[TIPS] Outlook update

To be fair to Microsloth..er Microsoft….

I finally was able to get my Outlook backed up. It did NOT involve editing the registry, as I had thought. It was a bit easier than that. I just had to remove all the files that I had put into the Outlook folder and drop only the .pst file in there. Or SOMETHING like that.

HOWEVER, would the average user know that there are invisible folders? Would that user know how to make them visible? Would that user also know that other parts are stored in other places – like the address book, for example? Would the average user know how to make the file extensions visible in order to figure out which was the outlook.pst file? Would the average user even know what file extensions are?

The level of sophistication that a Windows user MUST HAVE in order to maintain the system has gotten HIGHER, not lower over the years. How long does it take to restore your OS when it becomes so corrupted that you’ve got no choice but to start fresh? HOURS! It will take HOURS and HOURS to back up your files (if you can find them), find a bootable OS cd and figure out how to boot from it, and then format C:\ (We’re STILL using that syntax???!!!), reinstall the OS and configure it, acquire and install the TONS of updates to the OS, reinstall drivers, reinstall all your applications, reinstall all your browser plugins….. It takes HOURS and HOURS! And THAT is acceptable?

Every user should buy Norton’s Ghost program (or something similar) and an external 240 gig hard drive and make frequent images of their system – before installing any new software, and then monthly after that. Then, when the inevitable happens, just replace the image. Even THAT isn’t straight forward, but once you figured it out you would save MANY hours of frustration. And, the air in the room would be a LOT less blue!

Word to the wise – have you set a restore point on your machine lately? Better find out what that is and DO it! Of course, should you not be able to boot, as was my case, that restore point is worthless. Good luck to you!

Hmph…. I STILL don’t feel any better. J