The novelty of owning a new PC or laptop quickly wears off when it comes to loading programs and transferring across data files, but for the most part it's a fairly straightforward, though time-consuming, job. However, things often grind to a halt with email accounts and messages and a lot of people just give up and start from scratch. untitled 1 frame EGERAHSBCHSB/Mor95perSofa_200x200c21.06 untitled 1 frame end The trouble is Outlook Express (OE), used by most PC owners, lacks any simple means of transferring data. It's not too bad when the PCs are connected to a network or both of them use the Windows XP operating system, but it can get messy when it involves different versions of Windows. The problem lies in how OE manages its files, which are spread around the hard disc drive in a seemingly haphazard manner. As well, some of them are encrypted or in proprietary file formats that defy most attempts to copy and paste files and folders. Worse still, important configuration data is deeply embedded inside the Windows Registry and novices tinker with it at their peril. This week we're going to look at what's involved and where the files and folders are stored. In part two we'll look at a simple step-by-step procedure to safely and securely transfer your basic email settings and messages from one PC to another; in part three we'll look at the Registry components and tidy up the loose ends. Incidentally, what follows mainly refers to Outlook Express versions 5 and 6. If you're still using OE4 you're on your own and it's about time you upgraded. Outlook Express has three key components that you need to copy to a new PC to transfer or duplicate your current email setup: the Message Store, Address Book, and your Accounts Information. For a full transfer you will also need to copy Message Rules and Customisation data from the Registry. The Message Store contains all of the emails you have sent, received, deleted or drafted in *.dbx files, a database format that can also be read, albeit awkwardly, by text editors such as Notepad, WordPad and Word. This is worth knowing if OE curls up its toes and you need to get at your messages in an emergency. Depending on your operating system the Message folder is normally in one of two locations. In Windows 9x (95/98/SE/ME) you'll find it at: C:WindowsApplication DataOutlook Express {GUID}Microsoft Outlook Express. In Windows XP it is in: C:Documents and Settings<User>Local SettingsApplication DataIdentities {GUID}Microsoft Outlook Express. The "{GUID}" bit is the Global Unique Identifier, a long string of characters unique to your PC. Neither location is convenient if you want to get to them in a hurry so this might be a good time to take advantage of a facility in OE to move the Message Store. You'll find it by going to the Tools menu, select Options, then Maintenance and then click the Store Folder button. From there you can choose a new location. It's a good idea to create a new folder in the root of the C: drive and call it something simple such as OEStore. Your Address Book is also squirreled away. In Windows 9x it's usually in: C:WINDOWS Application Data Microsoft. In XP it should be: C:Documents and Settings <yourname> Application Data Microsoft. It may well have been moved by other applications, in which case you can find it by opening the Address Book and clicking on Help >About Address Book. By the way, if you open the Address Book folder in Windows Explorer you'll see two files called <yourname>.wab and <yourname>.wa. The *.wab file is the Windows Address Book; the other one is a backup, created every time you start OE, which you can restore - should your Address Book become corrupted - by changing the file extension to "wab". Accounts information includes all dial-up connections, passwords, email username and address, plus settings OE needs to send and receive email and this, plus Message Rules and any customisations you may have applied, live deep in the Registry. -----Original Message----- From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Moti Azrad Sent: 07 July 2005 11:52 To: Jfw List; jaws-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx; access-uk list; helpneededlist Subject: [access-uk] export address book in outlook express 6 Hi friends, I've purchased a new pc and need to know how exactly to export my address book in Outlook express in my xp pro OS with sp2? Any help is greatly appreciated. I need to save it in external device so I'll be able to import it again to my new pc. I'm going to get it, in three days. I need it soon please. A lot of thanks Moti Azrad Musician & Piano-Tuner motia@xxxxxxx motiaz@xxxxxxxxx +9722 583 1849 Jerusalem Israel