OL2000: Using the Keyboard to Navigate in Outlook (195864)

SUMMARY

This article describes a few common navigation shortcut keys for Microsoft Outlook, and how to find other navigation shortcuts.

NOTE: Default shortcut keys will only hold changes to them for the current Outlook session. When you restart Outlook, shortcut key names will revert to their original default state. Only custom menu items can have their shortcut keynames changed permanently.

MORE INFORMATION

There are times when using a mouse to navigate in Outlook is not practical or possible. By using shortcut keys you can increase your productivity and minimize or eliminate the use of the mouse completely.

The standard default folders are listed under the Go menu. Access the Go menu by pressing the ALT+G key combination. After the Go menu has opened press the underlined letter of the folder you want to open.

For example, if you are not in the Inbox and you need to check new messages that have arrived, press the ALT+G key combination to open the Go menu. Press I, the underlined letter key, to open your default Inbox. Outlook selects the topmost message in the list. Use the ARROW keys to navigate to the message you want to open and then press ENTER. You can use the ARROW keys to navigate inside the message. To close the message, press ESC. If the preview pane is open, press F6 to toggle between the Inbox and the preview pane.

You can use this same process to access other menus and functions. Hold down ALT and then press the underlined letter of the menu or command you want to activate.

From within any Outlook form, press the TAB key to move between fields. Press SHIFT+TAB to move in the opposite direction.

REFERENCES

For more information about keyboard shortcuts, click Contents and Index on the Help menu, click the Index tab in Outlook Help, type the following text

keyboard shortcuts

and then double-click the selected text to go to the "keyboard shortcuts" topic. If you are unable to find the information you need, ask the Office Assistant.

For more information about about customizing menus, click Contents and Index on the Help menu, click the Index tab in Outlook Help, type the following text

add a command to a menu

and then double-click the selected text to go to the "Add a command to a menu" topic. If you are unable to find the information you need, ask the Office Assistant.

For additional information about how to add commands or menu items to Outlook, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

195923 OL2000: How to Customize Toolbars and Menus