How to Schedule a Meeting in Outlook

In Outlook, a meeting is an appointment that you invite other people to or schedule resources (like a conference room) for. You can determine meeting times by viewing the availability of desired participants before issuing the meeting "invitation." These instructions are for Outlook 2000.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Computers
• Microsoft Outlook

1. Open the File menu and select New, then Meeting Request.

2. Click the Attendee Availability tab.

3. Click the Invite Others button to select participants and resources.

4. For each person or resource you pick, designate Required, Optional, or Resource.

5. Select a date and time that fits all or most schedules, or click the AutoPick button to have Outlook find the next available time for a variety of scenarios (everyone that's invited, only the required attendees, and so on).

6. Click the Appointment tab.

7. Type in the meeting topic in the Subject box.

8. Enter the meeting location in the next box.

9. Enter related information in the large box - this will appear in the body of the e-mail invitation message sent to your invitees. (For example, "Hey gang, let's get together to talk about the holiday party.")

10. Attach documents if desired.

11. Click the Send button to invite participants you added to the attendees list. The meeting appears on your calendar.

Tips & Warnings

• There are many other ways to open a new meeting window: press Control+Shift+Q from anywhere in Outlook, or right-click a time in the Calendar and select New Meeting Request from the menu that appears.