Contacts Sort= Order

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W= hen you would like to set a sort order on all new contacts, it’s quite si= mple (and the directions are below, just in case). However, if you want to sort your = existing contacts, it’s not so simple. Normally, you’d need to change the File As field on each conta= ct one by one. This add-in autom= ates that process by changing the File As field for you, based on your preferenc= es, all at once.

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T= he first thing you will want to do is make a copy of your contacts folder. This serves as a backup in case yo= u make a mistake in choosing your options. You might also want to backup your = entire Outlook data file at this time, especially if you haven’t done it in a while.

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Y= ou next want to change the order of names in the address book.

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H= ow to change the order of names in the address book

A= s you probably already know, the default for Outlook is First Name, Last Name ord= er. However over time, the address book= gets confused because of improperly formatted contacts. So, the Outlook Address Book someti= mes displays first and last names in the wrong order. If you want to display "Last, First", but it persists in displaying names as "First Last" = (or vice versa) then follow these steps. The steps are dependent on the version= of Outlook that you are using and the mode. You can check the version (and if necessary the mode) by going to (in Outlook) Help...About. <= /span>

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O= utlook 2007:

G= o to Tools...Account Settings...Address Books…Highlight the Outlook Address Book...Change...Set the sort order there

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O= utlook 2003 and

O= utlook 2002:

G= o to Tools...E-mail accounts...View or change existing directories or address books...Outlook Address Book... Change...Set the sort order there <= /span>

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O= utlook 2000:

Corporate/Workgroup Mode:

G= o to Tools menu...Services...Highlight the Outlook Address Book service...Click Properties...Set order

Internet Mail Only Mode:

G= o to Tools menu...Address Book...View menu...Sort by

T= here – now your new address book entries will be correct. Now you have to tell Outlook to do = the same to your contacts, because your contacts and your address book are two different entities. You can h= ave contacts be a part of your address book, but you can have address book entr= ies that are not represented in your contacts.=

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How to change the order of names in your contacts folders

U= nlike changing the order of names in your address book, the steps to change the o= rder of names in your contacts folders is the same for all versions of Outlook.<= o:p>

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G= o to Tools...Options…Preferences…Contact Options. Set the “Full Name” an= d the “File As” order there.

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G= ood – now all your new contacts will have their File As field correct when the contact is saved and their address book entries will be correct as well. But what about all your existing contacts? For that, you need = the add-in.

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H= ow it works

S= tart by choosing how you want your contacts to appear (in the “Sort ByR= 21; dropdown). You will want to m= ake this the same as the format you chose in the above step, to keep things consistent.

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Y= ou then choose an Outlook folder where the contacts are located. By default, your default Contacts = folder is selected, since this is the one most people will be interested in. You can choose one folder or many contacts folders. =

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T= hen, you have two more options to decide before running it.

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T= he first option is to decide whether leading and trailing single quotes should= be stripped off the File As field, the contact’s First Name and the cont= act’s Last Name. These quotes can sometimes be put on there after an import from Outlook Express or some other email program, or sometimes by some third party tools. If you don’t seem to have a p= roblem with quotes appearing in your contacts then keep the checkbox clear, otherw= ise go ahead and check it, the add-in will remove the leading and trailing quot= es where it finds them (in the File As, First Name, and Last Name fields).

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T= he second option you need to decide is whether or not you want to swap the fir= st name of all your contacts with the last name of your contacts. Outlook sometimes gets confused as= to which name is which, especially when importing or exporting vcards. The best way to accomplish th= is is to look through your contacts and find all the ones that are reversed and move them to their own subfolder,= then operate on just those contacts. When you are through and they are exactly the way you like them, then move them back into their regular= folder where they belong. Since most people do not have a problem with transposed first and last names, you can leave this checkbox blank, which is the default.

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N= ow that you have all the steps complete, you must click the Apply button to sa= ve the settings. Then you can cl= ick the Update Contacts button to enact your changes.

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T= he progress bar at the bottom will keep you informed as to how far the add-in = has come and roughly how long it will take, as well as displaying the name of t= he folder it is operating on.