Get a Preview (Reading) Pane in Gmail

If you use Gmail, there is a special new feature that I want to tell you about. You won't see it unless you turn it on, but it is very, very useful.

If you are used to using Outlook, Outlook Express or other email programs and you move to Gmail,  you may miss a feature that many programs had, but Gmail did not - until NOW!

The feature is called a Preview Pane or Reading Pane. It allows you to see the contents of each email as you scroll down the list of email without having to open each one. It is so useful, that until now, I was tied to Outlook just because I loved the ability to see what is in each email without opening and closing it.

To use this new feature, however, you have to enable it. Just start your Gmail, then click on the Gear icon at the top right and choose Settings. Then click on the Labs tab. Scroll down until you see Preview Pane and click to Enable it. Click Save Changes at the bottom of the page.

When you go back to your inbox, it probably won't look any different, but you will see an icon to control the Preview Pane just to the left of the Gear icon. Click the down arrow and choose either Vertical Split or Horizontal Split to see the Preview Pane.