OL97: How to Reorder Outlook Address Book Names

• Microsoft Outlook 97

SUMMARY

In Outlook 97, Contacts are listed in the Address Book in "Firstname, Lastname" order by default. This order can be toggled to "Lastname, Firstname" using the procedure outlined in this article.

MORE INFORMATION

Microsoft provides programming examples for illustration only, without warranty either expressed or implied, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and/or fitness for a particular purpose. This article assumes that you are familiar with the programming language being demonstrated and the tools used to create and debug procedures. Microsoft support engineers can help explain the functionality of a particular procedure, but they will not modify these examples to provide added functionality or construct procedures to meet your specific needs. If you have limited programming experience, you may want to contact the Microsoft fee-based consulting line at (800) 936-5200. For more information about the support options available from Microsoft, please see the following page on the World Wide Web:

   http://www.microsoft.com/support/supportnet/refguide/default.asp

Design a New Mail Form

1. Open a new mail message:

       a. On the File menu, point to New, and then click Mail Message to open
          a new mail message.
   

       b. On the Tools menu of the new mail message, click Design Outlook
          Form.
   

2. Insert two Command Buttons on the new form:

       a. Click the (P.2) tab to go to a blank page on the form.
   

       b. On the Form menu, click Control Toolbox.
   

       c. On the Toolbox dialog box click CommandButton and drag it to the
          blank form page.
   

       d. Right-click the CommandButton1 and click Properties.
   

       e. In the Caption window type "Last, First" and click OK.
   

       f. On the Toolbox dialog box click CommandButton and drag a second
          button to the blank form page.
   

       g. Right-click the CommandButton2 and click Properties.
   

       h. In the Caption window type "First Last" and click OK.
   

3. Insert Visual Basic Scripting Edition (VBScript) code:

       a. On the Form menu, click View Code to open the Script Editor.
   

       b. In the Script Editor, type or copy the following code:
   

      Sub CommandButton1_Click()
      'This will sort ONLY contacts in CURRENT folder by LastName, FirstName
      Set CurFolder=Application.ActiveExplorer.CurrentFolder
      If CurFolder.DefaultItemType=2 Then
         MsgBox "This process may take some time. You will be notified" & _
         "when complete.",,"Contact Tools Message"
         Set MyItems=CurFolder.Items
         For i = 1 to MyItems.Count
            Set MyItem=MyItems.Item(i)
            If Trim(MyItem.LastNameandFirstName)<>"" Then
               MyItem.Subject=MyItem.LastNameandFirstName
            MyItem.Save
            End If
         Next
         MsgBox "Done sorting Outlook Address Book contacts by Last" & _
         " Name!",64,"Contact Tools Message"
      Else
         MsgBox "The current folder is not a Contact folder.",64,"Contact" & _
         "Tools Message"
      End If
      End Sub
   
      Sub CommandButton2_Click()
      'This will reset contacts in CURRENT folder to FirstName LastName
      Set CurFolder=Application.ActiveExplorer.CurrentFolder
      If CurFolder.DefaultItemType=2 Then
         MsgBox "This process may take some time. You will be notified" & _
         "when complete.",,"Contact Tools Message"
         Set MyItems=CurFolder.Items
         For i = 1 to MyItems.Count
            Set MyItem=MyItems.Item(i)
            If Trim(MyItem.FullName)<>"" Then
               MyItem.Subject=MyItem.FullName
               MyItem.Save
            End If
         Next
         MsgBox "Done sorting Outlook Address Book contacts by First" & _
         " Name!",64,"Contact Tools Message"
      Else
         MsgBox "The current folder is not a Contact folder.",64,"Contact" & _
         " Tools Message"
      End If
      End Sub
   
       c. On the Script Editor File menu, click Close to return to the form.
   
   

4. Rename the second page tab and publish the new form:

       a. On the Form menu, click Rename Page.
   

       b. Type a meaningful name for this page such as, Reorder Names, and
          click OK.
   

       c. On the File menu, click Publish Form As.
   

       d. In the Form Name box, type a meaningful name for your new form such
          as, Reorder Address Book Names. Ensure that next to the Publish In
          button you see Personal Forms, and then click the Publish button.
   

       e. Close the message without saving.
   

To Use Your New Form

Follow these steps to use your new form:

1. Navigate to the Contact folder you wish to re-sequence.

2. On the Contact menu, click Choose Form.

3. In the Personal Forms list, click your new form and click OK.

4. Click the second page tab and click the appropriate button to sequence the contacts in the desired order within the Address Book.

REFERENCES

For more information about creating solutions with Microsoft Outlook 97, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   Article-ID: Q166368
   Title     : OL97: How to Get Help Programming with Outlook

   Article-ID: Q170783
   Title     : OL97: Q&A: Questions about Customizing or
               Programming Outlook