Columbus Ledger-Enquirer Sonya Sorich column

Feb 26, 2013 (Columbus Ledger-Enquirer - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- News recently surfaced that Hotmail will soon be extinct.

The headlines prompted Internet humor, including these questions: "Hotmail still exists Who has a Hotmail account " The answers are "yes" and "me." I use a Hotmail account as my primary personal email address. I also enjoy drinking Crystal Pepsi and getting messages on my new beeper.

If you're a fellow Hotmail user hearing about the change for the first time, I'll offer an important clarification. Microsoft will still offer an email service.

It's simply migrating Hotmail accounts to Outlook.com -- and yes, you can keep "@hotmail.com" in your email address, according to a recent NBC News report.

Last week, I took a leap of faith and converted my account to Outlook -- a service that seems sleeker, easier to use and much more modern.

It made me wonder why I waited so long to get with the times.

The short answer Convenience. The Hotmail account was the first personal email address I created after graduating from college.

I used it to apply for jobs and sign up for social networks. I worried that switching to a new email provider would be too arduous.

But at the same time, I feared my Hotmail address signaled technological ineptitude.

Sound silly Go ahead and tell me you've never raised an eyebrow at someone who has an AOL email address in 2013.

Some people aren't afraid to publicly voice their email prejudices. Anyone remember "Gallery Girls," the reality TV series on Bravo No Did I just do additional damage to my cool cred Anyway, at one point in the series, a female cast member uttered this line: "I don't want a man who doesn't have an iPhone ... or an email that isn't Gmail. If he has Yahoo! or Hotmail, I think that's a big no-no." Ouch. Do you think she'd consider dating someone who still uses Friendster There's a chance I'm over-analyzing the situation. After all, buzzwords often take a backseat to functionality in the email world. Unless you're trying to become some edgy leader in the tech sector, you simply need an email service with the capacity to send and receive messages. Still, maybe some potential employers have judged me based on the Hotmail address listed on my LinkedIn page.

Which is why it's probably best to embrace a new friendship with Outlook, a service that might be modern enough to explain why I receive emails from SeniorPeopleMeet.com.

For nearly 10 years, Hotmail was my main method of communicating with everyone from professional connections to romantic flames. Perhaps its face-lift means it's also time to revamp the dreams that dominate my inbox.

Sonya Sorich, reporter, can be reached at ssorich@ledger-enquirer.com or 706-571-8516. Visit ledger-enquirer.com/sonya to read her columns.

___ (c)2013 the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer (Columbus, Ga.) Visit the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer (Columbus, Ga.) at www.ledger-enquirer.com Distributed by MCT Information Services

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