situation as before. It is hard for me to help without being there in person, so I apologize that it isn't a simple solution

[FONT=WOL_Reg]Ya, I tried to remove the account using those intructions, but no joy ... it says "Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and then tap [/FONT][FONT=WOL_Bold]Settings[/FONT][FONT=WOL_Reg, Segoe UI, Tahoma, Helvetica, sans-serif]." ... I get nothing when I do that in Mail.

And I cannot find any other way to get to Mail Settings. Like a click or a right click or a menu item. or a different swipe, or gesture or a smack at the front of the screen, or a whack at the back of the screen. [/FONT][FONT=WOL_Reg, Segoe UI, Tahoma, Helvetica, sans-serif] (What were they smoking when they developed this o/s? Would it really have been so hard to add a menu?).

Control Panel has a Mall icon but that's for different settings.[/FONT]

Question - On page 2 of the start menu, where I launch the mail icon . I can right click and uninstall . Suppose i do that. From where would I re-install the Mail app?

UPDATE

Found a thread that confined you need to search for the app in the Windows store to reinstall it. I searched and it did not show up. Others also commented the same. What a joke. Also uninstalling the Mail app also uninstalls Calendar and Contacts, which I dont really want to do just yet.

So, I have a native Mail app with no way to get to Mail settings. And no way to easily delete it.

I just plain give up on this native app... Life is short. Bigger fish to fry.

Frankly, you aren't missing much. It's not a very good mail app anyway.

Don't understand why you are having the issues you are having, it really shouldn't be that difficult.

When I opened mine, it had the question posed, but allowed me to say 'no thanks'. You HAVE TO let it load. The bigger your trash, sent, and inboxes are the LONGER it takes! Your home internet bandwidth makes a difference too.

And the settings are on the far right side in the thing called settings. Then you go to 'accounts'. To access the 'swipe in from right' (you'd probably just use the mouse), see this video tutorial: Getting started tutorials for Windows - Windows tutorial

See mine below:

Clearly there is something off. I too do not understand why I am having issues here.

When I go to the charm bars and select Setting and Accounts, I see the login accounts to my computer ; I do not not see any email accounts.

How do I get to the "Mail" settings? The one that allows me to add or remove more email/yahoo/gmail/ exchange accounts? If I could get to those settings, I may be able to move forward. Right now when I hit Mail, it opens to the GMail account I added earlier in this thread as a test. Now that its ts added, I have no way to remove it, and no way to add other email accounts, as I have no ability to get to Mail settings.

OK figured it out.....finally

It was two issues:
1) Something is off with my charms bar.... but when I did a Windows C with the Gmail account I was able see the proper setting for email accounts, and thus able to delete Gmail Account
2) the Outlook email account was listed, even though Mail did not take me there and only prompted me for more accounts, and all that was because the Email check box within the settings was unchecked.

Sheesh!..

I will google/search the charms bar issue to see what that one is about.