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Microsoft Takes Email Design Back Five Years

campaignmonitor.com — This is incredible - must read...

Who dugg this? Made popular Jan 12, 2007

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  • roosterjm2k2, on 10/12/2007, -19/+257Actually, I like this! I welcome it.

    I've grown tired of seeing an entire freaking website layout in my email...Send the info you need to convey, or get out.

    99.9% usefull emails sent are person to person...all the fancy crap is majority spam/junk anyways...even newsletters...they overdo it...
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -17/+245E-mail was never meant to be used as a web browser replacement. As much as I think Microsoft are fools for doing this, so are the newsletter designers who've been making fully-functional websites and sending them out as is.

    If you want your "clients" to read a website, include a link in your e-mail instructing them to go to said website using a web browser, not forcing them to load it inside their inbox.

    In my experience, the #1 reason people in the work place rely on Outlook so exclusively is because they can easily send Word documents and Excell spreadsheets inside the e-mail, thus merging their "office" productivity in a Windows environment. I have never seen people rely on Outlook to send each other full-blown websites masquerading as e-mail.
  • radicaldementia, on 10/12/2007, -26/+120This really makes me angry. I would love to just say to hell with MS, but you can't do that because so many people use Outlook. You can try to convince them to move to something like Thunderbird, but most won't. The average email user has no idea what CSS or any of this means, and they're just gonna think you aren't good enough to make email work in Outlook.

    I'm usually not a MS basher, but I really hate that helpless feeling that there's nothing we can do about it.
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -14/+107I have never liked HTML mail anyway. I wish people would stick to using plain text. email was designed well before HTML and I pisses people off that can't support HTML (I actually use PINE !). The worst offenders are companies that try to embed PDF's into emails. This has never worked on any email client I have used.
  • Pile, on 10/12/2007, -10/+93I'm against HTML e-mail anyway. If you want multimedia crap, you put a web address in the e-mail. E-mail is for words. When you put images and other stuff (aside from attachments) you create security and privacy/tracking issues.
  • bias, on 10/12/2007, -35/+115You people are the one who wanted to get IE out of Windows, so STOP ***** CRYING, who cares about HTML Emails!?
  • chrisirmo, on 10/12/2007, -39/+114This is absolutely amazing. Despite the many other problems that Outlook has, I could always count on it to be one of the few email clients to consistently render CSS. Why would Microsoft throw that completely out the window?

    I design newsletters for a B2B client, where more than 90% of the readers use Outlook and have been seeing everything just as it was designed. Now, I and other designers must learn to use those hated tables all over again -- just when we thought it was finally safe to rid our brains of that useless information -- just to appease one of Bill Gates' whims.

    The screenshots included in this article prove just how much of a step backwards we're taking.
  • barneytoe, on 10/12/2007, -6/+79As bad as Outlook is, I thanked the Lord the day I was able to say goodbye to Lotus Notes. Save the "but it's powerful, but it's a DB, blah blah" comments please. It's a parasite that weaves its tentacles throughout the back office and becomes impossible to remove.
  • joeyjojo, on 10/12/2007, -10/+81THIS IS A GOOD THING!

    HTML email is an annoyance I can live without. This is a feature MS has created and I am thrilled about it.

    HTML belongs in a web browser. Not my email.
  • chriskzoo, on 10/12/2007, -6/+76I cannot think of a single email that requires CSS/HTML rendering that is not an ad or spam, so who really cares?
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -5/+72There are many who think email should be plain text format.
  • 10001110101, on 10/12/2007, -6/+66@roosterjim & ilyak: Bravo! You hit the nail on the head. I consistently set Outlook to send emails as plain text. If a newsletter has so much rich content that it needs a web broswer to render it, then send a link to the content and LET IT BE RENDERED IN A BROWSER!

    I've been using Outlook 2007 since mid-December, and I love it. Best release to date. Having RSS feeds show up like emails is wicked.

    However, the one thing that really pisses me off is they've removed the ability to cancel a meeting without sending a notification. That is, when you cancel a meeting you either have to "Send Cancellation" or "Discard Changes". Fooey to that :(
  • theonlyvlad, on 10/12/2007, -5/+60thank god! The amount of full HTML emails (CSS and fancy junk) that I want to read is... 0. They're mostly ***** newsletters from retailers, whose meaning I can deduct without the use of their images and formatting.

    p.s. - i don't understand why the writer is as scared/excited over this like it's an apocalypse. Call me when Microsoft starts serving human flesh at company luncheons. That would be a story.
  • scorwitz, on 10/12/2007, -2/+54One positive is that annoying coworkers won't be able to create cute stationery to send cute emails to their cute little friends, with script signatures, emoticons galore and pics of kitties and puppies playing.

