Microsoft Hotmail is a typical Microsoft product. A nice (borrowed/bought/stolen) idea, implemented poorly.
Normally, Microsoft can get away with this sort of thing, on account of their being a monopoly and being able to shove whatever they want down the throats of consumers. However, it doesn't quite work in the world of free email, because Microsoft hasn't conquered the Web. Yet.
Because of all the reliability and rumored hacking problems of Hotmail, I wouldn't even use Hotmail if it weren't for one clever Microsoft ploy: You can use Hotmail from within Outlook Express 5. Since I hate the slow response time of web-based email services (what with having to load a whole new page every time I click a button), the chance to use email through software was too tempting to pass up. After an easy set up process, I was up and running with MSN Hotmail in Outlook Express. The only problem is that every once in a while, it will decide not to work, so I have to access my mail through Hotmail.com instead, which is only painful the first time you log in (in which it will spend about 5 minutes doing absolutely nothing, and then load).
The other bad part is that when I use it, I know I am supporting Microsoft, and I am not a Microsoftie, to put it lightly.
If you don't mind Microsoft (and with that goes not minding hackability and unreliability), then go use Hotmail.



Recommended: Yes