I mentioned this issue in another article but because it is a big problem for many people, it generates a lot of questions *and* almost all comments are negative, it bears repeating.
The most frequently asked question to date is how to change the interface color. Outlook (and all of the Office apps) are so… white. Blindingly white. Hurts your eyes white.
As bad as the blue, silver, black, or green color schemes were in older versions of Outlook, for many users they would be better than all white.
Following all of the complaints with the Preview, Microsoft added 3 color options to the final version. You can have any color you like, as long as it's gray... choosing between white, light gray, or dark gray. Outlook 2016 tweaked the colors a little, adding a 'colorful' theme and black.
You can also add a little gray scale decoration to the upper right corner of the application. It's cute eye candy, nothing more, and in the RTM build there are currently 14 designs to choose from.
Turning down the screen brightness will help, a lot. I've always kept the brightness set low and the white in Outlook 2013 RTM was livable. I didn't realize how bright the default settings were until I got a new tablet. Whoa! The default settings are really bright, even on the system that adjusts the brightness to match the room's ambient light.
Add lines to break up the message list
This tip is from James:
Go to View -> View Settings -> Other Settings and add some dots between the messages.
This is the same View Settings dialog found at the bottom of the menu when you right-click on "All Unread", or the sort order labels.
In the RTM screenshots below, I use a solid line to separate the messages - dots worked fine in older versions of Outlook but dots are all but invisible on my screens in Outlook 2013.
White Color scheme Outlook 2013 RTM
Light Gray color scheme
Dark Gray scheme
Change the color or background design
To change the color scheme or the background design in the final version (not Preview), go to File, Account in any Office application (in Outlook, go to File, Office Account).
I just installed Office 2016. I liked (or maybe got used to) the Dark Grey theme in Outlook 2013, and the theme colors are vastly different in Outlook 2016. I hate it so far. I wish they had kept it the same or renamed it to something else. I still think Colorful is too bright. Worst of all, with Office 365, the themes are persistent across all applications. Ugh.
Regards.
I had installed Office 2013 but due to the color issue I installed Office 2010. Now, in Excel 2010 when I try to use Save and Send, it says This action is not supported while an older version of Outlook is running. When I close Outlook 2010 it tries to send through Outlook 2013 but gets stuck in the outbox.
How do I force Excel to send through Outlook 2010?
did you uninstall 2013? if you aren't using it, you should uninstall it. Then repair the office 2010 install.
How do I repair the 2010 install?
Go into Control panel, programs and features - locate office then click Change.
https://www.slipstick.com/tutorial/repair-office-2010-2007-2003-installations/
I did find and run the repair. Now when I press Save and Send it gives the error General Mail failure. Quit Microsoft Excel, restart the mail system, and try again.
Any suggestions?
Should I uninstall 2010 and reinstall?
You could try that... i'm guessing that, for some reason, the permissions on outlook.exe is wrong. Uninstall/reinstall should fix the settings. (might be worth scrubbing office before reinstalling but it removes everything, including profile). But first, see if this helps - Check the properties for your outlook shortcut. Under the compatibility tab uncheck "run as administrator". BTW, you shouldn't need to use run as administrator - if you do, then your permissions are not correct.
Run as administrator was not checked.
I'm assuming outlook works normally, it's just sending from other apps that fails... is outlook open or closed when you try to send from Excel? Try both ways and see if the results are the same. Is the workbook saved? (I believe it needs to be saved.)
I would try uninstall, reboot, reinstall.
I got the message whether Outlook was opened or closed. I uninstalled 2010, rebooted, reinstalled. Now Save and Send appears to work!
Office retained the activation and retained my customized ribbon bar, etc. I'm happy!
I just installed Office 2016. I liked (or maybe got used to) the Dark Grey theme in Outlook 2013, and the theme colors are vastly different in Outlook 2016. I hate it so far. I wish they had kept it the same or renamed it to something else. I still think Colorful is too bright. Worst of all, with Office 365, the themes are persistent across all applications. Ugh.
Hi I suffer from Meares Irlen syndrome as do many people who don't even know and this bright whiten on outlook 2013 is SERIOUS! I have only just had my computer updated and within hours I'm trying to put it back to 2010 due to blinding headaches and feeling sick. How do we get in touch with microsoft about this?
https://irlen.com/what-is-irlen-syndrome/#
Microsoft is aware of the issues - its a little better in Outlook 2016. It helps a lot to turn the brightness down about 20%.
I Hate the look of Office 2013 and Windows 10. They are both garbage to me. I am keeping Windows 7 as long as it is supported and Office 2010 until they CHANGE the options in Office and the look of Win 10!
i hate this! i wish we had different colors, i work in an company full of hundreds of people and everyone hates this new outlook, it's too bright. With all that technology you decided we could use stars to decorate the background, we are here to work, so more color schemes would be more appropiate since we are not in high school trying to make things look cute, we just want to be able to bear the bright white color and dark gray doesn't make an difference. This new 2013 sucks!!!!!!!
Please please please give us more colors to choose from! This is killing my eyes.
I agree, give us some colors! Even the dark gray is not dark and everything still blends together. Disappointed that an upgraded version doesn't have more customization options. I have to look at this every day, all day, it would be nice to have some change from time to time.