USER-DEFINED FIELDS - MAX. #

What do you do if you have more than 150 fields? I have about 400 and kept
getting an error message that the folder was full. Can you increase the
storage space or what?

"carricka" wrote:

Hi there -

Is there a maximum number of user-defined fields that can be set up?
I'm using Outlook 2003.

Thanks.

ANTHONY

It is not possible to increase the storage available to Outlook items. The maximum per item is 32k, excluding item body and attachments. As a practical matter, I get nervous after about 150 custom fields. Sounds like you need to rethink your application.

--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Author of Configuring Microsoft Outlook 2003
http://www.turtleflock.com/olconfig/index.htm
and Microsoft Outlook Programming - Jumpstart for
Administrators, Power Users, and Developers
http://www.outlookcode.com/jumpstart.aspx

"cpj" wrote in message ...
What do you do if you have more than 150 fields? I have about 400 and kept
getting an error message that the folder was full. Can you increase the
storage space or what?

"carricka" wrote:

Hi there -

Is there a maximum number of user-defined fields that can be set up?
I'm using Outlook 2003.

Thanks.

ANTHONY

Do you mean that if I go into All Fields then User defined fields I can only
add approximately 150 fields or that I can add 150 fields for each heading
under All Fields? My employer wants to see the name of the
secretary/assistant when we print the contact list or the phone number does
not fit any of the headings that Outlook uses. This is the reason for so
many fields.

"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

It is not possible to increase the storage available to Outlook items. The maximum per item is 32k, excluding item body and attachments. As a practical matter, I get nervous after about 150 custom fields. Sounds like you need to rethink your application.

--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Author of Configuring Microsoft Outlook 2003
http://www.turtleflock.com/olconfig/index.htm
and Microsoft Outlook Programming - Jumpstart for
Administrators, Power Users, and Developers
http://www.outlookcode.com/jumpstart.aspx

"cpj" wrote in message ...
What do you do if you have more than 150 fields? I have about 400 and kept
getting an error message that the folder was full. Can you increase the
storage space or what?

"carricka" wrote:

Hi there -

Is there a maximum number of user-defined fields that can be set up?
I'm using Outlook 2003.

Thanks.

ANTHONY

You can add fields only to the User-Defined Fields list. The other lists show just the standard fields.

I don't understand your statement about your printing issue.

--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Author of Configuring Microsoft Outlook 2003
http://www.turtleflock.com/olconfig/index.htm
and Microsoft Outlook Programming - Jumpstart for
Administrators, Power Users, and Developers
http://www.outlookcode.com/jumpstart.aspx

"cpj" wrote in message ...
Do you mean that if I go into All Fields then User defined fields I can only
add approximately 150 fields or that I can add 150 fields for each heading
under All Fields? My employer wants to see the name of the
secretary/assistant when we print the contact list or the phone number does
not fit any of the headings that Outlook uses. This is the reason for so
many fields.

"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

It is not possible to increase the storage available to Outlook items. The maximum per item is 32k, excluding item body and attachments. As a practical matter, I get nervous after about 150 custom fields. Sounds like you need to rethink your application.

"cpj" wrote in message ...
What do you do if you have more than 150 fields? I have about 400 and kept
getting an error message that the folder was full. Can you increase the
storage space or what?

"carricka" wrote:

Hi there -

Is there a maximum number of user-defined fields that can be set up?
I'm using Outlook 2003.

Thanks.

ANTHONY

I hope this explains the problem. If not, I will try to go into more detail.

We are trying to use Outlook for both email contacts and printed
address/phone book. If the contacts list is open, I can go to View | Current
View | Detailed Address Cards then choose print from the file menu and have a
hard copy of the contacts list. To add our custom fields to the Detailed
Address Card View, I have gone to View | Arrange by | Current View |
Customize Current View | Fields | New Fields then added the custom fields. I
have been able to print the contacts in this way, but at some point the
folder will not open because it is full.

Do we need an address book program instead of using outlook? I think I read
somewhere that Outlook used to have a personal address book, but I have not
been able to find that feature in 2003. Also, if it doesn't allow an
unlimited number of custom fields, it would not help this problem.


"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

You can add fields only to the User-Defined Fields list. The other lists show just the standard fields.

