Michel Merlin
2007-02-17 12:20:20 UTC
OE changes my HTML template when using it!In OE (Outlook Express), when I create a New Message using one of my Templates ("OE > Message > New Message", or "New Message Using"), the New Message that OE opens is altered by 2 additions to my own template. This is totally irrelevant, useless, badly harming, and totally unacceptable - yet it has never been corrected or even acknowledged in years.
For instance, for a test, let's write a basic Letter template ("OE > Message > New Message Using > Merlin_Letter_Basic"), that begins like this (in the HTML Source pane):
===== Template excerpt, BEG =====
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>Lettre Merlin</TITLE>
<META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
<STYLE>
BODY {BACKGROUND: white; COLOR: black; FONT: 10pt arial}
</STYLE>
<META content="MSHTML 6.00.2900.2963" name=GENERATOR></HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=white>
<DIV>Michel Merlin, <A
href="mailto:***@laposte.net">***@laposte.net</A>, mobile
+33 6 6897 5612</DIV>
===== Template excerpt, END =====
When opening a New Message using this template ("OE > Message > New Message Using > Merlin_Letter_Basic"), the New Message that OE opens, starts like this (still in Source pane):
===== New Message excerpt, BEG =====
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>Lettre Merlin</TITLE><BASE
href="file://C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\Stationery\">
<META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
<STYLE>
BODY {BACKGROUND: white; COLOR: black; FONT: 10pt arial}
</STYLE>
<META content="MSHTML 6.00.2900.2963" name=GENERATOR></HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=white>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Michel Merlin, <A
href="mailto:***@laposte.net">***@laposte.net</A>, mobile
+33 6 6897 5612</DIV>
===== New Message excerpt, END =====
IOW, OE has altered my template, with 2 additions:
1) a "<BASE ... >" tag, totally irrelevant, and badly harmful - anyway inserting or not such a tag is my choice, not Microsoft's, and it is totally counterproductive that they force it on me;
2) a blank line ("<DIV> </DIV>") that I don't want, and that is inserted in a place highly visible from the recipient but where I don't think of checking when writing (since it has no reason to change, and should even remain untouched).
This of course happens with all templates, so each time I open a message in OE (Ctrl+N), I have, before doing anything else, to open the Source pane and to remove the unwanted additions. I have suffered this little time loss on every message open in every day since several years. I have reported it a couple times in MS Public Newsgroups in the past years, it has never been corrected so far. So I am renewing my request twofold to anyone who can help:
1) How can I workaround this, and have OE keep my template unaltered when using it?
2) To anyone having a relevant contact at MS (from managers to staff to "volunteers"), could you forward them this request:
Please MS, if you are really sure you are the only on earth with a brain, if you really think everyone else is stupid, then please submit and explain them your POV, but don't force it onto them!
Please force your own choices in default settings and templates, or submit them to customer when he saves his template, but let him later edit his template as he wants, and never alter this template when being used!
Versailles, Sat 17 Feb 2007 13:20:20 +0100
For instance, for a test, let's write a basic Letter template ("OE > Message > New Message Using > Merlin_Letter_Basic"), that begins like this (in the HTML Source pane):
===== Template excerpt, BEG =====
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>Lettre Merlin</TITLE>
<META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
<STYLE>
BODY {BACKGROUND: white; COLOR: black; FONT: 10pt arial}
</STYLE>
<META content="MSHTML 6.00.2900.2963" name=GENERATOR></HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=white>
<DIV>Michel Merlin, <A
href="mailto:***@laposte.net">***@laposte.net</A>, mobile
+33 6 6897 5612</DIV>
===== Template excerpt, END =====
When opening a New Message using this template ("OE > Message > New Message Using > Merlin_Letter_Basic"), the New Message that OE opens, starts like this (still in Source pane):
===== New Message excerpt, BEG =====
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>Lettre Merlin</TITLE><BASE
href="file://C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\Stationery\">
<META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
<STYLE>
BODY {BACKGROUND: white; COLOR: black; FONT: 10pt arial}
</STYLE>
<META content="MSHTML 6.00.2900.2963" name=GENERATOR></HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=white>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Michel Merlin, <A
href="mailto:***@laposte.net">***@laposte.net</A>, mobile
+33 6 6897 5612</DIV>
===== New Message excerpt, END =====
IOW, OE has altered my template, with 2 additions:
1) a "<BASE ... >" tag, totally irrelevant, and badly harmful - anyway inserting or not such a tag is my choice, not Microsoft's, and it is totally counterproductive that they force it on me;
2) a blank line ("<DIV> </DIV>") that I don't want, and that is inserted in a place highly visible from the recipient but where I don't think of checking when writing (since it has no reason to change, and should even remain untouched).
This of course happens with all templates, so each time I open a message in OE (Ctrl+N), I have, before doing anything else, to open the Source pane and to remove the unwanted additions. I have suffered this little time loss on every message open in every day since several years. I have reported it a couple times in MS Public Newsgroups in the past years, it has never been corrected so far. So I am renewing my request twofold to anyone who can help:
1) How can I workaround this, and have OE keep my template unaltered when using it?
2) To anyone having a relevant contact at MS (from managers to staff to "volunteers"), could you forward them this request:
Please MS, if you are really sure you are the only on earth with a brain, if you really think everyone else is stupid, then please submit and explain them your POV, but don't force it onto them!
Please force your own choices in default settings and templates, or submit them to customer when he saves his template, but let him later edit his template as he wants, and never alter this template when being used!
Versailles, Sat 17 Feb 2007 13:20:20 +0100