Additional FAQs about e-mail

• How to configure e-mail settings?
• How is *.pab and *.wab  and Contact Folders?
• Why do we need both Contacts and Personal Address Book for Outlook?
• How to backup your e-mail?
• How to convert *.wab to Outlook Contacts folders?
• How To share Contacts between Outlook and Outlook Express ?
• How to remove duplicates in address book or contacts folder?
• How to connect Outlook Contact Folders to Personal Address Book?
• Can I store to keep my *.pst (Outllok)  & *.dbx (Outlook Express) in a network store?
• How To Kill Viruses?

How to configure e-mail settings?

Outlook Express 6

1) Tools

2) Accounts

3) Add

4) Mail

5) Display name : {Your Real Name}
6) E-Mail Address : {Your E-Mail Address}

8) Incoming mail (POP3 or IMAP) server : mail.earthhub.net
9) Outgoing mail (SMTP) server : mail.earthhub.net
10)Account name : {Your E-Mail Address}
11)Password : {Your Password}

Outlook XP
1) Tools
2) E-Mail Accounts
3) Add a new e-mail account
4) Next
5) POP3
6) Next
7) Incoming mail server (POP3) : mail.earthhub.net
8) Outgoing mail server (SMTP) : mail.earthhub.net
9) Username : {Your E-Mail Address}
10)password : {Your Password}
11)Next

Outlook 2000
1) Tools
2) Accounts
3) Add
4) Mail
5) Display name : {Your Real Name}
6) E-Mail Address : {Your E-Mail Address}
7) POP3 Server
8) Incoming mail (POP3 or IMAP) server : mail.earthhub.net
9) Outgoing mail (SMTP) server : mail.earthhub.net
10)Account name : {Your E-Mail Address}
11)Password : {Your Password}
12)Connect using my local area network (LAN)
13)Next

Note : It is better and faster, if you can set your ISP's (outgoing mail) SMTP mail server.

How is *.pab and *.wab  and Contact Folders?

a) *.pab - personal address book - used in Outlook 97/98/2000/2002

b) *.wab - windows address book - used in Outlook Express 4.x/5.x/6.x

c) Contact Folders - used in Outlook 97/98/2000/2002

Why do we need both Contacts and Personal Address Book for Outlook?

The Personal Address Book (PAB) is a service available in Outlook 97 or 2002 and in Outlook 98 or 2000 running in Corporate/Workgroup mode. (If you're using Outlook 98 or 2000 in Internet Mail Only, this discussion does not apply to you.)

Why does Microsoft Outlook seem to need both a Personal Address Book (PAB) and Contacts folders? It really doesn't. In Outlook 2000 and 2002, the PAB is obsolete. However, if you are using an earlier version of have upgraded from Exchange or Windows Messaging, these reasons might apply:

• Backward compatibility -- People who have a lot of PAB addresses from Exchange or Windows Messaging might not get around to importing them into Contacts for a while.
• Odd addresses -- It's a little easier to use the PAB to store special types of addresses, such as mailing lists or Exchange Server public folders, that don't really fit into the Contacts mold (though there's no reason you can't keep an address for a public folder as a Contacts record).

• Distribution lists -- While you can maintain distribution lists in Contacts in Outlook 97 and 98 through categories and grouping or filters, many people find the PAB more efficient. However, since Outlook 2000 supports distribution lists in Contacts folders, this reason has become much less important.
• Formatting options -- It's a very obscure feature, but if you connect to Microsoft Exchange Server, entries in the PAB have a Send Options button that allows you to set the format for each individual recipient to Plain Text, Rich Text or HTML. (Outlook 2002 adds this feature for all contacts.)

How to backup your e-mail? (simplified)

Outlook Express 4.x / 5.x / 6.x 

• Address Book (*.wab) - C:\Windows\Application Data\Microsoft\Address Book

• Mails (*.dbx) - C:\WINDOWS\Application Data\Identities\ {there's a string of chars}\Microsoft\Outlook Express

• Special Case : if multiple users : most probable location is in Windows "Local Settings" or "Profiles" subfolders

• Backing Up Your OE Internet Accounts Settings (incl Message Rules) .

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Identities\ {there's a string of chars} \Software\Microsoft\Outlook Express

Outlook 97 / 2000 / 2002(XP)

a) backup *.pst (default : outlook.pst) 

- usually located in

b) backup *.pab - personal address book (in some PCs, it may not exist)

c) Signatures and Stationaries

How to convert *.wab (Windows Address Book) to Outlook 97 Contacts folders? How about Outlook 2000/2002?

WabOut is recommended by the Microsoft Knowledge Base.

• You've probably already discovered that Microsoft didn't supply this functionality!

• WabOut can import addresses from either Internet Mail or Outlook Express into Microsoft Outlook 97.

• Wabout is only for Outlook 97. 

• Users of Outlook 98/2000/2002 should use Address Magic Personal Edition.

• Download WabOut Pro

How To share Contacts between Outlook and Outlook Express ?

