Apparently some of my readers are really into not using Microsoft products.  A couple of weeks ago I wrote about a replacement for Microsoft’s Live Mesh, or cloud computing application named Jooce. Next, I told you about two MS Office replacements, Open Office and Lotus Symphony.

I’m hoping this will be my last (sort of) anti-Microsoft column for a long time, since I am a MS fanboy.  Even though there are replacements, I like MS products best.  However, money is a big factor so I understand people’s reluctance to plunk down hundreds of dollars for a program that may get limited use at home.

I received several emails this week about how people tried them both out and were happy with the change.  They, along with one of my readers that I ran into at the grocery store also consistently mentioned another issue.  That issue is they liked the office replacements but, “…where is a replacement for Outlook the email program?”

Now, Outlook is the email app that I much prefer over any other so I am biased on this topic.  Yes, I know it is expensive, being listed on the Microsoft site for $109.95 by itself.  You may also purchase it along with Office.  It is still the best in linking with different smart phones, etc.

Now, let’s look at some Outlook replacements.  Please note that I have tested each with good results; however, I do not continue to use them and have uninstalled them so I am not a pro on them.

Outlook Express – This would be my #2 choice and came free on all MS Windows computers until Vista.  However, MS no longer produces it.  It may still be downloaded for free.  If you search for it, make sure you get version 6.0; the most recent.

Windows Vista replaced Outlook Express with Windows Mail, which is my last in line for a replacement.  I just don’t care for it and it is only available for Vista (at this time).

Windows Live Mail is a replacement for Vista’s Windows Mail and is in the cloud.  It does the job well and is an adequate replacement for Outlook.  But if you really just want to get away from MS please note that all of these mentioned so far are Microsoft products.

Next, I have experience with two non-Microsoft replacements for Outlook.

First, Thunderbird which was created by the developers of the Firefox browser.  This is an excellent replacement and it still has full support from Mozilla so it will be safer to use as time goes on.  If you want a change get this one first.

Finally, Evolution was originally designed to be used in the Linux OS but is now available for Windows.  Good choice too.

Happy hunting as there are hundreds of others but these are my choices.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, October 14th, 2008 at 5:05 am and is filed under Columns. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.