Recently Microsoft has pushed a new update to its email service: Hotmail. In their blog, Inside Windows Live , they unveiled the new features that are included in this update, which Outlook users will find very familiar, and now makes Hotmail easier to use and more like a desktop app, but in the cloud.

These new features are mouse and keyboard shortcuts related, for example, now when you are checking your emails and right-click a message in your inbox a new menu will appear allowing you to Reply , Reply all , or Forward the message. When you work in front of a computer screen all day, every second counts, so this new menu gives you a way to get things done more quickly.

Hotmail already support many keyboard shortcuts that you can also find in Outlook, but now also the Hotmail team wants to make a little bit easier for people switching from other email services, such as Yahoo! Mail and Gmail to Hotmail by making available some of the most popular keyboard shortcuts that you’ll use in those email services.

But because some of the Hotmail keyboard shortcuts may interfere with different actions using Yahoo! Mail or Gmail keyboard shortcuts , you’ll have to switch between the keyboard shortcuts mode. This is a pretty easy thing to do, just go to the keyboard shortcuts options page and choose the mode you need — Tip: From this option section you can also turn off or turn on your Hotmail keyboard shortcuts –.

Hotmail - Keyboard shortcuts options - 1

In this list are the new added Yahoo! Mail and Gmail shortcuts in Hotmail

GmailYahoo! MailAction
#DeleteDelete a message
CNCreates a new message
OOpen new message
Alt+SSend message
PPrint a message
RRReply to a message
AAReply all to a message
FFForward a message
Ctrl+SCtrl+SSave a draft message
!Mark a message
Shift+UShift+KMark a message as unread
Shift+IKMark a message as read
DMove to a folder
EscUClose a message
JCtrl+.Open the next message
KCtrl+,Open the previous message
/SSearch for messages
G then IMGo to the inbox
G then DGo to the Draft folder
G then TGo to the Sent folder
* then ASelect All
* then NDeselect all

Here is the already available Hotmail keyboard shortcuts

Keyboard keysAction
DeleteDelete a message
Ctrl+NCreate a new message
Ctrl+EnterSend a message
Ctrl+Shift+OOpen a message
Ctrl+Shift+PPrint a message
LFlag
Ctrl+SSave a draft message
Ctrl+Shift+FForward a message
Ctrl+Shift+RReply all to a message
Ctrl+RReply a message
Ctrl+Shift+JMark a message as junk
Ctrl+QMark a message as read
Ctrl+UMark a message as unread
/Search for messages
EscClose a message
Ctrl+.Open the next message
Ctrl+,Open the previous message
Ctrl+Shift+VMove to a folder
S then ASelect all
S then NDeselect all
F then IGo to inbox
F then DGo to Draft folder
F then SGo to Sent folder
F7Check spelling

Other updates in Hotmail includes:

  • Personalization: Set default font and personal signature .
  • Back button behavior fix and how attachments are saved in your draft message.
  • You can now recover accidentally deleted messages with a new link in the Deleted folder.
  • Super fast inbox with the use of the new HTML5 standards.

Watch this video that will give you an overview of these new features:

Source Windows Live Hotmail Help Center via [ Inside Windows Live ]