HELP!! Outlook's Misbehaving-Ways: Viewing Email Appears Impossibl

First off, thank you in advance for any help you can spare, I will monitor the post in real-time as soon as I post this and will respond as fast as I can type if you have any advice or questions of my quandary.

I am going absolutely insane sitting here sifting through every conceivable setting for the past five hours (longer than it took me to put this computer together and install everything!) For some bizarre reason Outlook 2003 refuses to let me view any current email in my Inbox, even though it appears to be downloading the test emails I’ve sent from my Google Gmail & Hotmail accounts.

I don’t know what’s going on. The only thing different I did was install the public key/ digital ID that I got today from WildID.com into my root cert store, but have since deleted it thinking it was somehow the culprit of my mysterious invisible email. I’ve even resorted to comparing my setting with the rudimentary ‘Help File’ at Comcast’s email setup for beginners, which was a waste of time since I know how to setup Outlook 2002 & OE blindfolded (URL: http://faq.comcast.net/faq/answer.js...gory=Outloo k )
... as if I somehow fouled up some new setting I am not aware of in Outlook 2003 (which I’m innocent, as far as I can tell).

FYI, this morning I finished installing/activating Office 2003 Professional’s Outlook 2003 with the ‘Business Contacts Manager 2003’ add-on app, having just finished putting together and installing XP Pro onto this new 3 GHz workstation. Since there appears to be a discrepancy for setting/message transfers between Outlook Express WAB files on Windows 2000 and Outlook 2003 PST files on Windows XP, so I ran XP’s ‘Transfer Files & Settings Wizard’ and selected OE 6. The Wizard transffered everything from my old machine’s OE 6 to Outlook Express 6 on Windows XP Professional. I then ‘Exported’ messages and saved my WAB as a comma delimited (CSV) file as a precaution, even though I have my contacts already backed up with Plaxo.com & my Palm Pilot.

Once I was back on my newly-built machine this afternoon, I checked Outlook 2003 and there were all of my exported contacts and messages (all 4,681 in ‘compressed archives’) sitting in Outlook 2003’s personal folders. The last time I checked my email was yesterday, Wednesday, July 7, while I was using my Old PC for the last time before replacing it with the one I am now having “Inbox� issues with. While the Transfer of my old messages worked without a hitch and stuffed my Outlook 2003 “inbox� with emails, they end yesterday, July 7th, and appear as if they are the last email I have received for all 5 of my business and personal email accounts. Here is an excerpt of what I currently have showing in my Outlook 2003 “Inbox� under Personal Folders:


Date: Yesterday (July 7) 2 items
Date: Tuesday (July 6) 4 items
Date: Monday (July 5) 5 items

UHAP prebook details: Unix/Sun Symposium'04 Received Wed 6:50 PM 14 KB
Comcast fw: June broadband statement ($56.82) Received Wed 5:19 AM 996 B
Sherry Here's May/June Phone Bill Received Tue 11:42 PM 21 KB
Williams report Received Tue 9:05 AM 11 KB
Williams report addendum Received Tue 9:04 AM 4 KB
Williams report Received Tue 9:04 AM 11 KB
HMA Architects landscape proposal attached Received Mon 6:49 PM 189722 KB
BAX Global Mitsubishi 24" CRT order tracking Received Mon 11:46 AM 5 KB
Julianne eBay: Congratulations, you are the high Received Mon 11:46 AM 693 KB
J.P. Schmidt telecommuting all next week Received Mon 11:46 AM 19 KB
Voksdirect.com Thanks for your recent order.. Received Mon 12:17 AM 3 KB

After deleting the Digital ID I acquired thinking it was somehow (??) encrypting all ‘incoming email’ and idiotically preventing me from viewing it (like I said, I am grabbing at straws… like a madman.. I’ve run out of possible ideas since every single setting and ‘potential culprit’ proves a dead-end) so I got rid of the digital certificate and recycled it from my system altogether. Lo and behold, STILL NO EMAIL in today’s Inbox!!! Only the email I checked on my old PC yesterday evening. Same old, same old.

I even became desperate enough to run the two Outlook 2003 ‘Inbox Repair Tools’ but both applications came back with messages stating it could not find any errors within either Outlook.pst nor ContactManager.mdf files. So that was another excursion into nowhere land… And that’s just about where I’ve been all day with Outlook 2003. Apparently either I am doing something hideously wrong, or this application is fouled in some cryptic way that it doesn’t even know itself whether something is wrong with it or not. Obviously not being able to view or scroll through any messages that I “should-have� received today, because there appears to be no ‘View Today’s Messages�… Only “Yesterday�, Tuesday.. Monday, Sunday, Saturday… so on, so forth. I am at a loss.

