Can Access read a .wab file

[JK]

Hi everybody,

Is there a way I can read an Outlook or Outlook Express address book (.wab)
into access to be able to drop email addresses into a filed?

No problem reading .csv file generated by the address book but that relies
on somebody updating the .csv file
continuously *AND* I don't really have a unique key I to avoid duplicated
records if I import the .csv file into a table more then once.


Any suggestions?

TIA

Jacob

 

[JK]

Ooops,

I just saw that someone else asked a similar question. Do I take the answer
to my question as "you can't do it" ?

Regards/JK

 

[Joseph Meehan]

Ooops,

I just saw that someone else asked a similar question. Do I take the
answer to my question as "you can't do it" ?

Regards/JK

Well you can't do it directly.

 

[JK]

Thanks Joseph,
Looks like I will have to use .CSV file and find some way to avoid or at
least minimize duplications.

Regards
Jacob

 

[Joseph Meehan]

Thanks Joseph,
Looks like I will have to use .CSV file and find some way to avoid or
at least minimize duplications.

If you have a unique field you can eliminate duplicate by making that a
key field without duplicates allowed.

 

[Charlie Hoffpauir]

Thanks Joseph,
Looks like I will have to use .CSV file and find some way to avoid or at
least minimize duplications.

Regards
Jacob

A dbf (dBase III or IV) might work better for you.
Charlie Hoffpauir
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~charlieh/

 

[JK]

Joseph,

I basically need to bring in First Name, Middle Name, Last Name, Name and
e-mail address. None of these can be a unique field by itself. Sure, I have
an Email_ID as key, but that does not prevents importing the same person
again.

I will have to test on all five fields and eliminate exact match on all 5,
But if the user change an existing entry in the address book (typos,
spelling
, e-mail address etc.) that record will come in as a new record. Nothing
much I can do about it but I don't expect that to be a major problem, people
usually add or delete records in their address book or changing e-mail
addresses - I shall have to let it go and refine the process if/when it will
cause problems (I don't think so.

Another approach is the KISS principle (Keep It Simple, Stupid say "no
can
do" and let the users enter the e-mail addresses manually - they know the
addressees better than I do.

Regards/JK

 

[JK]

Joseph,

I basically need to bring in First Name, Middle Name, Last Name, Name and
e-mail address. None of thses can be a unique field by itself. Sure, I have
an Email_ID as key in the table, but that does not prevents importing the
same person again.

I will have to test on all five fields and eliminate exact match on all 5,
But if the user change an exsiting entry in the addres book (typos, spelling
, e-mail address etc.) that record will come in as a new record. Nothing
much I can do about it but I don't expect that to be a major problem, people
usually add or delete records in their addrees book or changing e-mail
addresses - I shall have to let it go and refine the process if/when it will
cause problems (I don't think so.

Another approach is the KISS princple (Keep It Simle, Stupid say "no can
do" and let the users enter the e-mail addresses manually -t hey know the
addressees beter than I do.

Regards/JK

 

[JK]

Hmmm, last time I used dBase III was about 13 year ago the good aold days of
DOS :-o

 

[Charlie Hoffpauir]

Hmmm, last time I used dBase III was about 13 year ago the good aold days of
DOS :-o

Perhaps I wasn't clear. You don't need to "use" dBase. From Works, you
can save your table as a dbf file. Access will then import the dbf
file. You'll basically have the same table you had in Works.... just
build the Queries and Reports in Access.

Charlie Hoffpauir
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~charlieh/

 

[John Vinson]

Joseph,

I basically need to bring in First Name, Middle Name, Last Name, Name and
e-mail address. None of thses can be a unique field by itself. Sure, I have
an Email_ID as key in the table, but that does not prevents importing the
same person again.

Note that a Unique Index - or even a Primary Key - can consist of up
to TEN fields. You don't need any one of them to be unique. In fact if
you'll be using this table standalone, and not relating it one-to-many
to other tables, I'd suggest using FirstName, MiddleName, LastName and
Email as a joint four-field PK. You'll need to make MiddleName
required and set its Allow Zero Length String property to true to
handle the common case of no middle name.

Note that blanks in fieldnames are probably not a good idea; and that
the Name fieldname is a reserved word, and that the field is almost
surely redundant anyway.

You can use VBA code and the Outlook Object Model to link to the WAB,
I believe, though I have not done so myself.

John W. Vinson[MVP]

 

[JK]

Thanks John

(Please read below)

Note that a Unique Index - or even a Primary Key - can consist of up
to TEN fields. You don't need any one of them to be unique. In fact if
you'll be using this table standalone, and not relating it one-to-many

I was thinking of using a primary key consiting of at least 4 parhaps 5
fields, I have to think about the e-mail address itself - not too sure yet.

My intention is to use the table as a standalone.

to other tables, I'd suggest using FirstName, MiddleName, LastName and
Email as a joint four-field PK. You'll need to make MiddleName
required and set its Allow Zero Length String property to true to
handle the common case of no middle name.

I will have to allow for blank in any field except the e-mail address,
e.g. some people don't fill the surname of family and close friends

Note that blanks in fieldnames are probably not a good idea; and that
the Name fieldname is a reserved word, and that the field is almost
surely redundant anyway.

I useually avoid spaces in field names but confess that I have guilty on
occasions (mia calpa :-( ), but certianly *not* reserved words, at
least
not these that I'm aware of.

You can use VBA code and the Outlook Object Model to link to the WAB,
I believe, though I have not done so myself.

I have not seen one but will have a look again, I don't have Outlook
installed,
I'll re-install it and see if I can find more help there.

John W. Vinson[MVP]

Regards/Jacob

 

[JK]

Thanks Charlie,

That's interesting. I'll give it a shot too.
(you learn something every day

Regards/Jacob

 

[Ron2006]

Actually you can link to the outlook contacts table and get all of the
information. However, It will look at the local table - even if it is
the global contact list. Consequently the link mapping is to "your"
harddrive.

I haven't found anything relative to WAB but I also don't have Outlook
express loaded.

Ron

 

[JK]

Thanks Ron,

That sounds promising.
I just re-installed Outlook (been using Outlook Express for years) but so
far been unable to find the contacts file

Can you tell me where it is and file name (standard installation)>

Appreciate

Jacob

 

[Ron2006]

JK,
Actually you do not have to know where it is. Access will find it.

Go to the Tables section of your application.
Press the "New" button
Select "Link" and OK
Down on the bottom there is a dropdown box and it will say right now
"Mocrosoft Office Access"
mouse the dropdown arrow and scroll down to either exchange or Outlook.

It will then list the folders, etc in you copy of outlook and you then
pick the one you want to link to.

Ron

 

[JK]

Thanks Ron,

Partial success!
The only way I can link seems to be from outlook *only when* it is the
default email program. I tried to link when Outlook Express is the default
mail and got a "no can do" message because, so it says, neither Outlook nor
Outlook Express (???!) is my default mail.

Further once the link is established. it works *only* as long as Outlook
remains the default mail (fair enough I guess). Obviously, importing does
not require Outlook to be the default, but I can achieve the same by
importing a .csv file in any case and regardless of which is the default
Email program.

So long as I use the db only on my machines, I can keep Outlook as the
default mail and use the automation I was looking for. However if the db is
going to be used by someone who does not have Outlook or does not want to
use it, I will have to diable that facility.

I will play with it some more and see how I go.

Many thanks for your help, Ron

Regards
Jacob

 

[Ron2006]

You are welcome. Best of luck.

Ron