I don't understand your statement about your printing issue.

--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Author of Configuring Microsoft Outlook 2003
http://www.turtleflock.com/olconfig/index.htm
and Microsoft Outlook Programming - Jumpstart for
Administrators, Power Users, and Developers
http://www.outlookcode.com/jumpstart.aspx

"cpj" wrote in message ...
Do you mean that if I go into All Fields then User defined fields I can only
add approximately 150 fields or that I can add 150 fields for each heading
under All Fields? My employer wants to see the name of the
secretary/assistant when we print the contact list or the phone number does
not fit any of the headings that Outlook uses. This is the reason for so
many fields.

"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

It is not possible to increase the storage available to Outlook items. The maximum per item is 32k, excluding item body and attachments. As a practical matter, I get nervous after about 150 custom fields. Sounds like you need to rethink your application.

"cpj" wrote in message ...
What do you do if you have more than 150 fields? I have about 400 and kept
getting an error message that the folder was full. Can you increase the
storage space or what?

"carricka" wrote:

Hi there -

Is there a maximum number of user-defined fields that can be set up?
I'm using Outlook 2003.

Thanks.

ANTHONY

The old Personal Address Book, which has been obsolete for years, allows zero customization.

How many items do you have in your folder? Is this a folder in a .pst file or an Exchange mailbox.

Have you tried using mail merge to get a printout?

It's hard to imagine 400 custom fields actually being useful. Too many to remember.
--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Author of Configuring Microsoft Outlook 2003
http://www.turtleflock.com/olconfig/index.htm
and Microsoft Outlook Programming - Jumpstart for
Administrators, Power Users, and Developers
http://www.outlookcode.com/jumpstart.aspx

"cpj" wrote in message ...

I hope this explains the problem. If not, I will try to go into more detail.

We are trying to use Outlook for both email contacts and printed
address/phone book. If the contacts list is open, I can go to View | Current
View | Detailed Address Cards then choose print from the file menu and have a
hard copy of the contacts list. To add our custom fields to the Detailed
Address Card View, I have gone to View | Arrange by | Current View |
Customize Current View | Fields | New Fields then added the custom fields. I
have been able to print the contacts in this way, but at some point the
folder will not open because it is full.

Do we need an address book program instead of using outlook? I think I read
somewhere that Outlook used to have a personal address book, but I have not
been able to find that feature in 2003. Also, if it doesn't allow an
unlimited number of custom fields, it would not help this problem.


"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

You can add fields only to the User-Defined Fields list. The other lists show just the standard fields.

I don't understand your statement about your printing issue.


"cpj" wrote in message ...
Do you mean that if I go into All Fields then User defined fields I can only
add approximately 150 fields or that I can add 150 fields for each heading
under All Fields? My employer wants to see the name of the
secretary/assistant when we print the contact list or the phone number does
not fit any of the headings that Outlook uses. This is the reason for so
many fields.

"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

It is not possible to increase the storage available to Outlook items. The maximum per item is 32k, excluding item body and attachments. As a practical matter, I get nervous after about 150 custom fields. Sounds like you need to rethink your application.

"cpj" wrote in message ...
What do you do if you have more than 150 fields? I have about 400 and kept
getting an error message that the folder was full. Can you increase the
storage space or what?

"carricka" wrote:

Hi there -

Is there a maximum number of user-defined fields that can be set up?
I'm using Outlook 2003.

Thanks.

ANTHONY

You may have to clarify the question about the number of items in my folder.
There are 2141 contacts in my personal folder which is a .pst file. I
understand what you are saying about not remembering 400 custom fields, but
when you are using this as a hard copy and the boss wants to know John Doe's
doctor's name and phone number, it is easy to look at John Doe and see that
information. The boss does not use a computer so those of us that do need an
electronic copy and he needs a hard copy. I can print his hard copy by
adding the custom fields for each letter of the alpha individually, then
deleting and going to the next letter, but it doesn't save the changes. If
you have any suggestions, I am open to try them.

I have not tried mail merge to get this to work. I will look at that now.

"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

The old Personal Address Book, which has been obsolete for years, allows zero customization.

How many items do you have in your folder? Is this a folder in a .pst file or an Exchange mailbox.

Have you tried using mail merge to get a printout?

