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Exchange Messaging Outlook Volume 14, Number 31
Issue Date November 12 2009 |
This issue is sponsored by Sherpa
Software ♦ red-gate
Today's Highlights:
Mail merge is a real time saver, for both printed messages and email. What
many users don't realize is that you can start the merge from Outlook and
when you do, you have better control over the contacts you're using in the
merge and the fields that will be included. The only prerequisite is that
Outlook and Word need to be installed from the same Office suite.
The first step in doing a mail merge is picking the contacts you want to
include in the merge. You can use custom views to filter the contacts or
hold the control or shift key to pick and choose contacts. If you use
categories, you can group by category then select the category for the
merge.
Next, go to Tools, Mail Merge and open the Mail Merge dialog. Choose whether
to use all contact fields or only those fields in the view. "Contact fields
in the current view" means fields that are part of the view, including any
you need to scroll to see, not just the fields visible on the screen.
Finally, choose the type of document to merge and select OK to complete the
merge.
All that's left to do now is prepare your form letter in Word.
If you're new to mail merge, use the Mail Merge Wizard in Word to walk you
through the final steps. Look for it on the Start Mail Merge menu in Word
2007 Mailings ribbon or on the Mail merge toolbar in older versions.
Beginning the merge from Outlook puts you at Step 3 in the Mail Merge
wizard. You can go back to Step 1 if you need to select a different merge
type or make other changes. Or skip the wizard and use the commands on the
Mailings ribbon (or Mail Merge toolbar) to insert fields, select the
document to merge to, and Preview results.
Note: A lot of users complain about the address format and layout when they
do a mail merge. To eliminate problems, use the individual address fields
instead of the address block or mailing address field. This gives you better
control over the address layout.
When you're finished, send the document to the printer or email it.
Q. How do I include attachments when merging to email?
A. Mail merge doesn't support attachments. To include them in the merge,
you'll need to use VBA or a mail merge utility. See
Mass Mail Tools for a
list of utilities (such as Send Individually) and
Mail Merge to E-mail with
Attachments for VBA sample.
Q. How do I avoid the prompt that something is assessing my address book?
A. If you use HTML message format you'll avoid the prompt. Mail merge
utilities should also avoid the security prompts.
Q. How do I filter by category?
A. Begin the merge in Outlook, not Word. Select the contacts you want to
include in the merge (create a filtered view if needed) then select them and
go to Actions, Mail merge. When you begin the merge in Outlook, you'll have
access to all of the fields in your Outlook database, including any custom
fields you may have created. To initiate the merge from Outlook, go to
Contacts, then click on the Tools, Mail merge menu.
Q. The mailing addresses aren't formatted right. How do I fix it?
A. Don't use the Address block or mailing address field, insert the
individual fields than make up the address.
Q. How do I send an email merge using a non-default email account?
A. You'll need to make the account your default. Or use a mail merge utility
that supports multiple accounts.
Resources:
Mass Mail Tools
http://www.slipstick.com/addins/massmail.asp
Mail Merge to E-mail with Attachments
http://word.mvps.org/faqs/mailmerge/MergeWithAttachments.htm
An Outlook user reports a that Outlook started running slowly and the CPU
utilization for the Outlook process stays pegged at around 100%. He also
notices that, if he doesn't change the focus to something else, the To-Do
Bar begins to flicker as though it's being repeatedly refreshed.
I'm not sure what is causing the problems, but we're seeing a lot of
complaints recently that are fixed by resetting the To-do Bar. Most users
sat they see "The operation failed. An object could not be found" when they
try to open Outlook or the To-Do List in the Tasks module displays the error
message "Cannot display the folder."
Fortunately, there is an easy fix that does no harm - close Outlook then
restart it using the /resettodobar switch.
To do this, open the Run dialog using the Windows Key+R, the type or paste
Outlook.exe /resettodobar
Into the field then press Enter. (There is a space between exe and /)
It should fix your problem.
Error with the To-Do Bar's Task list
http://www.slipstick.com/problems/todo_bar_error.asp
Gmail, Outlook, and replying with the correct account
To be fair, this is not limited to just Gmail accounts, but to any account
that aggregates mail into one account for the user to download. Gmail just
happens to be the account that so many are using for account aggregation.
When you have Gmail set up to pull in your mail from other services and then
download it using Outlook, Outlook will not reply using the original
account, even if its configured in Outlook. Outlook replies using the
account that downloaded the message, which in this case, is the Gmail
account.
