Export/Import Contact List as .pst File

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Wanda said:
I want to export my Outlook Contact file on my laptop (Outlook 2003)
as a .pst file and Import it into my desktop Outlook Contact file
(Outlook 2002) as a .pst file. When I try the import, I get " file
not compatible with this version of the Personal Folders Information
service." I was trying to do this as .pst files to preserve the
distributions lists that are on my laptop. Can anyone help?

Never export to and import from a PST. It's unnecessary and you lose data.

To copy the contacts from OL 2003 to OL 2002, click File>New>Outlook Data
File. Select "Outlook 97-2002 Personal Folders File (.pst)" and click OK.
Browse to the Windows folder whete you want it stored (or accept the
default), give it a file name (or accept the default, but I'd give it a name
like "Transfer" or "OL2002"), and click OK. Give it a display name (or
accept the dfefault, but I'd name it so as to match the file name so that
when you add it to the other Outlook it doesn't show up as "Personal
Folders") and click OK. The PST will be added to your Outlook Folder List
and will contain one subfolder, Deleted Items. Now, right-click and drag
your main Contacts folder to the root of the new PST (named "Transfer", or
"OL2002", or whatever display name you chose), release the mouse button, and
choose Copy. When the copy completes, right-click the new PST's root and
choose Close. Close Outlook.

Transfer the file to the other PC, placing it in a folder that does NOT
contain a PST with the same name, remove any read-only attribute (in Windows
Explorer, right-click, choose Properties, uncheck Read-only), then start
Outlook. In Outlook, click File>Open>Outlook Data File. Browse to the
folder where you put the transferred PST, select it, and click OK. It will
now be added to your Folder List in the second Outlook. Expand it and click
the Contacts folder in it to display that folder's contents. Press CTRL-A
to select all of the items in it, then right-click and drag the selection to
your main Contacts folder. Release the mouse button and choose Copy. When
the copy completes, right-clickt eh root of the transferred PST and choose
Close to remove it from the folder list.
 
I keep hearing "never import/export using a .pst file" and there is a lot of
tongue lashing happening on these boards when someone writes that they have
done that, but with all due respect to the MVPs on the message boards, this
is the instruction that Microsoft gives for moving contact lists. Perhaps
you have a better way but then petition Microsoft to change their help
screens!
Just my 2cents.
 
How naive of you to think we haven't been doing so for years.
Of course we have a better way and have posted it along with the corrections
to the Help files countless times over the past few years.
 
Mary said:
I keep hearing "never import/export using a .pst file" and there is a lot
of
tongue lashing happening on these boards when someone writes that they
have
done that, but with all due respect to the MVPs on the message boards,
this
is the instruction that Microsoft gives for moving contact lists. Perhaps
you have a better way but then petition Microsoft to change their help
screens!
Just my 2cents.


Never believe anything you see on MS websites - they still say that XP is
fine with 128 MB RAM
BWAHAHAHAHA!
 
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