It's hard to imagine 400 custom fields actually being useful. Too many to remember.
--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Author of Configuring Microsoft Outlook 2003
http://www.turtleflock.com/olconfig/index.htm
and Microsoft Outlook Programming - Jumpstart for
Administrators, Power Users, and Developers
http://www.outlookcode.com/jumpstart.aspx

"cpj" wrote in message ...

I hope this explains the problem. If not, I will try to go into more detail.

We are trying to use Outlook for both email contacts and printed
address/phone book. If the contacts list is open, I can go to View | Current
View | Detailed Address Cards then choose print from the file menu and have a
hard copy of the contacts list. To add our custom fields to the Detailed
Address Card View, I have gone to View | Arrange by | Current View |
Customize Current View | Fields | New Fields then added the custom fields. I
have been able to print the contacts in this way, but at some point the
folder will not open because it is full.

Do we need an address book program instead of using outlook? I think I read
somewhere that Outlook used to have a personal address book, but I have not
been able to find that feature in 2003. Also, if it doesn't allow an
unlimited number of custom fields, it would not help this problem.


"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

You can add fields only to the User-Defined Fields list. The other lists show just the standard fields.

I don't understand your statement about your printing issue.


"cpj" wrote in message ...
Do you mean that if I go into All Fields then User defined fields I can only
add approximately 150 fields or that I can add 150 fields for each heading
under All Fields? My employer wants to see the name of the
secretary/assistant when we print the contact list or the phone number does
not fit any of the headings that Outlook uses. This is the reason for so
many fields.

"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

It is not possible to increase the storage available to Outlook items. The maximum per item is 32k, excluding item body and attachments. As a practical matter, I get nervous after about 150 custom fields. Sounds like you need to rethink your application.

"cpj" wrote in message ...
What do you do if you have more than 150 fields? I have about 400 and kept
getting an error message that the folder was full. Can you increase the
storage space or what?

"carricka" wrote:

Hi there -

Is there a maximum number of user-defined fields that can be set up?
I'm using Outlook 2003.

Thanks.

ANTHONY

Sue,

First - I have your book on Oulook programming and it's wonderful. Even and
idiot like me can understand it. It's great read something about a computer
that is in plain English that we can understand.

Now my question. You said in this thread that you get concerned about more
then 150 custom fields. I don't have anywhere near that - more like 50.
Trouble is that three of my custom fields are long text fields that could
range from 1-15 paragraphs. I've taken a look at a document that is 32K and
it's not very much information. You said that Outlooks limit is 32K per
item...Item? humm...is the 32K per contact record...or is it 32K per custom
field?

I'm very anxious to show my co-workers how easy it would be for us to load
information into Outlook for our investments and then use that data for an
annual mail merge of our Audit Confirmation Letters. There is no point in
going to the work if Outlook is limited to 32K per contact record.

Thanks -
--
Thank you - I appreciate all help that I can get!
Lorrie


"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

The old Personal Address Book, which has been obsolete for years, allows zero customization.

How many items do you have in your folder? Is this a folder in a .pst file or an Exchange mailbox.

Have you tried using mail merge to get a printout?

It's hard to imagine 400 custom fields actually being useful. Too many to remember.
--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Author of Configuring Microsoft Outlook 2003
http://www.turtleflock.com/olconfig/index.htm
and Microsoft Outlook Programming - Jumpstart for
Administrators, Power Users, and Developers
http://www.outlookcode.com/jumpstart.aspx

"cpj" wrote in message ...

I hope this explains the problem. If not, I will try to go into more detail.

We are trying to use Outlook for both email contacts and printed
address/phone book. If the contacts list is open, I can go to View | Current
View | Detailed Address Cards then choose print from the file menu and have a
hard copy of the contacts list. To add our custom fields to the Detailed
Address Card View, I have gone to View | Arrange by | Current View |
Customize Current View | Fields | New Fields then added the custom fields. I
have been able to print the contacts in this way, but at some point the
folder will not open because it is full.

Do we need an address book program instead of using outlook? I think I read
somewhere that Outlook used to have a personal address book, but I have not
been able to find that feature in 2003. Also, if it doesn't allow an
unlimited number of custom fields, it would not help this problem.


"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

You can add fields only to the User-Defined Fields list. The other lists show just the standard fields.