If you want Outlook to automatically reply using the email address was sent
to, Outlook will need to download the message from the address's mail server
directly. If you set up an account with the correct reply address but
download the message using the Gmail account, you'll need to select the
correct reply account before sending the reply.
Description of the Outlook
2003 hotfix package: November 2, 2009
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=976939
Addresses issues when using the Save As E-mail
command to save an instant message conversation
in Office Communicator 2005.
Description of the Outlook 2003 Junk E-mail
Filter update: November 10, 2009
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=975958
Description of the Outlook 2007 Junk E-mail
Filter update: November 10, 2009
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=975960
When you change the date of a reminder by typing
a new value in the Russian version of Outlook
2007, the year value of the reminder is
multiplied by 2
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=975605
ContactGenie
Duplicate Contact Manager
http://www.contactgenie.com/duplicate_contact_manager.htm
ContactGenie Duplicate Contact Manager for
Outlook '2000-'2007. Remove Outlook/Exchange
contact duplicates selecting any fields as
duplicate criteria. Custom forms/fields fully
supported. Preview duplicates prior to update or
process automatically. Scan single or multiple
folders. Delete or move duplicates to designated
folder. Manually merge individual field
information from duplicates with designated
primary contact. Over-ride keep/delete status.
CG-DCM is also a fully integrated function of
ContactGenie Toolkit.
gwabbit
http://www.gwabbit.com/
gwabbit is an Add-in for Microsoft Outlook and
the BlackBerry that finds, gwabs and adds
contacts from your emails to your Outlook address
book with a single mouse click.
Multimap
http://explore.multimap.com/toolbox.aspx
Add maps to your meeting requests, contacts, and
emails. Simply click add map and the new map
selection window will pop up.
CCS HelpDesk
http://www.crowcanyon.com/CCS-HelpDesk.html
CCS Help Desk leverages the power of Exchange
Server, Outlook, and the Web to bring you a
simple, efficient and effective help desk,
customer support and ticket tracking system. It
is ideal for companies and organizations that are
overwhelmed by user or customer requests and
issues. Support requests are entered through
Outlook, the Web or email, and then are assigned
and tracked. The resolved tickets are kept in an
Exchange public folder and can be reviewed if a
similar issue arises again. Available in Pro,
Standard, and Lite versions. Version 4.2
HelpDesk for Outlook and SharePoint
http://www.kalmstrom.com/products/SharePoint/HelpDeskOSP/
HelpDesk for Outlook and SharePoint combines
Outlook and SharePoint and takes advantage of the
best of both Microsoft products. Support e-mails
are converted to SharePoint list objects,
manually or automatically. Any SharePoint List
template can be used. Powerful, integrated
reporting and statistics tool facilitates
business intelligence. Useful for all kinds of
issue tracking and user support. Works with
Office Live Small Business.
Data Fields Manager for Outlook
http://www.datafieldsmanager.com
Data Fields Manager for Outlook allows users to
perform mass modifications to contact fields in
Outlook. You can add, remove, capitalize, build,
clear, paste, trim and much more with the click
of a button. Now select a contact folder and then
create a folder tree that uses the Categories
field as the folder name. Compatible with Outlook
2000, 2002, 2003, and 2007.
OWA Tray Monitor
http://www.owatray.com
OWA Tray Monitor is an Outlook Web Access New
Mail Notification Tool This free tool is for
corporate Exchange Users who use Outlook Web
Access (OWA) as their primary user interface. The
single most annoying feature lacking in OWA is
its ability to inform the user that new mail has
arrived when working on another application.
OWATray bridges that gap.
VoIP Plug-in for Microsoft Fax
http://www.faxback.com/msfaxplugin/index.aspx
VoIP Plug-in is a driver for Microsoft Fax that
enables Microsoft Fax (Windows Fax and Scan) to
connect to either phone lines or Internet
services that support SIP T.38 (the industry
standard network VoIP fax transmission protocol).
Connect to PHONE LINES (PSTN) with VoIP gateways
that support SIP T.38 (the industry standard
network VoIP fax transmission protocol). Connect
through INTERNET/VoIP services that support SIP
T.38 pass-through. FREE.
Exchange Server
2010 RTM
http://www.microsoft.com/exchange/2010/en/us/try-it.aspx
Exchange 2010 is now available to the public.
Download a 120 day trial to install on your
hardware or a virtual disk for testing. Online
trials also available.
Outlook 2010 Developer Content at MSDN
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee692176(office.14).aspx
Content topics include: Extending the User
Interface in Outlook 2010, Programming the
Outlook 2010 Solutions Module, Shutdown Changes
for Outlook 2010 Beta, What's New for Developers
in Outlook 2010