    Seriously, why does anyone need to send HTML email. With the exception of some Bold, Italics and Underlining, I would leave the HTML and CSS to the web site and make the email plain text.
  • XSaYnt, on 10/12/2007, -8/+59Everyone shed a tear for the poor spammers who have to work harder to redesign their emails.
  • thcobbs, on 10/12/2007, -3/+47Good, gives everyone a good reason to do text only.

    edit: Thanks, for the confirmation RealHyperX...
  • wildfire, on 10/12/2007, -3/+38You may want to consult Clippy for some writing advice on that letter.
  • jasmNK, on 10/12/2007, -10/+45Good for MS. All emails should be plain text.
  • cliffzdude, on 10/12/2007, -1/+34More and more enterprises are stripping all html out of email at their email gateway. It really cuts down on nefarious crap, and renders spam that does make it thru your filtering far less harmful to concentration levels. You really don't need a spam getting through and eating bandwidth rendering a page durtybottomspankers.com. Really, you don't...

  • etruscan, on 10/12/2007, -2/+33Who sends, or receives HTML based emails, anyways? I'll tell you who... marketing. Personally I never send, nor read emails that use any of the features crippled by Outlook 2007. In a corporate environment that wouldn't change, at least in none I've been a part of. Keep the email in text form. An image, if you must... but leave the full HTML pages on the web, not in email.
  • marklj, on 10/12/2007, -5/+34you lost my green thumb when you revealed your Apple fanboy roots.

    You are a fool if you think Apple is just a bunch of *nice guys*.
  • Cymrubeats, on 10/12/2007, -3/+28I never even knew until now that there was such a thing as an 'email designer'. Does that 'really' deserve a term of its own? What do you do? I design emails.........i'll, i'll get my coat.
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -8/+31HTML email is poo in a corporate environment. Well done Microsoft!

    About time email is used for its initial purpose
  • dezmd, on 10/12/2007, -2/+25God forbid you spammers arent able to hide your counters and mask the spam with css hacks anymore.

    Cheers.

    PS- Its a terrible choice from MS, but not because of the rendering issues, because of the resource usage of winword editors from within Outlook. If you run a Citrix or Terminal server farm, you know EXACTLY what I'm talking about. Nothing works better to bring a monster 4 way xeon with 4gb ram to a crawl than 20 people all opening new emails to send in outlook with word configured as the default editor.
  • Scorpion1169, on 10/12/2007, -8/+29First of all: Plain Text. Always.

    Second of all: If they are forced to remove the OS's reliance on IE and uncouple it of course they have to remove Outlook's reliance on it. Now that doesn't absolve them from having written a crappy renderer into Word, but if they *did* write a robust engine, they would simply be replicating IE anyway.

    As usual, they are damned if they do and damned if they don't.
  • bemenaker, on 10/12/2007, -3/+23WOOOHOOOO Thank you!!!! Maybe this will help stop all the bullsh!t html email I get. I turn off html rendering in my email client, because it has NO PLACE IN EMAIL. If you want me to see a webpage, then setup a webserver and buy a URL. Email is for text!!!!!
  • MichaelDotNet, on 10/12/2007, -8/+25Agreed...if your content needs to be HTML...SEND ME A LINK. I use my email app to read email and my web browser to browse the web....Okay, I use my webbrowser to read email (gmail) but still...HTML email EVIL.
  • alstewart73, on 10/12/2007, -7/+23There simply isn't enough room on the Interweb for all this fancy mail. The amount of information flying around is already staggering enough (maybe as much as a truckfull!) without image-rich mailshots sent to thousands of people essentially saying "remember us? we have stock. or information. come visit, buy, read.", when they were probably going to anyway.

    Having said that, to use Word to render HTML surely is the decision of an asshat.

  • putnam, on 10/12/2007, -1/+17Weird, I look at my Macbook Pro and frown while I watch Microsoft Entourage churn since it's the only decent business email client available for OS X right now.

    Owning an Apple product doesn't give you license to be a smug *****.
  • BassCadet, on 10/12/2007, -3/+17There are two things I want in my email:

    text and a blank background. That's it.

    I don't want colorful backgrounds, I don't want graphics, I don't forms.
  • Burmask, on 10/12/2007, -15/+28@radicaldementia - Try a smith and wesson
  • drewskyjones, on 10/12/2007, -0/+12"One positive is that annoying coworkers won't be able to create cute stationery to send cute emails to their cute little friends, with script signatures, emoticons galore and pics of kitties and puppies playing." The thought of that makes me say "Praise The Lord." I swear, everyone in an admin type position that sends email to the whole company has this *****. I find it irritating and it makes forwarded emails look like crap. Making that ***** go away makes me think this is a net positive.
  • Topher06, on 10/12/2007, -5/+17Honestly, I really hate it when people send me spam in HTLM format. Security issues asside, it isannoying to get an email with "stationary like effects" and annoying clipart attached. Or when people essentially send the HOME PAGE of their corporate website when they want to make me aware of new products or news.

    Look, the Web is for HTML. Email is for text. If you can't send information in an email using simple text formatting, your not good at your job. If you want people to get a more rich media experience with email, send them a text link to your website.

    I am sure Microsoft did their research and realized that in the corporate world, most people probably turned off the HTML option and preferred to get email in text format. It meant less prone to IE security flaws in HTML, and it also means a more professional interface for receiving email, sans cutesy signatures and images and annoying, overwrought content.

