OL98: How to Import Addresses from Outlook Express for Macintosh (180969)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Outlook Express 4.0 for Macintosh
  • Microsoft Outlook 98
This article was previously published under Q180969

SUMMARY

There is no converter available to directly import a Microsoft Outlook Express for Macintosh Address Book into Microsoft Outlook 98. You can export the data to a Windows-formatted disk, rename the file with a .txt extension, and then import the file into Outlook.

MORE INFORMATION

In order to use Field Mapping in Outlook 98, you must first download and install the "Importer Field Mapping Patch for Outlook 98".

Export the Data to a Windows-formatted 1.44 Megabyte (MB) Disk

  1. Insert the Windows-formatted disk into the Macintosh.
  2. Start Outlook Express.
  3. On the File menu, click Export Contacts.
  4. Type a name for the file, such as Express.
  5. Select your Windows-formatted disk as the destination.
  6. Click Save.

Rename the File with a .txt Extension

  1. Insert the Windows-formatted disk into your computer.
  2. On the Windows desktop, right-click My Computer, and click Explore.
  3. Double-click the drive containing the disk contain the text file.
  4. Right-click the file named Express, and click Rename on the shortcut menu.
  5. Type .txt as the file extension. The filename will now appear as Express.txt. Press ENTER.
Before doing an import into Outlook 98, it may be necessary to open the text file you have just exported and edit any fields in the header row to exactly match Outlook internal names. The header row is the first row of the file. Its purpose is to define the labels for each field. For example, if the source file uses "Fname" to label the First Name field, it should be edited to read "First Name" in order to map to the correct result when importing. If this step is not completed, the First Name field will be empty.

Import the File Into Outlook

  1. Start Outlook on your Windows computer.
  2. On the File menu, click Import and Export.
  3. Click "Import from another program or file," and click Next.
  4. Click "Tab Separated Values (Windows)" in the list of file types, and click Next.
  5. To locate the file to import, click Browse, click to select your disk in the Look In list, double-click Express.txt and then click Next.
  6. Click Contacts in the Select Destination Folder list, and click Next.
  7. Click to select "Import 'EXPRESS.TXT' into the 'Contacts'" folder, and click Map Custom Fields.
  8. Move the appropriate fields from the left column to the right column, click OK, and click Finish.
Your addresses from Outlook Express for Macintosh now appear in your Outlook Contacts folder.

REFERENCES

For more information on manipulating data files for import into Outlook, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

182728 OL98: Field Mapping for Importing Not Available

Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:10/2/2002
Keywords:kbhowto kbmigrate KB180969
©2002 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.