Changing WIndows Vista default email program ---- to GMAIL

Step 1
From the Tools menu click E-Mail Accounts
Step 2
Select View or change existing e-mail accounts and click Next
Step 3
Select your current email account and click Change
Step 4
Enter your Name, Email Address, and Password in the appropriate boxes
For Incoming Mail Server (POP3) enter pop.gmail.com
For Outgoing Mail Server (SMTP) enter smtp.gmail.com
Click More Settings
Step 5
On the Outgoing Server tab, select My outgoing server (SMTP) requires authentication
Select Use same settings as my incoming mail server
Step 6
On the Advanced Tab, put a checkmark on both SSL options.
For Incoming Server (POP3), enter 995
For Outgoing Server (SMTP), enter 465

you can arrange for your Gmail to go through e.g. Outlook Express


OR

Gmail is a web-based email service and it doesn't work at all the same way.
Try this Help from GMAIL
https://mail.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=10966

Greetings paultormey !

The suggested solution is download Gmail Notifier and set the option in Gmail Notifier to select Use Gmail for internet links.  Follow the instructions is this webpage
http://www.tech-recipes.com/rx/2202/gmail_default_email_program_xp_vista_os_x

Hope this helps, war1

Thanks Macentrap.
Using Gmail in Windows is not the issue, been doing that for a while.

But looks as if your link to GMAIL is the way to go. Will try and let you know.

Gmail is a web based email - unlike outlook, windows mail and outlook express etc.

You can get outlook/outlook express/Windows mail to connect to and retrive mail from gmail

You need to enable gmail for pop access - go to your gmail account and under settings - go to Forwarding and POP and enable POP download

Set up your client to use your gmail account - go to gamil help and select POP access under Gmail Essentials

You could also consider using iGoogle which displays your gmail account on the google search page.

Thanks KCTS.

I have been using GMAIL for the last couple of years. I do not want to use Outlook etc.

What I am asking is, how does one configure Windows Vista ( and most probably also XP) so that the default email program is GMAIL and NOT MS Windows Mail or Outlook.

I have setup my GMAIL account to receive emails sent to other emailid's eg those supplied by my local ISP.

Thanks all and especially war1.

Installing the GMAIL Notifier seems to have done the trick.