Reasons why we use OUTLOOK at the Office

In most of the companies they use Outlook for their official mailing purpose. But have you ever imagined why they stick to Outlook rather than swithcing to any other mail system??????
Here are some reasons specified by Computerworld.com why we use Outlook for Official Mailing in the Offices
1. Outlook and Microsoft Exchange Play Well Together
Users need to know absolutely nothing to connect. They just fire up Outlook, enter their e-mail address, and it and Exchange commune. Transparently. That cuts down on IT involvement in client configuration and allows users to switch computers easily
2. Outlook Plays Well With Active Directory.
Active Directory's authentication extends to Exchange. That means that a user can simply log on to a computer, start Outlook, and her Active Directory credentials are passed to the Exchange server-no typing or separate logon required.
3. Outlook Integrates with Many Devices and Applications
If you're possessed by any sort of PDA or smartphone, there's a way to synch it with OutlookEven third party add-on applications for devices like BlackBerry or various Windows Mobile models manage to talk to Outlook.
4. Outlook Makes it Easy to Organize Your Assets
Most e-mail clients offer some sort of rules for sorting and managing e-mail, but Outlook 2007 (in conjunction with Exchange 2007) really raises the bar. Sure, you can sort messages into folders, or forward or redirect them according to selected criteria. However, you also have the option to send different automatic Out of Office (OOO) messages to internal and external addresses.
5. Outlook Plays Nicely With SharePoint
Microsoft's SharePoint is a collaborative platform offering tools for building and managing websites, intranets and workspaces.Simple-Outlook users can opt to receive notifications of new or changed content by e-mail, then click through to the SharePoint site. They can also add content to a shared workspace or participate in forum discussions by e-mail, thanks to integration with Outlook and Exchange.
6. Outlook Expedites Workflow
Outlook's messaging isn't limited to mere e-mail. Companies can set up workflows for functions such as online voting. For example, if a group wants to decide on a location for a festive lunch, the coordinator can send a message offering several options. Recipients simply click a voting button within the e-mail message to send their responses.
7. Outlook's User Interface is Familiar
Since Microsoft Office is the market leader in productivity software, the Outlook user interface is familiar to users, cutting down on the learning curve. Sure, there's a ton of functionality to discover, but the basics are relatively intuitive to someone who's used to Microsoft Office.
8. Outlook Offers Integrated Calendar, Tasks, etc
Outlook includes an address book, calendar, task list and virtual sticky notes. All pieces are integrated; dragging and dropping an e-mail message can create an appointment or a task or a note.
9. Believe It or Not, Outlook Has Pretty Good Security
Yes, I know Microsoft has a bad reputation on the security front. But Outlook 2007, in particular, has good junk mail filtering (as long as you keep it up-to-date), blocks external content such as web bugs and downloaded images and data from foreign sites, disallows executable attachments and prevents the execution of ActiveX applets, by default. You can bypass the security if you like, but it has to be a conscious decision.
10. Outlook Offers One-Stop E-mail
You're not limited to a single account in Outlook. Several accounts using different protocols (including POP3 and IMAP) can feed into the same set of folders, and be managed with one set of rules. Or, if you prefer, they can be sorted into separate folders by account. You choose.