"I pooled all the old e-mail messages in a folder in OE and saved it on a floppy.  When I try to open the floppy on the new computer, it won't open in any of these access paths."

I suspect that is your problem.  You should just have copied your Outlook Express folder (I think it was called that in 98, but if not it is the directory which contains the .dbx files); then, you could have told OE6 that you were importing from OE5, and there should have been no problem.

One possible way to get around the problem (I hope that there is an easier way): open the "pooled" .dbx files as a text file (in Notebook or WordPad - Notebook is better); that way you could at least retrieve the texts of the "stock" files (are you a Spammer?) and then copy them into new emails.

Frost Friends,

If you have a single *.dbx file on the floppy disk you can move it into Outlook Express (but not using OE's File|Import function) using the method here. The viewlet referred to is located here.

I am having a problem similar to the one Frost described in the initial post, above.

I am reviewing the document in th link Denny provided, but am wondering if I could make my life easier by installing Outlook?

Specifically, would it be easier to import Outlook Express .dbx files stored on a disk to Outlook, rather than to Outlook Express?

Thanks...

Denny - I may have spoken too soon re your solution.

It worked for the first folder I tried - but then stopped working when I tried it with a second and third folder.

Anything else I can try?

Hey Denny!  Thank you very much for that solution you posted!

I have been beating my head against the wall trying to solve this problem -- and spoke to a couple of Dell techs who were of no help.

Thank you!

Again, if you or anyone knows the answer to my preceding question about whether it's easier to import stuff into Outlook than Outlook Express, I'd appreciate your thoughts.

BTW - is there a better email program out there?  I really don't like the weird way OE stores files....

Thanks.

Message Edited by JohnHarold on 02-20-2004 10:01 PM

I couldn't make any of the solutions work.  I raised cain with Dell software tech for making it so hard to transfer my brainwork to the new computer.  Why get a new computer if you cannot take your work with you  Duh.

My final solution:  I went to the old computer OE and copied and pasted each old e-mail on a new e-mail and sent it to myself.  It took 3 hours.  And who says carpal tunnel isn't any fun???

And no I am not a spammer.  These files are collected ideas on the poetry of Robert Frost and I share them with students, who request the files.  Gracious, me a spammer.  Not on your Monty Python.

 

I did some surfing/searching, and came up with a little FREE program called DBXtract that restores Outlook Express dbx files, and allows them to be put back into OE.

I just tried it, and it worked EXTREMELY well.  Did I mention that it's FREE?

Here is a link to the program; it downloads in less than a minute using a dial-up modem:

http://www.oehelp.com/DBXtract/Default.aspx

The directions on the above page with the download link are pretty clear.  Once you download and open the file, the very simple interface has three sections: ACTION, INPUT, and OUTPUT.

Leave the default settings in the ACTION section unchanged (at least, that worked for me).

Next, in the INPUT section, key in the path to the dbx file you want to convert (i.e., c:/documents and settings/... etc.).

Next, create a new folder on your desktop as a destination folder for the recovered files.  Key in the path to that folder in the OUTPUT section.  Then click on the EXTRACT button.

After a minute or two, depending on how big the dbx file is, the program finishes, and you can open the output folder you created.  If you click on one of the recovered files, it will open exactly like an OE email, complete with all header information.

Now, here's the best part. 

Create a new folder in OE where you want to put the recovered files, and double-click on it to open it.

Now you can highlight one or more (or all) the files in the recovered Output folder, and CLICK and DRAG them into the new folder in OE.  Ordinarily, it's difficult or impossible to click and drag anything into OE -- but in this case it works.  Like a charm.  I just recovered about 250 emails -- good as new.  The recovery process created some blank emails (easily deleted), and a few broken-up emails, but the recovery appears to be about 98%-99% complete.

Amazing.

No promises, but DBXtract worked great for me in solving a very pesky OE data transfer issue.