Outlook Tips

Although printing calendars is not “green” and defeats the purpose of having an electronic calendar, there are times when we need to print a calendar.  One thing that confounds many users is choosing a print format that include a notes section – it’s always blank.

There are a lot of printing bugs but this is one thing that can’t be blamed on a bug – it’s “by design”. The notes section is for handwritten notes  you might want to make on the calendar, not you Outlook notes.

This tip should be common sense, but I’ll take this opportunity to remind users that Microsoft does not send out updates by email – if you aren’t using automatic updates, you need to go to Microsoft Update to check for updates. I highly recommend using automatic updates, but if you choose not to, check Microsoft updates at least once a month, preferably at least once a week. 

One fake email making the rounds is offering KB910721 for Outlook and Outlook Express. This is a real KB number (and it offers a hotfix), but it won’t do most of us a bit of good – it’s for Exchange server, not Outlook and Outlook Express.

“After I read the email it is gone......looked everywhere....what do I do?”

This is caused by using the Hide Read Messages view. Switch to a different view by selecting a new one from the View menu.

I’m not sure why this problem is cropping up more often lately – it was a popular topic in years past because the view refreshed itself every few minutes. Since Outlook 2003, users need to press F5 to refresh the view.

You can use F5 to refresh the view in any folder, including Search folders.

I have a couple of new polls up at slipstick.com. With the first, I’m interested in knowing how many email accounts you have in your main Outlook profile. Early responses include people with more than 15 accounts. Wow. If I have that many, I wouldn’t get anything done but check mail.

How many email accounts are in your main Outlook profile?
http://forums.slipstick.com/showthread.php?t=36602

There is also a poll asking  what version of Exchange server you use. You can respond even if you don’t use exchange – one choice  is ‘I don’t use exchange’.  
http://forums.slipstick.com/showthread.php?t=33803

As always, the polls are open to everyone, no account required, unless you want to add your two cents. :)

I’ve had a few questions about Outlook 2003 on Windows 7 that result in an Agent error: “The Office Assistant requires Microsoft Agent 2.0 or later versions. This product is available in the Office System Pack.” 

Since Agent is not included in Windows 7, anyone who tries to use the Office Assistant will receive this error. The solution is to not use the Office Assistant. 
If you’d like to keep using Merlin, Microsoft has released a hotfix:

Microsoft Agent-enabled programs may not work in Windows 7
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/969168

When Outlook isn’t working correctly we often tell users to use Safe mode. Safe mode loads Outlook without any add-ins or extensions, the reading pane, or customization (like toolbars). If Outlook works ok in safe mode, then the problem is with an add-in or one of the configuration files Outlook uses.

After closing Outlook there are two ways to reopen Outlook in Safe mode:
1. Hold Ctrl as you click the Outlook shortcut
2. Type outlook.exe /safe in Start menu, Run or the Start Search field.

How to start Outlook in safe mode
http://www.outlook-tips.net/beginner/safemode.htm

Did you ever make an appointment for a future date or accept a meeting request and it displays on “Today” ? 

This is caused by a corrupt view and the fix is simple - reset the view on the calendar. If you use custom views, you can try resetting just the view on the calendar, but if the problem returns, you’ll need to use the /cleanviews switch (and wipe out all custom views).

If you need help resetting views, see http://www.outlook-tips.net/beginner/resetview.htm 

Q: In what order do the rules run?
A: The rules in Outlook run in the order listed – top to bottom. Use the arrow button to rearrange the order if necessary.

Q:Messages are being duplicated by rules. How do I stop it?
A: Add Stop processing to the first rule that processes the message. When a message meets the condition of two rules, both rules will process the message, unless you add Stop Processing to the uppermost of the two rules. Use the arrow buttons to reorder the rules, if necessary, so the correct rule is listed first.

Q: Will Stop processing stop all rules?
A: Only on the current message. Rules will run on any other messages being downloaded. Stop processing stops the rules engine from checking additional rules against the current message.

Q: Should I add Stop processing to all of my rules?
A: If you want to insure that no other rule will process the message, yes. Exchange server users should use this with caution, as it can use up some of the space set aside for rules.

Q: How many rules can I have?
A: As long as you don’t use Exchange server, as many as you want (and can manage). Exchange users are limited to as little as 32KB of rules (approx. 10). This limit can be increased by the administrator on Exchange 2007 and 2010.

Q: Is there a better rules editor, one that will let me sort my rules alphabetically?
A: No. Rules Wizard is the only rules editor there is. Sorting rules alphabetically could have unintended consequences since messages are checked against each rule.

With Outlook 2003 on Windows 7, users can't open zip attachments from a message - double clicking on the zip brings up the open/save dialog but clicking Open does not open it (the zip is saved in the securetemp folder each time its double clicked).

To open the zips, users need to save them to the hard drive then open if they want to use Windows Compressed folders feature, or they can install a third party zip program.

This is related to the new Libraries file management feature and is apparently "by design". Users can edit the registry as a workaround. Because we don't know if editing this key might cause other problems it's highly recommended users install a 3rd party zip program instead.

For those who prefer editing the registry, browse to this key:HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ShellCompatibility\ Applications\outlook.exe
String: STRIPFOLDERBIT
String: VERSION Data value: 11.*,10.*,9.*,8.*,7.*

Either delete (or rename) the STRIPFOLDERBIT value or edit the VERSION string value, removing 11.*; The new VERSION string value will be 10.*;9.*;8.*;7.*

When finished, you’ll need to reboot Windows for it to take effect.

We’re seeing a lot of complaints about News Feed folders reproducing like rabbits in Outlook 2010’s folder list. This folder is used by the new ‘social connector’ but to date, the news feed in the People Pane only works with Sharepoint 2010. For some reason, some users (possibly those with only a Hotmail/Live account in their profile) have multiple News Feed folders.
To stop the creation, disable the social connector in Options, Trust Center, Addins.

To delete the folders, restart Outlook, then delete the News Feed folders. It’s usually faster to drag the folders into one folder then delete that folder (or drag them to the deleted items folder and empty it) than it is to delete the folders one at a time.