Outlook won't send Emails

Hello,

This is not a question, it is a statement. Outlook 2003 would not send emails through my ISP's smtp server. I probably spent 25 hours trying to solve this problem over a period of one month, and I spent half of that on the phone with my ISP (taking up their resources). I also went down a wrong path buy using some freeware SMTP test software which showed an error in the SMTP transaction. I can send email now and the software still shows the same error.

I spent 2 hours on the phone with Microsoft Support today and they fixed the problem. Which may have been the best $50 I have ever spent.

Microsoft Support told me the problem occurred because I installed Office (and hence Outlook) from a standard user account instead of an administrator account. This had become a habit over the past couple of years and I had ceased to even consider it as a potential problem. I had reinstalled Office recently, but I did it from a user account again. To the best of my knowledge, the Outlook profile was set up wrong because I didn't install from an administrator account.

I use my computer daily from a user account because it's my understanding this is safer than running from an administrator account.

I created a lot of grief for myself, my ISP, and Microsoft surely lost money on technical support fixing my problem. Although SMTP transactions are relatively simple, apparently the Outlook profile is important.

IF YOUR OUTLOOK INSTALLATION HAS NEVER SUCCEEDED IN SENDING EMAIL, REMOVE THE PROGRAM AND RE-INSTALL FROM AN ADMINISTRATOR ACCOUNT.

My problem appears to be fixed (knock on wood).