Open the Tools menu and select Options to open the Options dialog box to the Preferences tab.
Click the E-mail Options button to open the E-mail Options dialog box; the current settings are the Outlook defaults.
Click Close Original Message on Reply or Forward so anytime you reply to or forward a message, the original message window will automatically be closed.
INTRODUCTION
After you get used to working with email, you will find that you have individual preferences you associate with the emails you send to and receive from others. For example, when replying to a message, some people don't like to have the original message as part of the email (the default is to display the original at the bottom of the reply). As another example, you can have all the email you receive appear as regular text if you don't want to view message formatting. Test drive Outlook's various email preferences to see what you like best.
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Other Options
You might have noticed that the first Options dialog box contains buttons to change the options for the Calendar, Tasks, Contacts, Journal, and Notes. You can click these buttons to review the Outlook defaults and make changes as you like.
Click the down arrow next to the When Replying to a Message field and choose how you want the original message handled.
Click the down arrow next to the When Forwarding a Message field and choose how you want the original message handled.
Click the OK button in the E-mail Options dialog box to accept your changes.
Click the OK button in the Options dialog box to apply your changes and return to working in Outlook.
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Mail Setup
Click the Mail Setup tab on the Options dialog box and set up additional email accounts by clicking the E-mail Accounts button. For example, suppose you have a temporary email account on Yahoo.com that you want to periodically check; you can instruct Outlook to check for email on this account each time you send or receive messages (or immediately, if you have the Send Immediately When Connected option checked in the Options dialog box). In addition, the Send/Receive button enables you to specify which email accounts are checked when, and in what order.
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Spelling
The Spelling tab on the Options dialog box enables you to request that your emails be automatically spell-checked before your email is sent (after you click the Send button). This is a convenient feature you should always select.