Exploring the Outlook Layout
Outlook’s program window is divided into panes that you can expand and collapse to change the view. You can use the View tab to change how panes display, or expand and collapse them using their icons.
Click the View tab.
The Folder Pane lists email accounts; click an icon to expand or collapse an account.
Click the Folder Pane drop-down arrow on the View tab to change the pane’s display or turn it off entirely.
If the pane is minimized, click to expand the Folder Pane again.
Other Outlook components are listed; click an icon to activate the component.
Messages are listed here; click the message you want to view.
You can read the selected message in the Reading Pane.
Click the Reading Pane drop-down arrow on the View tab to change the pane’s display or turn it off entirely.
Read information about a particular contact in the People Pane.
Click People Pane to control its display.
Tip
Message Preview In addition to controlling the Reading Pane, you can also control how many lines from a message appear in the message list pane. By default, Outlook displays 1 line, but you can choose to view more or no message lines at all; click the Message Preview button on the View tab, and make a selection.