How to Access Gmail with Outlook 2002 or Outlook 2003

If you access your Exchange, IMAP, Windows Live Hotmail and POP email accounts in Outlook, wouldn't it be great if you could add your Gmail address to that list—and your Outlook Inbox—, too?

Receiving Gmail in Outlook 2002 or Outlook 2003 does not have to mean you abandon its web-based interface or the fast and convenient search there altogether. You can tell Gmail to keep email you download to Outlook unread in its Inbox, or you can have downloaded email archived automatically in Gmail. Of course, you can also remove messages already fetched into Outlook.

To set up IMAP access (which includes all your archived messages and labels qua folders) to a Gmail access in Outlook 2002 or 2003 (you can also set up Gmail in Outlook 2007):

Step by Step Screenshot Walkthrough

• Make sure IMAP access is enabled in Gmail.
• Select Tools | E-mail Accounts... from the menu.
• Make sure Add a new e-mail account is selected.
• Click Next >.
• Choose IMAP.
• Click Next >.
• Type your name under Your Name:.
• Enter your Gmail email address in the E-mail Address: field.
• Type your full Gmail address ("example@gmail.com", for example) under User Name:.
• Enter your Gmail password under Password:.
• Type "imap.gmail.com" under Incoming mail server (IMAP):.
• Type "smtp.gmail.com" in the Outgoing mail server (SMTP): field.
• Click More Settings 
• Go to the Outgoing Server tab.
• Make sure My outgoing server (SMTP) requires authentication is checked.
  • Leave the default of Use the same settings as my incoming mail server intact.
• Now go to the Advanced tab.
• Make sure This server requires an encrypted connection (SSL) is checked under both Incoming server (IMAP): and Outgoing server (SMTP):.
• Make sure "993" appears under Server Port Numbers for Incoming Server (IMAP):.
• Enter "465" under Server Port Numbers for Outgoing server (SMTP):.

With Gmail as an IMAP account, you can also label or star messages—and more—elegantly.

As an alternative, you can also set up Gmail in Outlook 2002 and 2003 as a simple POP account for just downloading and sending mail.