How to get Outlook to check email while closed?

[GreasyP]

On my old computer, M$ Outlook would check for new email every 5 minutes, even when I didn't have it open. If I had new messages, it would put an icon in my system tray. I can't figure out how to get my new laptop to do that--I've got Outlook set up to "send/receive every 5 minutes" in the options menu, but it only does it if Outlook is open. Any suggestions?

Toshiba Satellite 1415-S173
Windows XP Pro
Outlook (Office) XP

I hacked into the registry to disable Messanger--I suppose that might cause weird behaviour, but I did that on my old computer, too.

[charliex]

just a guess, office toolbar perhaps? don't see that on my version of office XP

you could install a pop checker if you have pop servers
http://www.andreamarangoni.it/newcheckp3/index.htm

[zizdog69]

I found a great program that will put an outlook icon in the taskbar next to the clock. When new mail arrives, an envelope pops up in the same area.

The program?
HideOE

Hope this helps! I am really pleased with it. Tell me what you think.

[hrdwareguy]

Hey GreasyP, I find it hard to believe you got Outlook to check mail when it wasn't running. If you did, I'd like to know how you did it. A program that works when it's not running????

Maybe a third party pop checker you had installed.

[GreasyP]

I figured out what was going on, hrdwareguy. I develop software for the Pocket PC, and on my old desktop I just kept my Pocket PC hooked up to my computer all the time because, ironically, I never use it. It syncs with Outlook every 5 minutes automatically, so it keeps Outlook running in the background at all times--I remember hitting CTL-ALT-DEL and seeing "Outlook.exe" running even when it wasn't open. I don't hook it up to my laptop except to debug software, though, so it doesn't do it anymore.

And thanks for the tip, zizdog. I found a registry edit that does the same thing without loading another program, though. Turns out Outlook has system tray functionality built in, there's just no option to turn it on inside the program. Go figure.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\10.0\Outlook\Preferences\DWORD MinToTray = 1

Probably only works on Office XP, sorry.

[saberyo]

I've always done the registry hack mentioned, but with Outlook 2003 you won't have to, it has the MinToSysTray thing as an option (finally).

... among lots of other much needed improvements.

[Boner]

You may have been running into that annoying tendancy of Outlook to have copies running without showing. Sometimes I'll try to get Outlook started, which fails until I discover the 4 copies of it running.

[GreasyP]

Originally posted by Boner
You may have been running into that annoying tendancy of Outlook to have copies running without showing. Sometimes I'll try to get Outlook started, which fails until I discover the 4 copies of it running.

Yup, I remember having that happen a lot. It hasn't happened since I stopped hooking up my Pocket PC (see above post) but damn was it annoying. Outlook would pop up the cryptic "The operation failed' dialog box and then exit, and I'd look at my running tasks and there would be like 3 or 4 OUTLOOK.EXE's running.