Hotmail Basics

Click on the steps below, or just scroll down to read the entire tutorial.
Step 1	Find the Hotmail website
Step 2	Create an account
Step 3	Sign in to your account and check email
Step 4	Reply to email
Step 5	Send email
Step 6	Sign out
Other features: Using the Address book

Step 1: Find the Hotmail website

Open Internet Explorer.
In the box labeled Address, type www.hotmail.com.

*If you do not see the Address box, go to the View Menu, choose Toolbars, and select Address Bar. Or type Ctrl-L to open the Address window.
*Another option is to go to the File Menu, choose Open, and type in www.hotmail.com.

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Step 2: Create an account

Click on the words New User? Sign up Now. You will then see a page called Terms of Service. This page explains all the things you can and cannot do with your email account, and explains Microsoft's rules for the account. Review the terms of service and click I Accept.

The next screen will ask you to enter information needed to set up your account. To maintain consistency among the teachers and staff at the 49ers Academy, please create your email user name in this format: firstinitiallastname_49ers@hotmail.com

*An example is aramirez_49ers@hotmail.com

This will make it easy to remember each person's email address. Fill in all boxes.

The last section marked Directories will be pre-selected to enter your contact information into Hotmail's searchable directories, which will allow anyone on the Internet to find you and send messages. If you do not wish to be listed, make sure to uncheck the boxes.

Now click the Sign Up button. If you entered information incorrectly, or if your user name has already been taken, you will be asked to resubmit the needed information. When your account has been created, you should see a screen like this:

Click Continue at Hotmail. You will be returned to the front page.

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Step 3: Sign in to your account and check email

Fill in your Sign-in Name and Password. Now click the Sign in button.

You will see a page offering free WebCourier Subscriptions. Checking the boxes next to a subscription puts your email address on a list to receive an email newsletter about that topic. Sometimes this can lead to a mailbox full of unwanted email, but not always. We recommend that you do not choose any subscriptions. You will always have the opportunity add or remove a subscription later.

When finished, click the Continue button at the bottom of the page.

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Step 4: Reply to email

From your inbox, click on an email to open it. In between the heading and the text of the email, you will see a bar of commands.

To reply to the person who wrote the email, choose Reply. To reply to the writer and everyone else who received the email, choose Reply All. The original text of the email will appear in the typing window. You will be able to enter a response and send it back. For more information about sending email, see the next section on Sending email.

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Step 5: Send email

Go to your inbox (see picture in Step 3).

Click on the bar marked Compose. Simply fill out all the desired fields.

*To send an email to more than one person, type a comma and a space between email addresses.

*To keep a copy of the message, check the Save Outgoing Message box. When you are done writing the message, click the Send button.

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Step 6: Sign out

It is very important to sign out of your account to prevent unauthorized use of your email account by anyone who uses the computer after you. Signing out officially closes the secure connection to your mail.

You can sign out from two places:
1. Look for the words Passport sign out in the top right corner of any page.
2. From your inbox, click the Sign Out button in the bottom left corner.

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Other features: Using the address book

You can use the address book to store nicknames and contact info and to create a group of recipients.

Create a nickname and contact record for an individual
From the inbox, click on the Addresses button.

Next to Individuals, click Create New. Fill in all the information you want to store.
To send email to someone using his/her nickname, you need to fill in the email address.

Example: Create a nickname and store the email address for Melanie Ramsey.
In the Nickname box, type Melanie (or whatever you call her). In the Email Address box, type mramsey_49ers@hotmail.com.
When you are finished, make sure to click the OK button.

Create a group of recipients
From the inbox, click on the Addresses button. Next to Groups, click Create New. You can fill in a person's nickname or an email address. Separate the names with commas.

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