Microsoft Outlook 2000 Service Release Downsides to the Outlook Service Release Forrest Stroud
Downsides to the Outlook Service Release
We've already encountered one downside to the Outlook E-mail Security Update in that some freedom must be given up in order to gain the benefits of upgraded security. In order to offer better protection from viruses and worms, the security service release must limit certain functionality in Outlook, which results in the user being unable to access attachments with file types that could possibly run executable code or change system settings.
Another downside to the Outlook Service Release is that there is no uninstall utility included with the download. This means that short of completely uninstalling Microsoft Office, there's no way to remove the program if you decide it's too restrictive for your needs. It is possible to defeat some of the security measures on individual outgoing messages, but in most cases doing so is more trouble than it's worth.
An additional downside to the service release for the 2000 edition of Outlook is that in order to install the security updates, you must first install the Office 2000 Service Release 1a (SR-1a) package. For those that haven't installed the Office service release, you will need to first download the SR-1a package and then have your Office 2000 disks on hand for the installation of the service release. Each workstation on your network with Outlook 2000 will need to be updated with the Office 2000 SR-1a update.
A final downside is that currently the security service releases are only available for Outlook 98 and Outlook 2000. In other words, Outlook Express users cannot utilize the Outlook E-mail Security Update at this time. We have been unable to determine whether or not Microsoft plans to release a similar security update for Outlook Express.
