Misbehaving Outlook Email and Microsoft

Some say that computer problems happen at the worst times. I’m not surethat is true, but I won’t argue. Without warning, my Outlook emailstopped working last week. I could receive email, but I couldn’t openany items. Instead, I saw an error message that read “Cannotopen this item. The text formatting command is not available. It maynot be installed correctly. Install Microsoft Office Outlook again.” Fortunately, my main email address runs in parallel so I wasn’t totally hosed.

For most of my Outlook email problems, I can work my way to asolution. This one had me stumped although I had some functionalityrunning Outlook in safe mode. Prior to calling Microsoft Support, I did a query on the error message to see what solutions had been suggested. I tried a PC troubleshooting approach similar to what I use to understand Windows error messages. I saw some solutions that worked for people and others that didn’t.While I don’t know the cause of the problem, I found 3 suggestions thatmight solve the problem.

Suggestion 1: Reinstall Microsoft Outlook.

If the developer offers a solution on an error message, that’s whereI start. Let’s face it, they have the inside advantage. In my case, Irecently installed some Windows patch files and thought they may havecontributed to the problem.

Suggestion 2: Create a New Outlook Profile

From what I read, this procedure fixed the problem for many folks.This was the first thing the Microsoft technician suggested. This is aneasy procedure and Microsoft has a good knowledgebase article with instructions.

Like the first suggestion, this one didn’t fully resolve my problem.It appeared to work and then the error message reappeared. Again, I hadto call Microsoft again.

This is one of the few times a Microsoft employee let me down. Ifyou’ve ever called their support lines, they are fanatical aboutgetting your phone number in case you get disconnected. So, it wouldmake sense that if the line dropped, they would call me back. When Isent an email from my Gmail account to the rep, they replied “wait formy call”. I then got the following email.

 

We have agreed that the follow action plan needs to be followed:

Arranging a callback

Please let me know if the steps we discussed have resolved yourissue so that I can update your case accordingly. If the issue is notresolved, please provide me with a convenient date and time frame (2 hour window) for a callback.To help work towards a resolution for your issue, please respond tothis e-mail, so that we may continue troubleshooting your problem. Myworking hours are 12 noon PST to 9 PM PST from Monday to Friday.

 

Excuse me, but I spent 90 minutes with the second Microsoft supportrep and now I need to schedule a callback! Moreover, the rep madesecurity and registry changes to my system right before the line wentdead. To add insult to injury, an old support number, [phone],was included in that email.

I’ll spare you the contents of my subsequent replies. Needless tosay, I wasn’t going to schedule a 2 hour window for a callback.Instead, I called the correct number to get Rep 3.

Suggestion 3: Close Outlook and Rename 4 .DAT files

The third time was a charm as the saying goes. This tech rep offereda different solution from his peers. In my case, this solution worked.

There were four .dat files that were renamed so the originals were still around if needed.

• outcmd.dat
• frmcache.dat
• views.dat
• extend.dat

When Outlook restarted, it created new versions of those files. The file locations vary based on systems, but Slipstick has a very useful Outlook file location article.

As a result of this fix, I did lose some custom view and toolbarsettings, but I think it was worth the cost. It’s was much easier forme to recreate those settings than to be without my email. And yes, I’mstill catching up on email inquiries if you sent me something.