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Office 365 - Accessing Office 365
There are many ways to access your UWM email and calendar with Office 365. Some email/calendar users offer much functionality, but little mobility. Whereas other users are very mobile, but offer only limited features. Most UWM students, faculty, and staff are likely to use more than one solution to access their email and calendar.
Chart (Mobility vs. Features)
Supported email/calendar users are plotted below by their mobility and available features. Click the chart to view full-size and be sure to read the descriptions and recommendations for each email/calendar user.
Descriptions & Recommendations
Outlook 2013, 2016, and 2019 desktop users offer the full suite of Office 365 functionality. While all basic and advanced email, calendar, and address book features are available, the Outlook desktop users have little mobility unless installed on a laptop. Outlook is recommended for those who...
- Prefer a desktop user.
- Manage multiple calendars or email accounts.
- Frequently schedule complex meetings.
- Must have offline access to email/calendar data.
- Require archiving, importing, and exporting capabilities.
- Do not require frequent mobile access.
Outlook Web App (OWA) offers nearly as much functionality as the Outlook desktop user, but with far more mobility. OWA can be accessed anywhere with a standard web browser like Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, or Chrome and will meet the needs of most of the UWM community. OWA is recommended for those who...
- Prefer a web user.
- Manage only their own email and calendar.
- Do not require complex mail/calendar functionality.
- Frequently access their account from public computers.
- Have an occasional need for mobile access.
Mac OS X Suite offers most of the functionality offered by the Outlook desktop user and OWA web user, but across a suite of apps: Mail, Calendar, and Contacts. Like other desktop users, the Mac OS X Suite offers limited portability unless installed on a laptop. These apps are recommended for those who...
- Prefer a desktop user.
- Prefer Mac Apps.
- Do not require complex mail/calendar functionality.
- Do not require frequent mobile access.
Outlook Mobile App is a free app for mobile devices. It offers virtually the same functionality as web-based OWA, but has a mobile-friendly interface and works with some common mobile device functionality (e.g., push notifications, voice actions, and more). This app is recommended for those who...
- Prefer a non-browser based experience.
- Enjoy the look and feel of Outlook and OWA.
- Manage only their own email and calendar.
- Do not require complex calendar functionality.
- Must frequently access their account on-the-go.
Native mobile email/calendar apps that come installed on mobile devices provide a simple interface for accessing your account on-the-go. They are ideal for basic tasks like reading and sending emails and viewing your calendar, but have limited Office 365 functionality. These apps are recommended for those who...
- Prefer a non-browser based experience.
- Enjoy the look and feel of their devices' native apps.
- Manage only their own email and calendar.
- Do not require complex mail/calendar functionality.
- Must frequently access their account on-the-go.
Thunderbird and other users that do not use Microsoft Exchange can provide limited email/calendar functionality by utilizing IMAP, but are generally not recommended. These users are the least functional and portable and are recommended only for those who...
- Use Linux, but prefer a non-browser based experience.
- Manage only their own email and calendar.
- Do not require complex mail/calendar functionality.
- Do not require frequent mobile access.