Connection to sever cannot be established

[hoo22]

I have just installed Outlook 2003.
I haven't used Outlook before.
I have a Hotmail plus account.
I have set up outlook to use this Hotmail account, but I cannot connect to
the server to do so.
I am fully connected to the internet when I try, through my ADSL broadband
connection.

After a couple of minutes I get the following message:
"Connection to the server could not be established.
http://services.msn.com/svcs/hotmail/httpmail.asp is now in offline mode."

 

[Smart Workplaces]

MS discontinued the ability to create new connections to Hotmail email
accounts through Outlook or Outlook Express several months ago due to the
proliferation of spam. They allowed existing accounts to continue
functioning, but attempts to establish new connections will be rejected, as
you have discovered. I'm not sure if they allow the paid Hotmail Plus
accounts to sync Outlook or not. If so, I would check to see if they provide
Proxy information for the HTTP connection or if they offer an Outlook Add-in
you can download as does MSN.

The current alternative is a paid MSN subscription instead of Hotmail Plus.
It offers an add-in that installs into Outlook and enables Outlook to sync
your MSN mailbox folders, and the server-side mailbox is 2 GB. I use it and
it works fairly well. Only thing is that I have to login to MSN mail via my
browser to clean out my online mailbox folders. That may just be a setting
that I haven't configured correctly though -- I have not checked as it is
sort of nice to keep a "backup" online of the mail I can't afford to lose if
my system were to crash.

Hope this helps even though I know this is not what you were hoping to hear.
:-(

 

[Brian Tillman]

MS discontinued the ability to create new connections to Hotmail email
accounts through Outlook or Outlook Express several months ago due to
the proliferation of spam.

September 2004, actually.

They allowed existing accounts to continue
functioning, but attempts to establish new connections will be
rejected, as you have discovered. I'm not sure if they allow the
paid Hotmail Plus accounts to sync Outlook or not.

They do. Both Hotmail Plus and Hotmail Premium can be accessed via an HTTP
account in Outlook.

 

[Gordon Mullan]

I recently had to uninstall and then reinstall Outlook 2003 on my laptop.
After the reinstall and setting up the previously existing email accounts, I
began recieving the off line message. I am not experiencing this issue on my
desktop. Is it possible that due to the new installation, the assumption is
a new account and connecting is not possible?

 

[Brian Tillman]

I recently had to uninstall and then reinstall Outlook 2003 on my
laptop. After the reinstall and setting up the previously existing
email accounts, I began recieving the off line message. I am not
experiencing this issue on my desktop. Is it possible that due to
the new installation, the assumption is a new account and connecting
is not possible?

There can be no assumption. If you're specifying the credentials of an
existing Hotmail Plus or Premium account, it's obvious to the server it's
not new. Since you pay for Hotmail support with a Plus or Premium account,
try posing the problem to Hotmail.