I might be saying something you already know but never let Windows handle your e-mail. Presently, I am using Mozilla Thunderbird which is free and has enough functionality to serve most needs. Anytime I had crashes under Outlook or Outlook Express, the saved e-mails were no longer recoverable.
For older users, there is a freeware program called Calypso that did very well on my older Windows NT system.
How does Mozilla Thunderbird compare with Gmail?