One such feature now available in the revamped email server is ‘instant actions,’ a tiny little change that might actually save you a lot of time in the long run. Instant Actions provides you with customizable icons that show up when you hover over each email, allowing you to do things like move or delete a message with one quick click.

Why The New Hotmail is So Exciting:

It is fascinating to watch Microsoft not only catch up and make its own versions of handy Gmail features for Hotmail, but also come up with things Google has yet to think of. Microsoft is trying to bust Hotmail out of its funk and make it a worthy, modern, relevant email server once again, an effort they deserve at least a pat on the back for.

When the changes role out in a few weeks, dust off your Hotmail account and take a peek inside—you might just like what you find.

But maybe, just maybe, you should consider revisiting your good old Hotmail account soon, because it is finally changing. Within weeks Hotmail will be rolling out a set of shiny new features. The changes are long overdue but it seems Microsoft has finally decided it will attempt to give Gmail a run for its money.

What’s New in Hotmail:

One significant improvement of the new system is the inclusion of categories, much like in Gmail.

Hotmail users can now label messages or senders into a particular group, either automatically based on content or sender, or manually. Users can also ‘flag’ messages, which automatically moves them to the top of your inbox and marks them with a little flag, much like Gmail’s ‘star’ system. Hotmail will also now automatically recognize newsletters and put them into a separate folder.

What’s Different from Gmail:

One totally unique and very welcome feature of the new Hotmail is the ‘scheduled cleanup.’ Scheduled Cleanups allow you to move or trash messages from specific senders after a set time period. You want all those irritating Facebook notification emails to be automatically trashed every three days? No problem. You want your banking statements to magically appear in their own folder at the end of every week? Done. It might not sound very exciting but the scheduled cleanup is actually a refreshing and much needed tool that allows you to easily keep your inbox neat and tidy.

Microsoft recently released a developer preview, which has allowed a “sneak peak” at some of its new features.

Keep all your devices in sync:

Like Apple’s new iCloud service, Microsoft is allowing Windows 8 users to keep all of their devices in sync (like your desktop, laptop and mobile) with their new live cloud syncing features.  This feature will automatically update your address book, calendar, pictures, and much more, across all of your devices.  It allows you to smoothly transition between your different technologies without having to worry about old data.

Performance and Search Upgrades:

Aside from the major functionality changes above, Microsoft has also been going to great pains to upgrade how the operating system runs – getting load times down and general responsiveness up.

Early testers are reporting a lot of success in this area.  The new version of Windows boots up much more quickly than earlier versions did.  Testers are also positively mentioning the revised “search” function, which they report turns around stronger and more detailed results in much less time than with any earlier Windows OS.

Windows Store:

Apple has been getting a lot of exposure for their “App Store” – an online store allowing people to purchase apps on the Internet and download them directly, rather than having to buy them at a regular retail outlet.

With the release of Windows 8, Microsoft is offering a similar service – the “Windows Store”.  Though not included in the early testing versions of Windows 8, it is expected that its functionality will be similar to that of the App Store, and allow for online purchases of Windows-compatible software.

In Conclusion:

Windows 8 isn’t expected until mid-2012 for consumers, but all signs indicate that the new release will be a continued improvement from Windows 7.

Microsoft recently released a developer preview, which has allowed a “sneak peak” at some of its new features.

The User Interface:

Perhaps the most notable change in Windows 8 is the user interface.  Windows 8 makes use of the “metro” interface that was previously used in the Windows Phone 7 operating system.  You now navigate Windows by choosing your applications using a number of tiles.  You organize the tiles based on what apps are most important to you.  Updates are made very quickly, as you can “pin” and “unpin” tiles as needed.

“Windows To Go”:

This is a very neat feature that’s being introduced with Windows 8.  Windows To Go allows you to create a complete USB key version of your Windows system, including all of your programs.  You can then plug that USB key into any compatible computer, and boot up with an exact replica of your programs and settings.

This is bound to make traveling far easier, as your computer can come with you in a key.  It will also make disaster recovery a snap, as you can just plug your settings into a new computer and keep moving!

Keep all your devices in sync:

Like Apple’s new iCloud service, Microsoft is allowing Windows 8 users to keep all of their devices in sync (like your desktop, laptop and mobile) with their new live cloud syncing features.  This feature will automatically update your address book, calendar, pictures, and much more, across all of your devices.  It allows you to smoothly transition between your different technologies without having to worry about old data.

Stay tuned for more features next week.

“Being named to the “Next Gen 250” is a great honor,” says Kirill Bensonoff, of Spirinet.  “We pride ourselves on our ability to identify what upcoming technologies will offer the most value to our clients.  At the beginning of the company it was outsourced IT, and as we grow we find that cloud computing has become a key component to our offerings.”

Mr. Bensonoff adds: “Few industries move more quickly than technology, but having a set of core values that define your company’s decision making is extremely helpful.  Our business decisions have always been made by asking these simple questions: How does this technology make life easier for our clients?  What value does it add?  Is it just a new way of doing something, or a better way?”

For more on CRN and CRN’s “Next-Gen 250”, please visit: http://www.crn.com/news/channel-programs/231500383/channel-up-and-comers-crns-next-gen-250.htm?itc=refresh

About Spirinet:

A premiere provider of IT outsourcing and consulting services, Spirinet has become the full-service IT department of choice for small and medium-sized businesses all over North America. With unique remote technology capabilities Spirinet is also supporting companies with offices world-wide. They are headquartered outside Boston, MA.  They can be contacted at their website computersupport.com, or by phone at (877) 342-5677.

About CRN.com:

CRN.com delivers strategic information and useful business tools that technology integrators use everyday.  Their website is: crn.com.