Outlook keeps most of your essential data in your PST — personal folders — file. The auto-complete list Outlook pops up when you start typing somebody’s name or address in a new message is just as essential, though, is it not?

This list, which you can really edit only with a dedicated tool, is , as it were, stored in a separate file (called NK2 file). If you want to take the auto-complete list with you to a new computer or want to make sure it is backed up regularly, you have to dig it up from within Windows’ profile directories.

To transfer your Outlook address auto-complete list or create a backup copy:

* Close Outlook.
* Type “%appdata%\Microsoft\Outlook” (not including the quotation marks).
* Click with the right mouse button on the Outlook.nk2 file.
o The file can also be named after your Outlook profile, e.g. Ina Cognita.nk2. Make sure the extension is nk2.
* Select Copy from the menu.
* Go to folder or medium where you want to keep the backup copy, or open the “%appdata%\Microsoft\Outlook” folder on the destination computer directly.
* Make sure the copied NK2 file replaces the original default NK2 file. Either rename to match the profile name or overwrite at pasting.

To repair your PST file, you’ll have to open the Scanpst.exe utility that’s included by default with Outlook. The only problem is that there’s no shortcut to it, so you’ll have to find it in the Outlook folder.

Open up explorer and then browse down to the following folder for Outlook 2007:

C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office12

Or one of these folders for Outlook 2003 and earlier:

C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\Mapi\1033
C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\MSMAPI\1033

Once you open up the utility, you’ll have to find the location of your PST file by clicking the Browse button.
It will take a while to scan the file, and you’ll get a report at the end telling you whether you have errors in the file.

Click on the Repair button, and after a while you’ll finally get the “Repair complete” message.
If you are curious what was actually repaired during the process, you’ll find a text file in the same directory as your PST file with the same name as the PST file.

Here’s the scoop:

1. In Outlook, on the File menu, click Import and Export.
2. Click Export to a file, and then click Next.
3. Click Comma Separated Values (Windows), and then click Next.
4. In the folder list, click the Contacts folder, and then click Next.
5. Browse to the folder where you want to save the contacts as a .csv file.
6. Type a name for the exported file, and then click OK.
7. Click Next.
8. Click Finish.

That gives you a comma separate list of your Outlook Contacts. Transfer that to your new computer, then you can import them into your new version of Outlook with the following steps:

1. On the File menu, click Import and Export.
2. Click Import from another program or file, and then click Next.
3. In the list, click Comma Separated Values (Windows), and then click Next.
4. Click Browse, locate your file, and then click Next.
5. Click your Contacts folder or another folder that contains contacts, and then click Next.
6. In the list, click the file that contains your address list, and then click Map Custom Fields.

If those steps are too complicated for you, here’s the hint, just copy personal folder file from your old place into the new one.
Usually it was stored inside this folder:
C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook\xxx.pst
While for outlook express it was stored in:
C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\Application Data\Microsoft\Address Book\xxx.wab

Commercial photo and image editing programs don’t always come cheap. Although there are many different freeware alternatives that can be used to replicate some of the features of commercial packages, many users find that they just don’t have the same clout as the big names.

GIMP’s photo editing free software package, however, is often favourably compared to Photoshop in terms of its functionality and features.

What is GIMP?
GIMP (the GNU Image Manipulation Program) was first conceived in 1995 and has seen various version releases over the years. The software is designed to allow users to edit, compose, manipulate and retouch photos and images.

As part of the GNU free software program, GIMP is free to download and to use. Users can simply use the base program if they wish or they can extend its functionality to suit specific needs via a wide range of free plug-ins.

What Does GIMP do?
The software can do just about anything in photo and image editing terms. This may, of course, depend on the plug-ins that are downloaded and used on projects. Some users will use it for simple tasks such as retouching occasional photos. Others may use it for more complex projects such as animation production and video editing. Some of the more popular features of the program include:
• Drawing/paint tools
• Video editing capabilities
• Animation tools
• Photo retouching/enhancement
• Image/photo editing and manipulation
• File format conversions
The software works via a series of different tabs or windows which can hidden or shown as the user wishes. This can be especially useful when working on more complex projects. Initially available for Unix users GIMP can now be downloaded on to various platforms, including:
• Microsoft Windows
• Mac OS X
• Sun OpenSolaris
• FreeBSD
It can, of course, still be run on GNU/Linux operating systems as well.

The Advantages of Using GIMP
One of the main advantages to using GIMP is that it can be as simple or as complex as its user wishes. The program is easy to learn how to use yet offers the kinds of features and functions that tend to be otherwise reserved for commercial products. Unlike many other freeware photo/image editing packages this solution probably comes closest in terms of matching overall functionality to the commercial market leaders.

Cost is also a primary factor for many users trying out this kind of package for the first time. The fact that GIMP allows a user to access advanced kinds of photo/image creation, editing and manipulation tools completely free of charge may make it worth a look. Given the high costs of commercial software packages in this sector, many will try out GIMP as an alternative first so this may be worth doing.