Creating HTML emails 2

[chuckdesign]

I'm trying to create an HTML email for a client. (I know all the pitfalls of HTML emails... but this is what my boss says I have to do.) I have created an HTML page in Dreamweaver MX and it displays beautifully in every browser. When I copy and paste it into Outlook, however, the tables all blow apart and nothing lines up. (It seems to be worse in Outlook 2003 than it is in Outlook 2000. It looks OK if I create it in Outlook Express 6; but when my client forwards it to her boss using regular Outlook, the tables come unraveled again.)

Can anyone recommend the best way to keep tables looking good when building HTML emails in Outlook? Thanks!!!! I'm on a tight deadline!!!

-- Chuckdesign

 

[WizyWyg]

Why not just email a plain text version, and have a link to your beautifully done html message on your own website? that way you dont steal the resources of those you are sending to?

 

[lebisol]

easy:
fire your boss and hire wizywyg... ;-)
one happy web community

> need more info?
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[jdmd88]

I have not found an answer to this yet but I am interested in seeing if someone comes up with anything other than....

Capturing the region you want to submit with Snagit or hypersnap, copy it and paste the image in the message body of the email???

Your Boss may not be aware of the manual process it is going to take to accomplish this!

 

[pixl8r]

Here's how you do it without messing up your e-mail.

You have already completed your we page. Don't copy and paste anything into Outlook. Follow these steps:

Start a new message in Outlook.
Change the format of the message to "Plain Text".
Once you have done that change the format again to "HTML".
Select "File" from the "Insert Menu".
Navigate to where the HTML file is on your hard drive and select the file (single click).
Important Click the arrow next to the "insert" button and select "insert as text".

Voila.... you have one pretty HTML e-mail.

Things to note. The image references must be to a web server and not relative or local (the image files must be on the server as well!). Otherwise the images will not display when received. So in other words your image references should be something like:

<img src="[URL unfurl="true"]http://mysite.com/image/myimage.gif"[/URL] width=30 height=30 border=0>

For this reason you may want to create a copy of your html page with the fixed references just for the purposes of the e-mail.

Hope it helps!

Wow JT that almost looked like you knew what you were doing!

 

[chuckdesign]

Thanks for your help!

I think I figured out what my problem was, and it's something that other HTML email mavens should be aware of, for future reference:

Outlook has an annoying option that allows you to create emails using Microsoft Word formatting. Since MS Word does not handle complex HTML tables well, that option causes tables to blow apart. So that option needs to be UNCHECKED. It's under Tools > Options > Mail Format.

Once that option was turned off, we were good to go.

-- Chuckdesign

 

[lebisol]

why would u bring in MS word into this?
why would u use MS Word to create HTML in the 1st place....

if u copy-paste your page content (viewed in Browser) into your OUtlook then tables will not get distorted at all......u just need to make sure u send it as HTML.
I dont unerstand what is the issue here....just reference images/targets to your domain like pixelator suggested!

All the best!

> need more info?
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[chuckdesign]

I was not using MS Word to create HTML.

Outlook was defaulting to turning on "MS Word Formatting" for all outgoing emails. So when my client tried to forward my beautifully crafted HTML email (which I sent using the "Send Page as E-Mail" feature in Internet Explorer, the MS Word feature in her Outlook was messing up my tables. But when I told her to turn off that feature, the email was able to forward OK.

Copying and pasting the content from the browser into Outlook brought over all the images with it, as attachments. I find the "Send Page as E-Mail" feature in IE to be more elegant -- it leaves the image references intact.

Thanks,



-- Chuckdesign

 

[lebisol]

it most definetly is better to reference then attach...it was just a matter of test-that would be the quickest way to "see how things look" but you have to make sure your Selection in Browser includes Whole Page.
Anyhow, u got it worked out and thats what counts...the rest is chat....
All the best!


> need more info?
:: don't click HERE ::