You will frequently read and work with messages and other
Outlook items in the Reading Pane. You can display the Reading Pane to
the right of or below the module content pane.
Viewing Reading Pane Content
You might find it difficult to read the text in the Reading
Pane at its default size, particularly if your display is set to a
high screen resolution, as is becoming more and more common. You can
change the size of the content displayed in the Reading Pane by
using the Zoom controls located at the right end of the program
window status bar to change the pane's magnification level.
You can change the magnification of the Reading Pane contents
in the following ways:
-
To set a specific magnification level, click the
Zoom Level button to open the Zoom dialog box.
-
To change the zoom level in 10 percent increments, click
the Zoom Out and Zoom In buttons.
-
To quickly change the zoom level to any setting between 10
percent and 500 percent, move the Zoom slider to the left or
right.
By default, Outlook does not change the read status of a
message when you preview it in the Reading Pane. If you commonly
read your messages in the Reading Pane rather than opening them in
message windows, you can keep better track of read and unread
messages by changing the default setting.
To instruct Outlook to mark a message as read after you have
previewed it in the Reading Pane:
-
Display the Backstage view, and then click Options.
-
On the Mail page of the Outlook Options dialog box, in the
Outlook Panes area, click Reading Pane.
The Reading Pane dialog box opens.
-
In the Reading Pane dialog box, select the check
box corresponding to the way you want Outlook to handle messages
you view in the Reading Pane.
-
Mark items as read when viewed
in the Reading Pane Outlook will mark the item as
read after it has been displayed in the Reading Pane for
five seconds or an alternative amount of time (up to 999
seconds) that you specify.
-
Mark item as read when selection
changes Outlook will mark the item as read when you
select another item.
-
Click OK in the Reading Pane dialog box and in the Outlook
Options dialog box.
You can scroll through a long message in the Reading Pane in
the following ways:
-
Scroll at your own pace by dragging the vertical scroll
bar that appears at the right side of the Reading Pane.
-
Move up or down one line at a time by clicking the scroll
arrows.
-
Move up or down one page at time by clicking above or
below the scroll box.
-
Move up or down one page at a time by pressing the
Spacebar. When you reach the end of a message by using this
feature, called Single Key Reading, pressing the Spacebar again
displays the first page of the next message. This option is very
convenient if you want to read through several consecutive
messages in the Reading Pane, or if you find it easier to press
the Spacebar than to use the mouse.
Tip
Single Key Reading is turned on by default. If you find
it distracting, you can turn it off by clearing the Single Key
Reading Using Space Bar check box in the Reading Pane dialog
box.