As a side-note, I know that the messages are coming in, and going out since I’ve sent several test emails today from Outlook 2003 on this local PC, to my web-based Google Gmail and Hotmail accounts, which to my chagrin, are waiting for me when I log into those accounts.

Obviously the text and pictures I kleep sending out as ‘test-messages’ ARE being sent-out from Outlook 2003, which also show All Green Check Marks during the “Test Account Settings…� from within E-Mail Settings menu for POP3 & SMTP setup dialogs.

I also know that I am RECEIVING emails (both the ones I specifically sent from my web-based accounts to Outlook 2003 here at home, and also the usual truckload of offshore Viagra and Home Equity SPAM offers… all mysteriously invisible!) Also, I haven’t had any of the messages I sent from Hotmail and Gmail bounce back to those web-based inboxes, so I know Outlook 2003 is collecting the, it just refuses to let me view anything!!!

I’ve even gone so far as to changed my Outlook Data File to a new name (as if that ever did anything) which I then saved, rebooted and then re-ran Outlook ‘03, all to no avail… Arrghh!!! This has been unbelievably frustrating and all I got from that exercise was a stupid new file I called “Outlook2.pst� which I saved into - C:\Documents and Settings\Admin\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook\…

Once back inside Outlook 2003, I checked my email (hopeful I might finally get to see a single message waiting for me in “Today’s Inbox�) … but alas… Once Outlook downloaded successfully whatever-it-downloaded… there wasn’t a thing visible in my Daily Inbox except the same old imported ‘Old PC’ archives starting with yesterday date and going backward in the archives… What gives?!?!?!? Obviously my broadband works, otherwise I would not be here posting this, so connectivity is not the issue as Comcast’s Tech Support people told me my problem was. Anymore live-link referrals to rudimentary Comcast FAQ’s from Tech Support or other ‘novice’ step-by-step email setup guides and I think I’ll shoot myself. Is Outlook messing this all up or am I turning dumb-eye from the truth that I missed some setting or other mysterious intangible that every other newbie on earth did not? While I’m not an expert guru or power user, I am no beginner. This forced torture is just plain unfair. I want my POP email back! What the heck is preventing me from attaining that simple 1-minute email setup routine we could all do blindfolded (except for me with this one bizarre incedent, that is…)

As a last-ditched attempt to eradicate any cross-file mix-up or other potential Microsoft Outlook 2003 unknown (imaginary Microsoft bugs have become intimate friends of mine at this point…), I deleted the separate app “Outlook Express� accounts (which I had imported from OE on the old machine) since I had already safely exported them into Outlook 2003 earlier today. Nadda. No-can-do! Ain’t nuthin’ ever gonna change, it seems… No new email (visible to the naked eye in any event…)

So maybe I should be asking if I can barrow somebody’s X-Ray glasses instead of for advice. Obviously such fantastical devices of make-believe are a real-world requirement… as far as my experience now goes, it’s impossible to view email in Outlook 2003 without ‘em.

Yeah, sure… at this point, a 3 GHz WinXP is a killer-fast PC! But at least my 900 MHz Win2K system was reliable on multiplayer games AND Outlook email. On that machine I could actually read the contents of my inbox and often found hundreds of glorious spams crowding for my attention.

Advice how to get Outlook ‘03 working? I miss the glory days of ‘delete-key’ carpel-tunnel and spam-havoc wreaking hell with my Hosts file. Where did I go wrong here? Advice? Tip, pointer, question, HijackThis log? Anyone solve this conundrum is worthy of my praise and will be raised to Geek-God status and worshiped accordingly as my hero.

Regards,
Disgruntled Outlook ’03 Customer…

PS: I’m about to hock Office 2003 to the local pawn in trade for a lubed up chainsaw… You don’t wan’t know what a chainsaw can do to a perfectly good PC…

Ok, these might be basic suggestions, but I can't see from your post that
you've tried them so let's start with the basics.

1. Check your system date (a long shot, but a simple fix).
2. Check your view. Go to View, Arrange By, Current View, Customize Current
View. Click the Filter Tab. Click the Clear All button.
3. Check your delivery location. Tools, Email Accounts, View or Change
Existing Email Accounts. Make sure the delivery location is the PST you
think it should be.