Officially, Outlook 2002 does not support sharing of its contact data with Outlook Express, but there is a registry hack that works, at least with some versions of Outlook Express. Follow these steps:

1. HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\WAB\WAB4

2. Add a new DWORD named UseOutlook (if it isn't already present), and set its value to 1.

Outlook Express will display the Contacts folder in the default delivery store (Exchange mailbox or Personal Folders .pst file) in Outlook. You cannot direct the WAB to a particular Contacts folder, except by changing the default store.

To turn off sharing, set the value for HKCU\Software\Microsoft\WAB\WAB4\UseOutlook to 0.

Tested it with Outlook 2002 and OE 5.0 and 6.0 so far.

How to remove duplicates in address book or contacts folder?

coming soon....

How to connect Outlook Contact Folders to Personal Address Book?

a) Right Click on Contact => Select Properties

b) Select Outlook Address Book

c) Tick - Show this folder as an e-mail address book

Can I store to keep my *.pst or *.dbx in a network store?

Advantages - easy to perform enterprise backup

Disadvantages - slow down network bandwidth

Yes - Outlook Express 6 / Outlook 97/98/2000/2002

No - Outlook Express 5

How To Kill Viruses?

This guide is to remove virus in general. Due to reasons that the virus attack pattern are quite similar. Therefore, this guide is produced.

1) Disconnect from Network (network aware virus)

2) MSCONFIG (remove undesireable statements)

a) startup

b) win.ini [windows] run=     load=

c) system.ini [boot]

d) autoexec.bat

3) Run REGEDIT  preferably run it in SAFE Mode (if can't run regedit, then go to MS-Prompt and rename regedit.exe to  regedit.com)

hkey_classes\exefile\shell\open\command                                                            default :  "” %1” %*"  (in win9x/Win NT)

hkey_classes\exefile\shell\open\command                                                            default :  " %1” %*  (in win 2k)

hkey_local_machine\software\classes\exefile\shell\open\command                     default :  "” %1” %*"  (in win9x/Win NT)

hkey_local_machine\software\classes\exefile\shell\open\command                     default :  " %1” %*  (in win 2k)

hkey_local_machine\software\microsoft\windows\currentversion\runservices

hkey_local_machine\software\microsoft\windows\currentversion\run

note : extra “ quote for win 9x / Win NT

4) Update your anti-virus signatures from the the internet, then scan your hard-disk thoroughly.

5) Viruses found in Outlook 97 / 2000 / 2002 / XP and Outlook Express

a) delete mail from folders

b) delete mail from deleted-folders

c) compact folders

            OUTLOOK 97

i)                     Services

ii)                   Select Personal Folders and click on properties

iii)                  Click “Advanced”

iv)                  Click "Compact Now"

            OUTLOOK 2000 / XP / 2002       

i)          Right Click "Outlook Today - Personal Folders"

                                    ii)          Click "Properties for personal folders"

                                    iii)         Click "Advanced"

v)                    Click "Compact Now"

            OUTLOOK EXPRESS   

i)          Click "File"

                                    ii)          Click "Folders"

                                    iii)         Click "Compact All Folders"

 6) When you identify the virus, you have to understand the working of this virus. Then, you are ready to treat the virus with the anti-virus tools available on the net. . http://help.winpro.com.sg

 7) Sometime vital windows files are infected and need to be deleted. To remove files from original windows files (.CAB)

a) SFC (System File Checker)

b) Extract from Windows Cab Files

            i)          Exit to DOS

                        ii)          extract /a d:\disk\win98se\precopy1.cab wsock32.dll /l c:\windows\system

                        (explanation : Process all cabinet starting from                                                     WIN98_22.CAB for WSOCK32.DLL and copy to c:\windows\system)

            Note : the compressed cabinet files are as follows (in ascending order)

            -precopy1.cab

            -precopy2.cab

            -catalog3.cab

            -base4.cab to base6.cab

            -net7.cab to net10.cab

            -drivers_11 to drivers_20.cab

            -win98_21.cab to win98_74.cab

            -win98_ol.cab (online files)

            Unknown files

            -mini.cab

            -chl99.cab

8) After deleting any files, always CLEAR RECYCLED BIN

9) Deleting unwanted program in startup folders

            C:\WINDOWS\START MENU\PROGRAMS\STARTUP\

10) If you received an error about a "file being in use" when trying to delete an infected file. Click the Start menu, select "shutdown" and select "Restart in MS-DOS Mode" or “Safe Mode”

11) SPECIAL CASE

a) in Windows ME/XP … If the computer is infected with a virus, then it is possible that the virus could be backed up in the _RESTORE folder

            To disable System Restore: (Win ME / WIn XP)

1. Close all open programs.
2. Right-click My Computer on the Windows desktop, and then click Properties.
3. Click the Performance tab.
4. Click File System.
5. Click the Troubleshooting tab.
6. Check Disable System Restore, click OK, and then click Close.
7. Click Yes to restart. This disables the System Restore feature and will purge the contents of the _RESTORE folder when the system is restarted.
8. Run a full system scan.
9. After cleaning the infected files, repeat steps 1 through 7, except in step 6, uncheck Disable System Restore.

b) If you are running Norton GoBack … In some case, if the goback file is infected. Delete goback file.

12) Remember to POWER-DOWN your PC totally at least 30 seconds .  Scan again your hard-disk . Scan thru all diskettes/CD.