Organize Mail by Contact
With so much mail arriving in my Windows Mail Inbox every day, it's not easy to get it all under control. I have set up a number of folders to organize the incoming messages, but they still arrive in a chaotic manner. Do I have to file them manually?
Fortunately not. Windows Mail and Outlook Express let you set up rules that filter certain messages to certain folders automatically. There's even a way to use an existing message as an example.
While not particularly smart, you can still use this wizard to set up filters that move all mail from a particular contact or mailing list to a specific folder easily.
Filter Mail from a Certain Sender Easily in Windows Mail or Outlook Express
To create a new rule from an existing message in Windows Mail or Outlook Express:
- ›› Step by Step Screenshot Walkthrough (using Outlook Express)
- Highlight a message from the sender whose emails you want to filter.
- Select Message | Create Rule From Message... from the menu.
- Verify that Windows Mail or Outlook Express extracted the right email address to filter on.
- It should show up as Where the From line contains __ under Rule Description.
- To change the email address, click on it.
- Select Move it to the specified folder under Select the Actions for your rule.
- Click on specified in the rule description.
- Select the folder you want messages from the specified sender to be filtered to.
- Click OK.
- Give your rule a name under Name of the rule.
- Click OK.
- Click OK again.
