The Text in Microsoft Outlook Is Blurry (9 Steps)

By Shawn McClain

When Microsoft rolled out the Office 2007 products, including Outlook 2007, the company decided to make the programs use its ClearType fonts. ClearType fonts generally look better on LCD monitors, but some older monitors -- especially CRT monitors -- may not be able to display the fonts correctly, making the text appear blurry. To correct the font in Outlook, you can use a special tuner offered by Microsoft. The tuner will be installed if you are running Windows 7, while Windows Vista and XP users can use the online tuner.

Windows 7

Step 1

Click the "Start" button and choose "Control Panel" from the list of options.

Step 2

Click "Appearance and Personalization" in your Control Panel. Find the "Fonts" area and click "Adjust ClearType text."

Step 3

Click "Next" to start the wizard and then "Next" again once Windows sets your display to its native resolution.

Step 4

Click to select the text box where the text appears most clearly and click "Next." Do this three more times and click "Finish" to complete your adjustment.

Windows Vista or XP

Step 1

Visit the ClearType page of the Microsoft Typography website (Microsoft.com/typography) and select "ClearType" from the list on the left side of the Web page.

Step 2

Click the "PowerToy tuner" text in the ClearType sub-menu. Find the "location" item on the list that appears at the top of the next page. Click the download link next to "location" to download the ClearType program from Microsoft. Choose "Save File" from the list of options that appear.

Step 3

Double-click the downloaded file to install it. Click "Continue" to confirm that you want to install the software. If you are using Windows Vista, you may see a compatibility window appear. Just click "Run Program." Click "Next" twice and then "Install." Click "Finish" to launch the tuner.

Step 4

Place a check mark next to "Turn on ClearType" and click "Start Wizard."

Step 5

Click to select the text box that appears most clearly and click "Next." Repeat the process on the next screen and click "Next" again. Read the text on the final screen and, if it appears clear, click "Finish." If it is not clear, press "Back" and make your choices again.

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