Hyperlink quirk

[silverback]

Outlook 2003.
When I compose an HTML email which contains hyperlinks, I am unable to test the link; after I've typed it, it goes blue and is underlined, but I cannot make it act as a link. The cursor remains as an 'I' (rather than a hand) when hovered on the link; this quirk remains even if I save the email in Drafts. However, when I send it, the recipient is able to use the hyperlink as I intended.

Am I missing an Outlook setting? I would like to be able to test that I've typed the hyperlink correctly by activating the link before I send the email. As it stands, I have to send it to my wife's mail box and test it from there - it works but it's tedious.

Thanks
Silverback

[HansV]

As far as I know, Outlook has always had this quirk with its built-in editor, and I don't know of a setting that changes this behaviour. Hyperlinks do immediately become effective if you use Word as e-mail editor. Unfortunately, that has some negative side-effects.

You could send the e-mail to yourself instead of to your wife as test...

(Since Outlook 2007 and later use a Word-based e-mail editor, hyperlinks immediately become effective there)

[DaveA]

If I remember right, Word 2003 requires one to do a "Ctrl-click" to open the link!

[HansV]

True, but when Word is used as mail editor, an URL turns into a (Ctrl+)clickable hyperlink immediately, unlike when you use the built-in Outlook editor in Outlook 2003.

[DaveA]

I did not use Word in Outlook 2003 and we had to use the ctrl-click to get a link to work.