I don't understand your statement about your printing issue.


"cpj" wrote in message ...
Do you mean that if I go into All Fields then User defined fields I can only
add approximately 150 fields or that I can add 150 fields for each heading
under All Fields? My employer wants to see the name of the
secretary/assistant when we print the contact list or the phone number does
not fit any of the headings that Outlook uses. This is the reason for so
many fields.

"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

It is not possible to increase the storage available to Outlook items. The maximum per item is 32k, excluding item body and attachments. As a practical matter, I get nervous after about 150 custom fields. Sounds like you need to rethink your application.

"cpj" wrote in message ...
What do you do if you have more than 150 fields? I have about 400 and kept
getting an error message that the folder was full. Can you increase the
storage space or what?

"carricka" wrote:

Hi there -

Is there a maximum number of user-defined fields that can be set up?
I'm using Outlook 2003.

Thanks.

ANTHONY

It's 32kb per record. A good way to check might be to create a new item with your form but fill in minimal data, then create another new item and fill in as much as you'd expect to normally see. Compare the sizes to see how much data you're adding to each item.

How much of the information in those 1-15 paragraphs is boilerplate that is the same for everyone? If it's a lot, then maybe there's another way to store that often-duplicated informaton.

--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Author of Microsoft Outlook 2007 Programming:
Jumpstart for Power Users and Administrators
http://www.outlookcode.com/article.aspx?id=54


"Lorrie" wrote in message ...
Sue,

First - I have your book on Oulook programming and it's wonderful. Even and
idiot like me can understand it. It's great read something about a computer
that is in plain English that we can understand.

Now my question. You said in this thread that you get concerned about more
then 150 custom fields. I don't have anywhere near that - more like 50.
Trouble is that three of my custom fields are long text fields that could
range from 1-15 paragraphs. I've taken a look at a document that is 32K and
it's not very much information. You said that Outlooks limit is 32K per
item...Item? humm...is the 32K per contact record...or is it 32K per custom
field?

I'm very anxious to show my co-workers how easy it would be for us to load
information into Outlook for our investments and then use that data for an
annual mail merge of our Audit Confirmation Letters. There is no point in
going to the work if Outlook is limited to 32K per contact record.

Thanks -
--
Thank you - I appreciate all help that I can get!
Lorrie


"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

The old Personal Address Book, which has been obsolete for years, allows zero customization.

How many items do you have in your folder? Is this a folder in a .pst file or an Exchange mailbox.

Have you tried using mail merge to get a printout?

It's hard to imagine 400 custom fields actually being useful. Too many to remember.
--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Author of Configuring Microsoft Outlook 2003
http://www.turtleflock.com/olconfig/index.htm
and Microsoft Outlook Programming - Jumpstart for
Administrators, Power Users, and Developers
http://www.outlookcode.com/jumpstart.aspx

"cpj" wrote in message ...

I hope this explains the problem. If not, I will try to go into more detail.

We are trying to use Outlook for both email contacts and printed
address/phone book. If the contacts list is open, I can go to View | Current
View | Detailed Address Cards then choose print from the file menu and have a
hard copy of the contacts list. To add our custom fields to the Detailed
Address Card View, I have gone to View | Arrange by | Current View |
Customize Current View | Fields | New Fields then added the custom fields. I
have been able to print the contacts in this way, but at some point the
folder will not open because it is full.

Do we need an address book program instead of using outlook? I think I read
somewhere that Outlook used to have a personal address book, but I have not
been able to find that feature in 2003. Also, if it doesn't allow an
unlimited number of custom fields, it would not help this problem.


"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

You can add fields only to the User-Defined Fields list. The other lists show just the standard fields.

I don't understand your statement about your printing issue.


"cpj" wrote in message ...
Do you mean that if I go into All Fields then User defined fields I can only
add approximately 150 fields or that I can add 150 fields for each heading
under All Fields? My employer wants to see the name of the
secretary/assistant when we print the contact list or the phone number does
not fit any of the headings that Outlook uses. This is the reason for so
many fields.

"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

It is not possible to increase the storage available to Outlook items. The maximum per item is 32k, excluding item body and attachments. As a practical matter, I get nervous after about 150 custom fields. Sounds like you need to rethink your application.

