Outlook 2000 in a Nutshell

Chapter 17. Outlook and Exchange

Microsoft’s Exchange Server is a powerful messaging platform. Used in conjunction with Outlook, it opens up a whole new world of collaboration capabilities. It also opens a whole new way of using Outlook. Exchange information stores are server-based, which opens up a host of connectivity and storage location issues. Mail rules are now implemented on the server (at least most are) and adopt the term “Out of Office Replies.” Exchange folders support multiuser access, making them ideal for sharing information. But Exchange is run on a server, so user access is dictated by permissions. In short, all these features and functionality add yet another layer of complexity to an already diverse application.

One chapter does not do justice to the topic of using Outlook as a client to Exchange—the features unique to this platform, and how to use those features, could easily fill a whole book (yes, we’re thinking about it). In this chapter, we focus on using the collaboration tools available under Exchange: Public Folders, Delegate folders, and shared folders. In addition, we touch on setting up and using Offline folders, creating Out of Office Replies, and message recall. The chapter ends with a troubleshooting section that details some of the common problems Outlook users face specific to Exchange.

Keep in mind that Exchange Servers are lorded over by an administrator (sometimes fervently). Every object on an Exchange Server has an associated set of permissions ...