Fig 3.0 The Outlook Express folder, on a Windows XP computer, contains e-mails that are encrypted as .dbx files
| IMPORT OUTLOOK EXPRESS E-MAIL AND ADDRESS BOOK |
In the previous section I showed you how to save (export) your e-mails and address book using Outlook Express on a Windows XP computer. In this section I will show you how to import (transfer) that address book and e-mail data into Windows Mail, on a Windows Vista computer. I use the word data because the e-mails (e-mail messages) saved (exported) by outlook express are saved in a data (encrypted) format known as dbx, and the address book as a CSV text file, therefore Windows Mail will need to decrypt/parse the data once it has been imported (opened).
In the previous section I saved (exported) the data (address book and e-mails) onto my flash drive - FlashDrive (E:\),
so in the following example I will begin by showing you how to import the Address Book (Contacts CSV file) from the
flash drive into Windows Mail.
Begin by opening Windows Mail and then click on its FILE menu. From there. Hover over the IMPORT menu-item, which is
actually a sub-menu, and then select (left click on) the WINDOWS CONTACTS sub-menu menu-item. The Import To Windows
Contacts window will then appear (Fig 3.2 below).
The Import To Windows Contacts window requests you to click on either the CSV (Comma Separated Values) option, the LDIF (LDAP Server) option, the vCard (VCF File) option or the Windows Address Book File (Outlook Express) option. Really there are only two options to choose from when it comes to exported Outlook Express files - The Windows Address Book File (Outlook Express) option, which can import (open) .WAB (Windows Address Book) files, and the CSV (Comma Separated Values) option. In this example select the CSV (Comma Separated Values) option and then click on the IMPORT button to continue.
If you have an exported .WAB file you should select the WAB (Windows Address Book) option instead. In these two sections though I have not shown you how to export an outlook express address book as a .wab file simply because it is better to export an outlook express address book as a csv file, purely because a csv file is a text file. Meaning. If a .wab (encrypted) file becomes corrupt it would be difficult to fix it, whereas if a csv file becomes corrupt you have more chance to salvage contact details (address book entries) because you can open a csv file with a text editor.
Clicking on the IMPORT button brings up the CSV Import window. It asks you to BROWSE, via a OPEN File Requester that appears (Fig 3.4), for your address book csv file - The exported csv file that was created, and then saved (exported), by outlook express on a Windows XP computer in the previous section. In this example I used the BROWSE button (and therefore the OPEN File Requester) to tell the import tool that I want to open the CSV file, with the file name: contacts.csv, which is stored on my flash drive - Flash Drive (E:). Upon clicking the file requester's OPEN button (Fig 3.4) you are then returned to the CSV Import window (Fig 3.3) whereby its edit box now contains the csv file's pathname (folder name and file name). The edit box on the CSV Import window is initially empty, until you BROWSE for a csv file.
After clicking on the NEXT button (Fig 3.3 above), with your file name complete, the CSV Import window then asks you to select all the fields (entries) you want to retain from your csv file (address book). Unless you are one of those people who purposely go into your address book to fill in people's Middle Name, Nickname and so on just leave the fields alone - leave them ticked and unticked as they are by default. If you do not want to retain the Middle Names inside your address book for example (i.e. middle names of family members, friends, clients and so on) then untick the Middle Name field (check box / tick box). When you have decided which fields you want, left, ticked and unticked click on the FINISH button to continue. The rest of this process is just a case of clicking on the CLOSE button (Fig 3.6).
The Import To Windows Mail window stays open after an import (open/read) just in case you want to import again, in a different format and/or into a different location for example. To see your imported address book contacts simply click on the START Menu button, hover over ALL PROGRAMS and then click on the WINDOWS CONTACTS icon.
