I received the email back in December 2015 regarding the upcoming changes in regard to using the Windows Live Mail email program.  I am one of those persons who discovered that I am still using Windows Mail 2011 rather than the 2012.  

I would like to continue using this program to organize my emails since it allows the creation of many categories of folders and sub-folders to file incoming and outgoing emails.  

I have found a couple of relevant help postings but they don't answer all of my questions for my situation.  I am not very computer savvy so I am in need of quite simple instructions to accomplish the task that is required.  

If I download and install Windows Essentials 2012, will the Windows Live Mail 2012 just install over top of the existing Mail 2011 retaining all of my email category folders that are in place in the program now?   If not, what exactly do I have to do to be able to retain my filing system within the program as I transition from one version to the other?  

To further complicate things, I will also be moving from a Windows 7 computer to a Windows 8.1 computer shortly (as well as upgrading the 8.1 to the free Windows 10 upgrade once I get everything all sorted out).    From some of the information I have found on the Microsoft website, it seems that the Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 mail apps may not be a suitable option for my purposes.  (My internet provider uses POP for email.)  Will I be able to use Windows Live Mail 2012 with Windows 10?  

Might there be some better alternatives for email management?  Any help with these questions would be most appreciated.