If you know the subject of these test messages you're sending to yourself,
do a search for them. Best to do an Advanced Find. Tools, Find, Advanced
Find. Choose Any Type of Outlook item as the type of item to find. This will
default your search to your entire mailbox (rather than just one folder as
is standard). Search for the item's subject and see if you can find it that
way. When you see results in the Advanced Find window, you'll see the folder
the item is located in. that will also help narrow down the problem.

--
Patricia Cardoza
Outlook MVP
Author - Special Edition Using Microsoft Office Outlook 2003
Lead Author - Access 2003 VBA Programmer's Reference
Author - Absolute Beginner's Guide to Microsoft OneNote 2003

http://blogs.officezealot.com/cardoza

"RunningHoove" wrote in message
...
First off, thank you in advance for any help you can spare, I will monitor
the post in real-time as soon as I post this and will respond as fast as I
can type if you have any advice or questions of my quandary.

I am going absolutely insane sitting here sifting through every
conceivable setting for the past five hours (longer than it took me to put
this computer together and install everything!) For some bizarre reason
Outlook 2003 refuses to let me view any current email in my Inbox, even
though it appears to be downloading the test emails I've sent from my Google
Gmail & Hotmail accounts.

I don't know what's going on. The only thing different I did was install
the public key/ digital ID that I got today from WildID.com into my root
cert store, but have since deleted it thinking it was somehow the culprit of
my mysterious invisible email. I've even resorted to comparing my setting
with the rudimentary 'Help File' at Comcast's email setup for beginners,
which was a waste of time since I know how to setup Outlook 2002 & OE
blindfolded (URL:
http://faq.comcast.net/faq/answer.js...gory=Outloo k )
.. as if I somehow fouled up some new setting I am not aware of in Outlook
2003 (which I'm innocent, as far as I can tell).

FYI, this morning I finished installing/activating Office 2003
Professional's Outlook 2003 with the 'Business Contacts Manager 2003' add-on
app, having just finished putting together and installing XP Pro onto this
new 3 GHz workstation. Since there appears to be a discrepancy for
setting/message transfers between Outlook Express WAB files on Windows 2000
and Outlook 2003 PST files on Windows XP, so I ran XP's 'Transfer Files &
Settings Wizard' and selected OE 6. The Wizard transffered everything from
my old machine's OE 6 to Outlook Express 6 on Windows XP Professional. I
then 'Exported' messages and saved my WAB as a comma delimited (CSV) file as
a precaution, even though I have my contacts already backed up with
Plaxo.com & my Palm Pilot.

Once I was back on my newly-built machine this afternoon, I checked
Outlook 2003 and there were all of my exported contacts and messages (all
4,681 in 'compressed archives') sitting in Outlook 2003's personal folders.
The last time I checked my email was yesterday, Wednesday, July 7, while I
was using my Old PC for the last time before replacing it with the one I am
now having "Inbox" issues with. While the Transfer of my old messages
worked without a hitch and stuffed my Outlook 2003 "inbox" with emails, they
end yesterday, July 7th, and appear as if they are the last email I have
received for all 5 of my business and personal email accounts. Here is an
excerpt of what I currently have showing in my Outlook 2003 "Inbox" under
Personal Folders:


Date: Yesterday (July 7) 2 items
Date: Tuesday (July 6) 4 items
Date: Monday (July 5) 5 items

UHAP prebook details: Unix/Sun Symposium'04 Received Wed 6:50 PM 14 KB
Comcast fw: June broadband statement ($56.82) Received Wed 5:19 AM 996 B
Sherry Here's May/June Phone Bill Received Tue 11:42 PM 21 KB
Williams report Received Tue 9:05 AM 11 KB
Williams report addendum Received Tue 9:04 AM 4 KB
Williams report Received Tue 9:04 AM 11 KB
HMA Architects landscape proposal attached Received Mon 6:49 PM 189722
KB
BAX Global Mitsubishi 24" CRT order tracking Received Mon 11:46 AM 5 KB
Julianne eBay: Congratulations, you are the high Received Mon 11:46 AM 693
KB
J.P. Schmidt telecommuting all next week Received Mon 11:46 AM 19 KB
Voksdirect.com Thanks for your recent order.. Received Mon 12:17 AM 3 KB

After deleting the Digital ID I acquired thinking it was somehow (??)
encrypting all 'incoming email' and idiotically preventing me from viewing
it (like I said, I am grabbing at straws. like a madman.. I've run out of
possible ideas since every single setting and 'potential culprit' proves a
dead-end) so I got rid of the digital certificate and recycled it from my
system altogether. Lo and behold, STILL NO EMAIL in today's Inbox!!! Only
the email I checked on my old PC yesterday evening. Same old, same old.

