Solution from Microsoft
Hello,
After I didn't find an answer that worked for me on the web I broke down and asked Microsoft directly. Here is what the tech told me and number 2 is the one that worked for me. I hope this saves other people some grief.
HERE:
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Step 1: Start Outlook in Safe Mode
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1. Quit Outlook. Click Start menu, and click Run.
2. In the Open box, type: "Outlook /safe" (without the quotation marks).
Notes: There is a space character between Outlook and the forward slash (/).
3. Click OK.
4. If the problem doesn't occur under Outlook safe mode, please restart Outlook in normal mode and uncheck all the add-ins in Outlook to test the issue.
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a. Open Outlook. (Note: If you cannot open Outlook, please come into Outlook safe mode instead)
b. Click Tools menu > Options.
c. In Other tab, click Advanced Options.
d. Click COM-Add-Ins and then remove all add-ins, click OK.
e. Click Add-In Manager and remove all add-ins. Click OK, OK, OK.
Test the issue again. If the problem is still there, try step 2.
Step 2: Rename the Cache Files
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Search for the following four files and rename them by changing the file extension from ".dat" to ".old". These four files are temporary cache files that Outlook 2003 loads on startup. (Be sure to check the "Search hidden files and folders" box under "More advanced options")
outcmd.dat
extend.dat
frmcache.dat
views.dat
Generally the files can be located in the folder C:\Documents and Settings\<LogName>\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook\. Some of them may not exist, please ignore it.
Note: The folder is hidden by default. Please use the following method to show it:
1. From the Start menu, go to Settings-->Control Panel-->Folder Options.
2. Go to View tab and select "Show hidden files and folders". The hidden folder will be shown then.
3. Start Outlook to see if the problem is resolved.
If the problem is still there, try step 3.
Step 3: Create a new Outlook profile
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A new profile is a new environment for us to use Outlook. To create a new profile is only for a test to see if the problem is related to the corrupt profile of Outlook. Creating new profile will not do any damage to the old profile.
1. Quit Outlook. Go to Start menu > Control Panel > Mail, click Show Profiles…
2. Select the "Prompt for a profile to be used" check box. Click Add…
3. Type the profile name as “new outlook profile”, click Ok.
4. Select Add a new e-mail account, click Next. Follow the wizard to configure your account in the new profile
5. Open Outlook and select the new profile you just created.
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