    I can't believe people are annoyed by this, obviously they are contributing to the kind of spam and junk that gets sends as HTML email. I for one applaud the idea of removing HTML email or at least reducing it to a minimum.

    Also, perhaps Microsoft made their Word rendering engine better. Anybody ever think of that rather then jumping to ridiculous conclusions and spouting hate. HTML email was so 5 years ago. It was an annoying trend that I am glad is being shown the door.
  • bemenaker, on 10/12/2007, -3/+14 Keep your html on webserver where it fuhqing belongs
  • danknerd, on 10/12/2007, -7/+17I dont know if I can live any longer, this is an outrageous tragedy and it totally upsets me to the point of committing suicide.
  • digga, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11Except the Word engine is still trying to render HTML. It's not like MS is saying "no more HTML mail".
    If they were, that *might* be a good start.
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+13Sounds like a great plan for you. More business for me. :)
  • zcreem, on 10/12/2007, -3/+12First decent thing MS has done for web standards.
    I am sick to death of all this HTML email *****, if I want to see HTML I will visit your site, otherwise ***** off.
    As for using Outlook well that's their LookOut, not mine, I dumped that crap collector years ago.
  • 1021, on 10/12/2007, -14/+23@shrik
    so you haven't been back in serious IT environment since the 2000 downtrend? Outlook is one of the most prevalent peice of software I see people use at work.
  • doodlebumm, on 10/12/2007, -11/+19@1021

    I have only recently had to start to use Outlook, because I had to switch to a Windows desktop from Linux (where I could still do company calendering without Outlook). The only reason I use it is for the company calendaring. Otherwise I'd never have started using Outlook. It is a sucking piece of crap IMO. Plenty of better alternatives. Oh, yeah there is one other reason for using Outlook, and that is the public folders for getting company forms, etc.
  • paulmdx, on 10/12/2007, -7/+15I wonder if it's the same anti-Microsoft people bitching about this that bitch about sending HTML emails in the first place?
  • SoccerBoy, on 10/12/2007, -10/+18So you designed web pages... good for you.

    However, I think this change is good. I don't give two ***** if the emails I receive has backgrounds and stuff. White background and black texts works great for me.

    This hurts spammers, sending all that crap to me, more then anyone I do business with.

    If I want to see websites, I will go to websites, not my email.
  • diggdat, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8@scorwitz
    "One positive is that annoying coworkers won't be able to create cute stationery to send cute emails to their cute little friends, with script signatures, emoticons galore and pics of kitties and puppies playing."

    I would digg that up twice if could...
  • sundancekid503, on 10/12/2007, -3/+10You people are ridiculous, this is a GOOD THING. If I need a browser to view your email, then just make it a webpage and send me a link! I DON'T WANT emails with background images, forms, popups, rollovers, flash, plugins, animated gifs, etc. I think it's wonderful that spammers wont have access to these things anymore, and most of these things pose security issues as well.
  • CalipsoII, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9@putnam

    Really and truly man, you just made my day. They should make that the Digg quote-of-the-week:

    "Owning an Apple product doesn't give you license to be a smug *****."

    Dugg.
  • Rikkochet, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8I disagree. Unfortunely I only have anecdotal "evidence" - I'm on several mailing lists (ncix.com, codeproject, blizzard insider, a local radio station, a few others) so I AM soliciting these emails.

    And then every week I get this tacky, overformatted wannabe magazine in my inbox... At LEAST 9 times out of 10 I delete it without looking at it - I don't want to be presented with interpretive art, I want them to ***** say whatever it is they have to say. They don't, and thus their message is lost. I doubt I am alone.
  • inactive, on 10/12/2007, -8/+14Old people feel the same way about email. They wish you'd just pick up the phone. But the world marches forward.
  • benspikey, on 10/12/2007, -4/+10stop bashing MS if you don't understand why they did what they did.. this was done to decouple outlook from internet explorer..

    http://www.windowsitpro.com/Article/ArticleID/93346/93346.html?Ad=1

    "Form" you own opinions
    If you get the Form problem then maybe you understand the real issue with the changes in outlook 2007.

    I have been using outlook 2007 and have had no rendering problems.
  • loconet, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7HTML in e-mails suck. I would be a happy man if it was all text. However, what people are failing to understand is that this update to Outlook does not stop HTML e-mails. Outlook has a huge market share when it comes to e-mail clients. This means developers like myself will need to scramble and adjust all mailing lists, reports, notices, greeting emails, receipts, etc HTML code to be "MS Word compliant" rather than IE regular HTML/CSS (up to a point). A lot of the code for HTML e-mail is reused to be viewable online through a regular web browser. We will now need to fork the code or add hacks to have a version for Outlook/Word, e-mail (rest of the sane e-mail clients), web. Getting rid of HTML completely would have been a much better decision.

    Thank you Microsoft for once again making my job harder just because you can't/dont want to fix the core of the problem. Why are you still relevant!? argh..
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