I even became desperate enough to run the two Outlook 2003 'Inbox Repair
Tools' but both applications came back with messages stating it could not
find any errors within either Outlook.pst nor ContactManager.mdf files. So
that was another excursion into nowhere land. And that's just about where I'
ve been all day with Outlook 2003. Apparently either I am doing something
hideously wrong, or this application is fouled in some cryptic way that it
doesn't even know itself whether something is wrong with it or not.
Obviously not being able to view or scroll through any messages that I
"should-have" received today, because there appears to be no 'View Today's
Messages". Only "Yesterday", Tuesday.. Monday, Sunday, Saturday. so on, so
forth. I am at a loss.

As a side-note, I know that the messages are coming in, and going out
since I've sent several test emails today from Outlook 2003 on this local
PC, to my web-based Google Gmail and Hotmail accounts, which to my chagrin,
are waiting for me when I log into those accounts.

Obviously the text and pictures I kleep sending out as 'test-messages' ARE
being sent-out from Outlook 2003, which also show All Green Check Marks
during the "Test Account Settings." from within E-Mail Settings menu for
POP3 & SMTP setup dialogs.

I also know that I am RECEIVING emails (both the ones I specifically sent
from my web-based accounts to Outlook 2003 here at home, and also the usual
truckload of offshore Viagra and Home Equity SPAM offers. all mysteriously
invisible!) Also, I haven't had any of the messages I sent from Hotmail and
Gmail bounce back to those web-based inboxes, so I know Outlook 2003 is
collecting the, it just refuses to let me view anything!!!

I've even gone so far as to changed my Outlook Data File to a new name (as
if that ever did anything) which I then saved, rebooted and then re-ran
Outlook '03, all to no avail. Arrghh!!! This has been unbelievably
frustrating and all I got from that exercise was a stupid new file I called
"Outlook2.pst" which I saved into - C:\Documents and Settings\Admin\Local
Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook\.

Once back inside Outlook 2003, I checked my email (hopeful I might finally
get to see a single message waiting for me in "Today's Inbox") . but alas.
Once Outlook downloaded successfully whatever-it-downloaded. there wasn't a
thing visible in my Daily Inbox except the same old imported 'Old PC'
archives starting with yesterday date and going backward in the archives.
What gives?!?!?!? Obviously my broadband works, otherwise I would not be
here posting this, so connectivity is not the issue as Comcast's Tech
Support people told me my problem was. Anymore live-link referrals to
rudimentary Comcast FAQ's from Tech Support or other 'novice' step-by-step
email setup guides and I think I'll shoot myself. Is Outlook messing this
all up or am I turning dumb-eye from the truth that I missed some setting or
other mysterious intangible that every other newbie on earth did not? While
I'm not an expert guru or power user, I am no beginner. This forced torture
is just plain unfair. I want my POP email back! What the heck is
preventing me from attaining that simple 1-minute email setup routine we
could all do blindfolded (except for me with this one bizarre incedent, that
is.)

As a last-ditched attempt to eradicate any cross-file mix-up or other
potential Microsoft Outlook 2003 unknown (imaginary Microsoft bugs have
become intimate friends of mine at this point.), I deleted the separate app
"Outlook Express" accounts (which I had imported from OE on the old machine)
since I had already safely exported them into Outlook 2003 earlier today.
Nadda. No-can-do! Ain't nuthin' ever gonna change, it seems. No new email
(visible to the naked eye in any event.)

So maybe I should be asking if I can barrow somebody's X-Ray glasses
instead of for advice. Obviously such fantastical devices of make-believe
are a real-world requirement. as far as my experience now goes, it's
impossible to view email in Outlook 2003 without 'em.

Yeah, sure. at this point, a 3 GHz WinXP is a killer-fast PC! But at
least my 900 MHz Win2K system was reliable on multiplayer games AND Outlook
email. On that machine I could actually read the contents of my inbox and
often found hundreds of glorious spams crowding for my attention.

Advice how to get Outlook '03 working? I miss the glory days of
'delete-key' carpel-tunnel and spam-havoc wreaking hell with my Hosts file.
Where did I go wrong here? Advice? Tip, pointer, question, HijackThis log?
Anyone solve this conundrum is worthy of my praise and will be raised to
Geek-God status and worshiped accordingly as my hero.

Regards,
Disgruntled Outlook '03 Customer.

PS: I'm about to hock Office 2003 to the local pawn in trade for a lubed
up chainsaw. You don't wan't know what a chainsaw can do to a perfectly
good PC.