The above process for importing an Outlook Express address book is the same process you use when importing a Windows Mail address book. You may want to import a Windows Mail address book so that it can be imported into Outlook Express or into the new Windows 7.
| IMPORT E-MAIL |
To import your e-mails (e-mail messages) from Outlook Express (so that you can then read them from within Windows Mail) first open Outlook Express, if it is not already open from following the above example, and then click on its FILE menu. From there. Hover over the IMPORT menu-item, which is actually a sub-menu, and then select (left click on) the MESSAGES sub-menu menu-item. The Windows Mail Import window will then appear (Fig 4.1 below).
The Windows Mail Import window requests you to click on either the MICROSOFT EXCHANGE... option, the MICROSOFT OUTLOOK
option, the MICROSOFT OUTLOOK EXPRESS 6 option or the MICROSOFT WINDOWS MAIL 7 option before clicking on the IMPORT
button. In this example click on the MICROSOFT OUTLOOK EXPRESS 6 option and then click on the IMPORT button to continue.
The MICROSOFT OUTLOOK EXPRESS 6 option allows you to import a whole Outlook Express folder, which contains your e-mails
as encrypted .dbx files (Fig 3.0 above). The MICROSOFT EXCHANGE option is for those people using the program called
Microsoft Exchange, which is not usually the average person. A business person normally uses Microsoft Exchange for
example. The same applies to the MICROSOFT OUTLOOK option - Microsoft Outlook is an Microsoft Office program and nothing
to do with Outlook Express. The MICROSOFT WINDOWS MAIL 7 option is useful if you are importing e-mails created with
Windows Mail, created on another computer for example.
The next window to appear (above) simply means you want to import a whole Outlook Express folder, containing .dbx files. Clicking on its OK button brings up the following window which asks you to BROWSE for an Outlook Express folder. Click on the BROWSE button so that you can browse (search) for your previously saved Outlook Express folder. A FOLDER LOCATION Folder Requester will appear (Fig 4.4 below) when you click on the BROWSE button. In this example I have BROWSEd my flash drive, FlashDrive (E:\), for the Outlook Express folder that I saved in the previous section. After finding it and selecting it from within the folder requester's display area I then clicked on the folder requester's SELECT FOLDER button to continue. Doing so returns you to the Windows Mail Import window (Fig 4.3 below) with its edit box now filled in with the pathname of your Outlook Express folder - The edit box is initially empty, until you BROWSE for an Outlook Express folder. When you have browsed for your Outlook Express folder click on the NEXT button of the Windows Mail Import window to continue.
After clicking on the NEXT button (Fig 4.3 above), with your Outlook Express folder pathname complete, the Windows Mail Import window then asks you to select the message folders you want to import (Fig 4.5 below). Your e-mail INBOX folder, OUTBOX folder, SENT ITEMS folder, DELETED ITEMS folder and DRAFTS folder are available for individual selection if you wish. In this example I kept the ALL FOLDERS radio (circle) button selected to mean I want all the e-mail folders importing. If I wanted to select individual folders I would of clicked on the SELECTED FOLDERS radio button and then selected each folder I want to import by clicking on it with the CTRL keyboard key pressed (held down). After selecting your folder option click on the NEXT button to continue.
The final steps are simple. When the importing has finished click on the Windows Mail Import window's FINISH button (above) and then look at Windows Mail - It should now contain a new master folder called IMPORTED FOLDER (below). This folder contains all your imported e-mails (e-mail messages) and their folders. In this example I have successfully imported three e-mails. These three e-mails can be seen in Outlook Express - Fig 1.0 in the previous section.
Although you can also export and import User Accounts (not shown here) as .iaf files this is not normally needed by you, the absolute beginner, simply because you will normally only have one or two user accounts which you can quickly manually type the details of into Windows Mail account area. Also. You may have account details that are no longer relevant and therefore not worth importing (i.e. when you moved companies, move from dialup to broadband and/or when you use a different e-mail address and settings). If you do want to export and then import one or more user accounts though, one at a time, you can do so by using the TOOLS menu, ACCOUNTS menu-item and then click on the EXPORT or IMPORT button - This works for both Outlook Express and Windows Mail.
Microsoft product screen shot(s) reprinted with permission from Microsoft Corporation. As stated here by the Microsoft Corporation.
