Some of our readers asked us how e-mail contact groups can be created in Windows Vista. To answer their question we have created this tutorial in which we will show you how to do it.
In Windows Vista, contacts can be managed by using the Windows Contacts application which replaces the old Address Book from Windows XP. In April 2007 we published a quick overview of the new Windows Contacts application. Before reading this tutorial you might want to check out our previous article to get yourself familiarized with the new application.

You can access Windows Contacts directly from Windows Mail or from the Start Menu. In Windows Mail, click on the Contacts button located in the menu bar, right after the "Send/Receive" button.

In the Start Menu you can find the Windows Contacts shortcut directly under All Programs.

Once you open Windows Contacts, you will see in the upper menu bar the New Contact Group button. Click on it. In the Contact Group Properties window type the name of the new contact group and then click on the Add to Contact Group button.

Select the contacts that you want to add to this group and click on the Add button.

If you want to create new contacts and add them directly to the contact group, click on Create New Contact, add all the contact details and click on OK. You can also add new people to the contact group without adding them to your individual contacts. To do this, type the appropriate information in the Contact Name and E‑Mail fields, and then click on the Create for Group Only button.

To remove a contact from the group, select it from the list and click on the Remove Selected Contacts button. If you want to remove more than one contact, press and hold the Ctrl key and with your mouse select the contacts. Afterwards click on the Remove Selected Contacts button.

In the second tab of the Contact Group Properties window you can fill in some details about the group you created. Complete the fields you want and then click the OK button.

Now you will see the new group in the Windows Contacts list. If you want to make changes to the group, select it and click on the Edit, Delete or Print button.

Related articles:
Windows Contacts
Missing buttons from the Windows Contacts toolbar?
Windows Mail
The complete guide to the Windows Calendar - Part 1