How to backup, export, or import contacts in Microsoft Outlook
Need to move your contacts to a new device or program? Save time and stress by backing up your contacts in Microsoft Outlook.
Long before there were smartphones and email contacts, a Rolodex was a critical communication tool. Professionals all over the world have since upgraded from the spinning wheel of phone numbers to digitized records, but the need to protect those numbers remains. The same way office workers panicked when they couldn’t find a number in their Rolodex, people freak out when they can’t find someone’s email address or phone number. If you want to avoid this problem, back up your contacts data by exporting to .csv files.
The “.csv” extension is short for Comma Separated Values, a form of data that can easily be imported and exported into most programs or services, including Excel, Outlook, Gmail, and Yahoo. Here’s how to create a .csv backup in Outlook in case you need to move to a new computer/program, or if you just want to have a safe copy.
In Outlook
Click File > Import & Export
Select “Export to a File” and press Next
Select “Comma Separated Values (Windows)” and press Next
Select “Contacts” and press Next
Title your contacts file and press Next.
I usually name the files “Contacts-DATE.csv” because I keep multiple files. I tend to delete people I rarely contact in order to keep my contact data current, so being able to go back to “Contacts-November.csv” allows me to not worry about losing anyone’s information.
Your contact information should now be available at any time. If you ever need to Import, or load the data onto another computer, follow these steps in Outlook.
Click File > Import & Export
Select “Import from another program or file” and press Next
Select “Comma Separated Values (Windows)” and press Next
Locate the Contacts file that you saved. In the options section, decide whether or not you want to permit duplicates.
Select “Contacts” and press Next
Press Finish and allow the contacts to load.
You can also employ this strategy when attempting to import a .csv created in Gmail, Yahoo, or any other source.
Hey, I need a help. How to set MS Outlook to see if your sent e-mail has been read?
Thanks
Ed:
1) Open your Outlook (as you normally would to check for mail)
2) Click “Tools”
3) Click “Options”
4) Click “Preferences” tab
5) Click “E-mail Options”
6) Click “Tracking Options”
7) Click on the checkboxes “Read Receipt” and “Delivery Receipt” (Make sure there is a check mark beside them).
8) Click “OK” at the bottom of each window to close and save these options.
This should get ‘er done for you.
when I scan a document to email, the program opens up to outlook by default, how do i get it to send it via hotmail, instead of outlook? thanks.
George:
You need to fill in a bit of detail, if you’re running an HP printer/scanner perhaps I can help. If you have the option of scanning to memory you can then paste the picture or document into the application otherwise scan to a file then from hotmail do a browse into your My Scans folder attaching the file. I would imagine that all other scanners are very similar when it comes to this.
Hotmail does not reside on your system that is why the scanner software does not recognize what you really want to do. Use Outlook/Outlook Express or manually will do the trick. Which begs the question: why would you want to use hotmail on-line when you have a great little e-mailer at your fingertips with all kinds of fun doodads?
MS Personal Folders Backup is a free .pst backer upper 160KB called pfbackup.exe as downloaded. Very simple to use, backing up all of your Outlook folders, it will do automatic backups if you wish, to whatever subdirectory you point it to or do it all manually. The only thing that should change on a regular basis is naming and dating the backed up pst file.
If you only want to do certain directories then the above is a simple way to get things done. But this method is faster. One thing with this program it has to shut down Outlook while backing up. No biggie it has tight code.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=8b081f3a-b7d0-4b16-b8af-5a6322f4fd01&displaylang=en
this is a great add-in if your between your main system and a notebook. You an keep a compressed backed up pst file, just in case, while running a just-what’s-needed Outlook for all those normal days we all so many of, ya sure.