Thanks for the confirmation that WLM does in fact run on Vista. Given some
of the visibility problems that I have had with Windows mail (contrast and
colors), I might give it a try using Windows Live Mail instead.
WLM has a nice feel and seems to duplicate everything that OE/WM does - with
the exception of the 'Views bar'. I have not found a way to do this yet.
More of a pain when regularly changing views from show all to hide read...
and having to go in through the view menu. By default the full menu is not
even shown. has to be toggled on.

Now that I think of it, when I got the Vista box last year, I had tried to
add Hotmail to Windows Mail and found it was not possible at that time. (had
to run http mail as I recall which was not supported). Was not sure if WM
will support the new hotmail format (Changing from DAV to 'Delta Synch').

For reference, the letter from Hotmail is copied below.
   Oppie
====================
Our information indicates that you use Outlook Express to access a Windows
LiveT Hotmail® e-mail account via a protocol called DAV (Distributed
Authoring and Versioning protocol). DAV, like POP3 or IMAP, is the way that
a mail client communicates with a web-based mail server.

As a valued customer, we want to provide advanced notice that as of June 30,
2008, Microsoft is disabling the DAV protocol and you will no longer be able
to access your Hotmail Inbox via Outlook Express. As an alternative, we
recommend that you download Windows Live Mail, a free desktop e-mail client
that has the familiarity of Outlook Express and much more. This next
generation of free e-mail software will allow you to easily manage multiple
e-mail accounts-including Windows Live Hotmail, plus other e-mail accounts
that support POP3/IMAP. Better yet, Windows Live Mail integrates well with
other Windows Live services, and downloads in minutes. After you provide
your user name and password, you will automatically be linked to your
Hotmail account, providing continued access to your email and contacts.

We encourage you to download Windows Live Mail at
http://get.live.com/wlmail/overview.
And, to make your transition smoother, we've provided answers to frequently
asked questions below.
Again, thank you for your use of Outlook Express and we are confident that
you'll be just as delighted with the new Windows Live Mail.

Your Windows Live Mail team

Frequently asked questions:

Why are we disabling DAV?

DAV is a legacy protocol that is not well suited for client access to large
inboxes. Over time, as we've provided more e-mail storage to our users-and
now offer 5GB inboxes for free-a more efficient access protocol is needed.

What are we replacing DAV with?

We have developed a new, much more efficient protocol called DeltaSynch that
is far superior to DAV especially for large e-mail inboxes. It enables email
clients to only download changes since the last time the client polled the
email server for changes. This is much more efficient and high performing
than having to download all the headers in every folder as is the case with
DAV.

Is DeltaSynch compatible with Outlook Express?

The new protocol unfortunately is NOT supported by Outlook Express and
support would require too many changes to the Outlook Express software.

Is there a different or new mail client I can try that uses DeltaSynch?

Microsoft is providing Windows Live Mail, a free e-mail client that has the
familiarity of Outlook Express and much more. This free, next generation
email client  enables users to easily manage multiple e-mail accounts
including Windows Live Hotmail and other e-mail accounts that support
POP3/IMAP. Windows Live Mail also integrates well with other Windows Live
services, is optimized to work with Windows Live Hotmail, and offers:

Offline mail
Windows Live Hotmail account aggregation for those users with multiple
Hotmail accounts
Account aggregation for POP and IMAP mail accounts
Rich photo-sharing capabilities
Advanced search via integration with Desktop Search
Safety tools (Anti-Virus scanning, anti-phishing, anti-spam features across
aggregated accounts for customers who do not have an Anti-Virus product)
Integration with Windows Live services including Windows Live Spaces
RSS (Real Simple Syndication) feed aggregation
Ability to send SMS (short message service) text to a mobile phone from
Windows Live Mail
Where can I download the new Windows Live Mail client?

You can download the new client at http://get.live.com/wlmail/overview

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Microsoft had a change of heart after many complained.
The announced cutoff has now been postponed indefinitely.