Hotmail Server Information for Outlook

Hotmail is Microsoft's email service

Hotmail is a free email service that is operated by Microsoft. It was an early foray into the free email market, predating Google's Gmail service by more than a decade, but early versions were hampered by some limitations that annoyed users. It was initially a Web-based mail service that required only a Web-enabled computer with a browser installed. Later versions allowed users to use standard email client software, including Outlook, to be more user-friendly.

History

Hotmail Is web-based email.

Hotmail (which was originally called HoTMaiL to emphasize the acronym HTML) was launched in mid-1996 as one of the first "independent" email services (i.e., not connected with an ISP or subscription service such as AOL). Although it started life as an independent company, it was acquired by Microsoft in 1997 and subsequently rebranded as MSN Hotmail. Although initially created as a Web-based mail service, POP3 server access, which allows users to access Hotmail through any email client, was established. Hotmail now works on all major mobile devices as well.

Benefits

Hotmail is accessable everywhere.

Users of Microsoft Outlook (as well as its "light" version, Outlook Express) can configure their mail clients to work with Hotmail. This was a major step, as many users have multiple email accounts that are accessed using a single mail program (such as Outlook), and it was inconvenient to have to sign in to the Hotmail site just to be able to check one email account.

Configuration

Hotmail Is free.

Configuring Microsoft Outlook for Hotmail is not much different than configuring it to work with other email accounts. Because Hotmail uses a POP3 email server, no complex configuration is required. The servers should be configured as follows: The POP server is pop3.live.com, and the SMTP server is smtp.live.com. The ports are configured as 995 for the POP server and 25 or 587 (depending on your ISP's requirements) for the SMTP server. The user name is your entire Hotmail address or your Windows Live ID. The POP server requires SSL. The SMTP server requires authentication (which is the same as your POP user name and password). TLS/SSL is also required for the SMTP server.

Expert Insight

Gmail debuted long after Hotmail was established.

Hotmail has taken a back seat to Google's Gmail, as Gmail was initially released with none of the issues that Hotmail users long complained about. These included the ability to be able to use any third-party mail client (unlike the initial release of Hotmail), no restrictions on how much archived mail you accumulate (one of Google's selling points was to offer unlimited storage) along with no requirements that you must log in to your account at least once every 30 days, lest your account be suspended.

Warning

Hackers have invaded Hotmail more than once.

Hotmail suffered a backlash on a couple of occasions when egregious security flaws were made public. Microsoft has attempted (with intermittent success) to integrate MSN Hotmail into its suite of online offerings, which includes Microsoft Passport (since renamed Windows Live ID), MSN Messenger (an IM service) and MSN Spaces (since renamed Windows Live Spaces). In addition to the free email service, Microsoft offers a "paid" version that has less restrictions, including more storage for archived messages.

References

• Microsoft: Windows Live Hotmail Factsheet

Resources

• ZDNet: Huge Hotmail Security Flaw Reported