Too many large email attachments weighing down Outlook's PST file and your hard drive, but you don't want to throw out the message with the attachment? Weblog Digital Inspiration details how to separate attachments from email messages in Outlook without deleting the message. It's a simple process, and when you're done the file is no longer attached to the message; you can keep or delete it as you see fit. It's not difficult, but the little two-step process could save you hard drive space and keep Outlook's PST file lighter and snappier—especially if you back it up regularly.

Windows only: Microsoft's lesser-known Journal feature can attach transaction details to contacts—which makes it perfect for storing notes about phone calls. When you want to keep careful track of who you called when and what you talked about and decided, the Productivity Portfolio says the Journal's the way to go. Hit the link to get a step-by-step Journal tutorial, or just press Ctrl+Shift+J to get started on a new Journal entry in Outlook now.

When you send out that email request you're waiting to hear back about, you can automatically shuttle it into a "Waiting For" folder with the right outgoing rule. Microsoft Outlook expert Taco Oosterkamp recommends adding a unique and unnoticeable notation at the end of any email you're waiting on (he uses [w]), and then use an Outlook rule to filter messages with [w] in the body to your Waiting For folder. Hit the link for a step by step tutorial on setting it up in Outlook; seems like an easy thing to replicate in other clients that support saved searches (like Thunderbird or even Gmail).

Windows only: Previously mentioned Microsoft Outlook plug-in Xobni (pronounced "zob-nee") is now available to the public for immediate download. Previously in invite-only beta, Xobni adds email analytics, better contact cards, fast search, threaded conversations, and more to your Outlook inbox. The NY Times explains one way Xobni makes your inbox more of a social network of connected contacts:

Xobni recognises that if an executive sends a copy to someone else on each message he or she sends, it might be to an assistant or another colleague. When someone using Xobni searches for that executive in Outlook, the second person is listed as well.

Make it seem like you're sending email when you're really playing hooky with Outlook's built-in "defer delivery" rule. Tech blogger Dennis O'Reilly runs down how to set up Outlook to delay sending messages for a certain amount of time (like half an hour) automatically. You can also set individual messages to be sent on certain days at certain times in Outlook—good for scheduling future messages ahead of time.

Blogger Vinod Ponmanadiyil has years of email communication and documents in Microsoft Outlook at work, so keeping backups of his PST file (the file in which Outlook stores all your email) is very important to him. Unfortunately Outlook isn't great about backing up your PST file while Outlook is running, but Vinod has found a simple solution: Set a rule in Outlook to keep a separate copy of your incoming email in a separate PST file on an encrypted, external thumb drive. The encrypted part is optional, but it's a smart move if you want to keep that data secure (check out our guide to encrypting data with TrueCrypt for details on how to set up an encrypted drive). Head to the post for specifics on what seems like a perfect Outlook backup solution. For a different approach, check out previously mentioned Outlook Personal Folders Backup Tool.

Lifehacker reader and TiddlyWiki enthusiast Fraser has written up a guide that takes the idea of cut-and-paste Outlook Today customising to the next logical (or at least Lifehacker-friendly) conclusion—integrating a TiddlyWiki to-do list and notebook into Outlook. Combine the easy-to-edit power of a personal wiki with the at-a-glance inbox and task information from Outlook, and you've got a powerful start page indeed. For a primer on getting things done with a TiddlyWiki, check out guest-poster Jason Thomas' GTDTiddlyWiki walkthrough. (Original Outlook Today post).

Microsoft Outlook is the company-issued email client at your place of employment, so like it or not, it's up to you to figure out how to manage your inbox, calendar, and task list every day using it. To make things worse, if you're in IT lockdown without administrator rights to your PC, you can't install special add-ons or software to help your cause. Luckily there are install-free ways to customise Outlook, add keyboard shortcuts, and get your inbox down to zero messages painlessly with a few tweaks to your setup.

Your plain vanilla "Outlook Today" screen could be doing a whole lot more for you, especially if you aren't afraid of a little HTML or can get handy with a free page creator. Even if hand-coding's not your thing, the Tech-Recipes blog offers the big blocks of dense code that let you put your inbox, calendar, tasks, and whatever else anywhere you want on a page, leaving room for other stuff you might find useful. Feel free to mess around to your heart's content, because it's also un-doable with less than two clicks.

Windows only: Freeware Microsoft Outlook add-on Newsgator Inbox delivers RSS feeds directly to your Outlook inbox. NewsGator Inbox isn't new, but this latest release is the first time we've featured it. Aside from the Outlook integration, NewsGator Inbox synchronises with all the other NewsGator readers, like its popular FeedDemon and NetNewsWire. Best of all, they're all freeware. NewsGator Inbox is Windows only, requires .NET 2.0. If you've considered making the jump from web- to desktop-based newsreaders, NewsGator Inbox or one of the other NewGator solutions are all excellent choices.