How The Heck Do I...

Filter Mail into a New Folder
in Outlook Express?

If you get a lot of email, it makes sense to set up folders and create mail rules to filter your mail as it comes in. This way, you can keep your inbox clear.

Step 1

Create a new folder in Outlook Express. First decide where you want it - as a sub-folder inside your 'Inbox', or as just another folder in the "Local Folders" list?

If you want to create another folder inside your "Inbox" folder, RIGHT CLICK on "Inbox". From the menu that pops up, click NEW FOLDER. It will be highlighted ready for you to name. If you accidentally close it before you give it a name, just right-click on the folder with the words 'New Folder' and choose 'rename'. Give it the name you want.

If you want to create another folder in your normal folder list, follow the same process, but right-click on 'local folders'. I'm going to call mine "1- CB LIST emails". (I put the '1' in front of it because this moves it higher up the directory tree so I can find it quickly.)

Step 2

Find an email from the source that you want to direct into your new folder. As an example here, I'm going to use an email from my private discussion list for Career Booster participants.

Open that email, and on the toolbar of the open email, click on MESSAGE and then CREATE RULE FROM MESSAGE.

Step 3

Choose whether you want to filter email according to who it's from or the subject line, etc. For this exercise, I chose 'Where the subject line contains specific words', because all the Career Booster mail is set to come through with the prefix "CB" in the subject line.

A box will pop up for you to add what those words are. I typed in CB.

Click ADD.

In Part 3, Rule Description, you will see that it now says 'Where the subject line contains CB.'

Step 4

Check the box that says 'Move it to the specified folder'. A box will pop up asking you to specify which folder, and show you your list of folders. Click on the new folder that you just created. Now in part 3, you will see that it says "Move it to the 1-CB LIST emails folder".

Step 5

Give your rule a name. (This will make it easy to find when you are looking for the rule later to change it or delete it.) Any name that helps you remember what the rule was about is fine.

Click OK.

Now a message will pop up telling you that the rule has been successfully added.

If you ever want to change the rule (change to a different folder, change the rule to work from who the email is from rather than the subject line, etc) just click on TOOLS then MESSAGE RULE then MAIL. You will find a list of the rules you have created - just select the one you want to work on or delete.