Outlook 2007 not connecting to or displaying Hotmail messages

Up to this weekend I had my UK ISP messages and my Hotmail messages displayed
in Outlook 2007. After 'updating' Outlook Connector (why did I respond to
that prompt?) I was unable to connect to the Hotmail account. I couould and
can still operate the Hotmail account separately, but I prefer Outlook. After
wasting several hours looking for a solution I deleted the Hotmail account
from Outlook, uninstalled the Connector and reinstalled it. I'm still unable
to connect.

Each time I open Outlook and click on a Hotmail folder I 'm informed Outlook
Connector is available only to subscribers. Do you want to subscribe now. I
thought it worked without any subscription. Even clicking Yes to subscribe
doesn't get me any connection.

I also noticed the Data Files tab in Outlook/Tools/Account Settings showed
"Not Available" under Filename, whereas the POP3 messages saves to a .pst
file.

Any ideas where the problem may lie, or is it that the term upgrade is a
misnome?
--
Steve G