Why all these dots instead of the spaces that were there & ¶ marks when I Reply to or Forward an email in my new Outlook in Office 2019 Pro+?

Jeff

>> is there still any point in my carrying out that process you laid out?

No. Stumbled on this Reddit thread that means the problem is much deeper that I thought and none of my suggestions are going to help.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Office365/comments/tranah/outlook_paragraph_symbol_keeps_coming_back/

You need direct Microsoft Support where they can remote into your PC. Not via any support forums. https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/home/contact

Thanks for that detailed list of steps to try, Hornblower. I’ve been putting off trying all that and have read it several times, but I just wanted to make sure that you do realize that I can easily turn the formatting marks OFF or then back ON on any email that I open and I even pinned a shortcut for doing that that appears in the line if icons at the top of all emails.

The only issue is that I can't navigate into File > Options > Mail.

Under Compose messages, select Editor Options > Display and uncheck them all and have it stick. What I mean is, then when I start creating a new email or Reply to an email, they're all shown again.

You know that, don't you?

If you do, is there still any point in my carrying out that process you laid out?

Jeff

Thank you for your cooperation. Please read all of these instructions before you start and let me know if there is anything that is not clear.

In this test we will create a new "No email" Outlook Profile and see if the show/hide Formatting Marks options perform as expected.

1. Using the instructions in the first section of this article:
   https://www.companionlink.com/support/kb/How_to_use_Outlook_2016,_2019,_2021,_and_Office_365_without_an_associated_Email_Account

Create a new "No email" Outlook Profile named "TEST_2025-07-03".
{Your command line should be like: Outlook.exe /PIM TEST_2025-07-03}

2. In the new Outlook Profile that opens:

Ctrl+Shift+K

{Create new Task}

Click in the body of the new Task.

Type several spaces and an X.

{You should NOT see any formatting marks}

From the main menu: Format Text -> Paragraph -> {pilcrow}
{You should see Formatting Marks}

From the main menu: Format Text -> Paragraph -> {pilcrow}
{You should NOT see Formatting Marks}

Close the Task with No Save.

Ctrl+Shift+K

{Create new Task}

Click in the body of the new Task.

Type several spaces and an X.

{You should NOT see any formatting marks}

Close and exit the "No email" Outlook Profile session.

When you start Outlook again, it should return to your previous profile.

Yes, but I want them permanently turned OFF, which Microsoft says is automatically done in their Note that's at the bottom of my first image on my June 25 Reply.

Jeff

Please excuse me, but I have a hard time keeping track of the multiple support threads I am involved with and what progress we have made in each one. Please answer just my most recent request and then I'll reply with the next step in the process. Again, this is only to help me keep everything straight. Thank you.

Did Ctrl+Shift+8 toggle the formatting marks on/off?