Microsoft's many Outlooks are confusing users - including its own employees

Baffled by the plethora of Outlook options out there? You aren't alone. Microsoft veteran Scott Hanselman posted a list of some more variants that could be used to do the same thing.

It's a problem common to several Microsoft products. A file needs to be opened, but which app should be used? Should it be Outlook New, or Outlook (New)? With tongue firmly in cheek, Hanselman listed some more options: Outlook (Zero Sugar), Outlook (Caffeine Free), and so on.

Hanselman, Developer Community veep at Microsoft, also included Outlook '95, although to our mind the peak came with the version of Outlook in Office 97. A happier, more trusting time when security was less important.

While users can create multiple Outlook profiles to store email account details and data locations, Hanselman's post on Bluesky highlights an issue facing many users of Microsoft's software: which incarnation of the application to use.

Teams users often find themselves presented with a variety of applications - Microsoft Teams and Microsoft Teams (Personal), for example, can often appear side by side in the system tray.

As for Outlook, users are likely to have multiple versions installed. Microsoft forced the new version onto devices as part of a Windows update and renamed the previous version to Outlook (Classic) so the pair could run side by side. While support for the Classic version of Outlook will persist until at least 2029, Microsoft would like users to move to the new version despite it lacking many of its predecessor's functions.

According to Microsoft: "The new Outlook for Windows, built upon modern service architecture, is inspired by the Outlook web experience." It also does not support the COM add-ins used by many enterprises to glue corporate workflows together.

Currently, the new Outlook is at the opt-in stage and is off by default. It will then proceed to an opt-out stage, where users must actively switch back to the Classic experience before the Cutover stage, after which reversal is no longer possible. Microsoft says it will give administrators at least 12 months' notice before this is implemented in production rings.

Existing perpetual installations of classic Outlook "will continue to be supported until at least 2029," according to Microsoft.

There is a cautionary tale about what happened when a soft drinks company tried to replace a well-liked product with a "new" version and renamed the previous preferred version as "classic."

The list posted by Hanselman - who is also notable for tips on managing Microsoft's personal information manager - is amusing, but also highlights the perils of having multiple, similarly functioning options to do the same thing, and the potential for confusing users.

Outlook (Stable and Fast) anyone? ®