lost Microsoft Outlook

Question

Hi.  This is my first message.   I am disabled and rely entirely upon my computer for the work I do to serve folks diagnosed as mentally ill and folks with Co-Occurring Disorder, i.e., mental illness plus substance addiction.   Last week, from nowhere, my Dell semi-collapsed.  I restored the drivers, though am a total computer nerd, TOTAL!, and downloaded PConPoint to repair 700+ other problems.   But Microsoft Outlook totally disappeared with my 400 detailed Contacts and my Calendar for 2006.  Without these, I am completely lost.  Completely.  I'll not know where to go by public transportation, nor when, nor can I now contact anybody at all in my huge network.  I had no back-up because I cannot afford the ink to print one from my $841 monthly income.   I successfully used System Restore to February 25, 2006, but absolutely nothing changed in my computer itself or on my screen.   I have no idea how to retrieve any information or suggestions you may make to me.  My e-mail address is gmkinzer@charter.net in Long Beach, CA.  I spent 3 hours yesterday with an outsourced Dell tech, who could not help, but who massively confused me by the end of that time.   I am quite desperate.  Thank you,   Gary (GarBoy, an old nickname from my days in the seminary)

jmwills · Answer

A couple of issues of front:  what type of Dell and what Operating System?

Denny Denham · Answer

GarBoy,

It would have probably been helpful to know a bit more detail about what constitutes "semi collapsed" but the bottom line is that your Outlook information (if it is still on the computer) is located in an Outlook.pst folder at C:\Documents and Settings\GarBoy\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook. If the data are there, it would be prudent to copy that folder to removable media (CD/DVD) regularly. The information in the folder can be imported back into Outlook through File|Import and Export.

GarBoy · Answer

Hi, Denny - - - I hope this reaches you.  I am a total computer nerd, you must believe me. You give me some hope, but I really do not know how to go to where you send me--nor why GarBoy would appear there since that is just a name I chose to use here.  Would you be able to walk me step-by-step through what you think I must do?  Feel free to call me: I would gladly provide my telephone # and take a collect call if you write to me at gmkinzer@charter.net.  I don't know if this is allowed. Gary - - - and many thanks!

Denny Denham · Answer

GarBoy,

I just took a guess at the account name in the path to the *.pst folder. The actual path will be C:\Documents and Settings\ Your account name\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook. You can also locate it by going to Start|Search|All files and folders and use *.pst as the search term.

GarBoy · Answer

Thank you yet a second time, Denny.  I tried to send you a private message with my telephone number for you to call me 'collect' to walk me through this, but learned that you do not accept such messages.   I'll not be free to try this until Thursday probably, having meetings all day tomorrow and a Clergy Conference on Mental Illness in Los Angeles from 6:30 AM to 5:00 PM on Wednesday--plus public transport there and back, which is long and dreadful.   My hunch is that I'll quickly get lost, dazed, and confused; however, I have all Thursday free because I would normally spend that day with my 92-year-old Dad, but he is only recently released from the hospital and is recovering at the home of his lady friend (!).   So you can almost certainly expect to hear again from me--such things as 'pst' and the like are entirely new to me.  I actually am comfortable only with IE to read newspapers and with Outlook Express.  In fact, my Word is acting up, and I have no idea how to restore it to 'normal': it is gigantic in size, opens in an unknown setting with History, and stuff I've never seen, with a Word icon in the upper left corner that never was previously there, etc.   My Dell worked perfectly until I made the mistake of letting a 'knowledgeable' friend use this computer: I sensed that he was screwing up; but, when I asked him to log off, he got angry and began pressing keys all over.  I restored to February 25 after many tries to earlier this month, but found no change in the computer with the 2/25 'success.'   I live on $841 monthly, so repair is no option.  I am terribly distressed because, as you can see, I know absolutely nothing.  Even language like 'browser' or 'copy' is foreign to me, despite a good IQ and intelligence.  I'm more a poet and historian, though my older sister had 2 PhDs in chemistry and an IQ over 155; she died very suddenly recently--she built her own computer!   Gary

jmwills · Answer

I'm thinking you probably lost nothing more than the shortcut to the program.  Can you search for a file named Outlook.exe?

GarBoy · Answer

Yes, but where precisely do I look for that?

Windows General

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