Distressed wrote:

I just started using "Outlook" today. Tried to delete an e-mail
tonight & I get error message, "The connection to the server is
unavailable. Outlook must be online or connected to complete this
action." I can look in my tray to see if my "Hotmail" is online, but
I don't know how to tell if "Outlook" is online.

Click File. If "Work Offline" is checked, then it's offline.
Alternatively, if you examine the right end of the status bar along the
bottom, it should say whether or not you're connected.
--
Brian Tillman