"cpj" wrote in message ...
What do you do if you have more than 150 fields? I have about 400 and kept
getting an error message that the folder was full. Can you increase the
storage space or what?

"carricka" wrote:

Hi there -

Is there a maximum number of user-defined fields that can be set up?
I'm using Outlook 2003.

Thanks.

ANTHONY

Thanks for your response I'm sure now that Outlook will not be adequate for
this project. Can you suggest something that might be a better option?
--
Thank you - I appreciate all help that I can get!
Lorrie


"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

It's 32kb per record. A good way to check might be to create a new item with your form but fill in minimal data, then create another new item and fill in as much as you'd expect to normally see. Compare the sizes to see how much data you're adding to each item.

How much of the information in those 1-15 paragraphs is boilerplate that is the same for everyone? If it's a lot, then maybe there's another way to store that often-duplicated informaton.

--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Author of Microsoft Outlook 2007 Programming:
Jumpstart for Power Users and Administrators
http://www.outlookcode.com/article.aspx?id=54


"Lorrie" wrote in message ...
Sue,

First - I have your book on Oulook programming and it's wonderful. Even and
idiot like me can understand it. It's great read something about a computer
that is in plain English that we can understand.

Now my question. You said in this thread that you get concerned about more
then 150 custom fields. I don't have anywhere near that - more like 50.
Trouble is that three of my custom fields are long text fields that could
range from 1-15 paragraphs. I've taken a look at a document that is 32K and
it's not very much information. You said that Outlooks limit is 32K per
item...Item? humm...is the 32K per contact record...or is it 32K per custom
field?

I'm very anxious to show my co-workers how easy it would be for us to load
information into Outlook for our investments and then use that data for an
annual mail merge of our Audit Confirmation Letters. There is no point in
going to the work if Outlook is limited to 32K per contact record.

Thanks -
--
Thank you - I appreciate all help that I can get!
Lorrie


"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

The old Personal Address Book, which has been obsolete for years, allows zero customization.

How many items do you have in your folder? Is this a folder in a .pst file or an Exchange mailbox.

Have you tried using mail merge to get a printout?

It's hard to imagine 400 custom fields actually being useful. Too many to remember.
--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Author of Configuring Microsoft Outlook 2003
http://www.turtleflock.com/olconfig/index.htm
and Microsoft Outlook Programming - Jumpstart for
Administrators, Power Users, and Developers
http://www.outlookcode.com/jumpstart.aspx

"cpj" wrote in message ...

I hope this explains the problem. If not, I will try to go into more detail.

We are trying to use Outlook for both email contacts and printed
address/phone book. If the contacts list is open, I can go to View | Current
View | Detailed Address Cards then choose print from the file menu and have a
hard copy of the contacts list. To add our custom fields to the Detailed
Address Card View, I have gone to View | Arrange by | Current View |
Customize Current View | Fields | New Fields then added the custom fields. I
have been able to print the contacts in this way, but at some point the
folder will not open because it is full.

Do we need an address book program instead of using outlook? I think I read
somewhere that Outlook used to have a personal address book, but I have not
been able to find that feature in 2003. Also, if it doesn't allow an
unlimited number of custom fields, it would not help this problem.


"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

You can add fields only to the User-Defined Fields list. The other lists show just the standard fields.

I don't understand your statement about your printing issue.


"cpj" wrote in message ...
Do you mean that if I go into All Fields then User defined fields I can only
add approximately 150 fields or that I can add 150 fields for each heading
under All Fields? My employer wants to see the name of the
secretary/assistant when we print the contact list or the phone number does
not fit any of the headings that Outlook uses. This is the reason for so
many fields.

"Sue Mosher [MVP-Outlook]" wrote:

It is not possible to increase the storage available to Outlook items. The maximum per item is 32k, excluding item body and attachments. As a practical matter, I get nervous after about 150 custom fields. Sounds like you need to rethink your application.

"cpj" wrote in message ...
What do you do if you have more than 150 fields? I have about 400 and kept
getting an error message that the folder was full. Can you increase the
storage space or what?

"carricka" wrote:

Hi there -

Is there a maximum number of user-defined fields that can be set up?
I'm using Outlook 2003.

Thanks.

ANTHONY