SillyDog701

[Rick Crume]

I would like to convert my e-mail from Netscape 7 to Microsoft Outlook 2003. These two utilities would probably work:

Emailchemy
It can convert e-mail files between several formats, including reading Netscape e-mail and writing to comma-separated value files (.csv files). I think Outlook can import .csv files. A single-user license costs $25 from the Email Alchemist www.weirdkid.com/products/emailchemy/index.html.

UniAccess
This utility converts e-mail files and address books between several systems. Source systems include Netscape and target systems include Outlook. A single-user license costs $49 from ComAxis www.comaxis.com/ua.htm.

Does anyone have experience using these utilities or recommend something else? Thanks.

UserAgent: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.1; .NET CLR 1.1.4322)

[Alice]

If you have Netscape Communicator installed then you can copy the Inbox, Sent and other mail files (the ones without extension) from the NS7 ...\Application Data\Mozilla\Profiles\"profilename"\xxxxxxxx.SLT\MAIL\"mail.ISP.com" subfolder into the NS4.xx C:\Program Files\Netscape\Users\"profilename\MAIL\"mail.ISP.com" folder. If you have NS4.xx mail you want to keep, then REname the NS7 "Inbox" to "NS7Inbox" before copying, etc.. Then open Netscape 4.xx and open each of the NS7Inbox, NS7Sent, etc mailboxes to index them, then close Netscape 4.xx and open Outlook and Import the NS4.xx Communicator mail messages.

You can download Netscape Communicator 4.x versions from this site:
http://sillydog.org/narchive/

For more information:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.as ... -us;286170
OL2002: How to Migrate Netscape Mail to Outlook
and
http://home.att.net/~cherokee67/ns7mailtoOEorO.html
Importing Netscape 7.xx Mail into Outlook Express, or Outlook

UserAgent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.7) Gecko/20040514

[Rick Crume]

Alice, thanks for your guide to migrating my Netscape 7 mail and address book to Outlook 2003. I followed your instructions to copy the mail files without extensions in Netscape 7, paste them to Netscape 4.7 and open each Netscape 4.7 mail file to index it. I still have questions on finishing the migration from Netscape 4.7 to Outlook:

1. Do I need to convert the Netscape 7 address book to Netscape 4.7? If so, how do I do it?

2. Outlook 2003 imports mail and addresses only from Outlook Express and Eudora Light and Pro. Outlook Express imports Netscape 4.x address books and messages. So I should convert my Netscape 4.7 messages and mailbox first to Outlook Express and then to Outlook, right?

3. Will mail imported to Outlook overwrite messages already there? I just started using Outlook 2003 for e-mail and have 142 messages in the Inbox, but no other messages. Should I save those messages in a folder name not used in my Netscape messages before importing messages from Netscape?

Thanks again for your generous help!

UserAgent: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.1; .NET CLR 1.1.4322)

[Alice]

1. Do I need to convert the Netscape 7 address book to Netscape 4.7? If so, how do I do it?

No need to to that. You can export The Netscape 7 address book as an LDIF file by opening the Address book from within Netscape 7 and choosing Tools/Export. Save As type will be .LDIF. Name the file NS7abook and place it in an easy-to-find location. Then open Outlook or OE and IMPORT. In OE6 you would choose "other Address book" then browse to the folder that contains the NS7abook.ldif file. Outlook 2003 should have a similar import function for other programs' address book files.

2. Outlook 2003 imports mail and addresses only from Outlook Express and Eudora Light and Pro. Outlook Express imports Netscape 4.x address books and messages. So I should convert my Netscape 4.7 messages and mailbox first to Outlook Express and then to Outlook, right?

If you are sure that Outlook 2003 cannot import Netscape Communicator mail directly, then YES. Use Outlook Express as an intermediate step as explained here:
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=242008
OL2000: How to Import Messages and Addresses from Netscape Messenger 4.5 and Later

I thought that maybe Outlook 2003 would let you import directly from Netscape 4.xx at least that's what the article here said:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.as ... -us;286170
OL2002: How to Migrate Netscape Mail to Outlook

How to Convert After You Run Setup
If you choose not to convert Netscape e-mail items during Setup, you can use the Outlook Import And Export Wizard to perform this operation at any time after you install Outlook. You must have the Netscape program installed on your computer. Use the following steps to import Netscape Mail or Netscape Messenger items:

1. Start Outlook.
2. On the File menu, click Import And Export.
3. In the Choose an action to perform box, click Import Internet Mail and Addresses, and then click Next.
4. In the Select the Internet Mail application to import from box, click the Netscape product that you want to import (Netscape Mail or Netscape Messenger), and then click Next.

NOTE: Netscape rules are not converted. Additionally, if you receive a message that states that a registry entry cannot be found, you may have clicked the incorrect Netscape product.
5. Under Select the destination for imported addresses, click either Outlook Contacts or Personal Address Book.

Outlook now converts the Netscape e-mail items. The import process preserves the folder structures that are defined in Netscape.

3. Will mail imported to Outlook overwrite messages already there? I just started using Outlook 2003 for e-mail and have 142 messages in the Inbox, but no other messages. Should I save those messages in a folder name not used in my Netscape messages before importing messages from Netscape?

Outlook Express will add the imported messages to what's already there. Outlook should be similar. HOWEVER, if you want to keep the Outlook and Netscape INBOX mail separated, then create a new folder named NSInbox, for example, and first copy the Netscape Inbox messages there. Then Import the NSInbox into OE or Outlook. That way, the Netscape Inbox will not get all mixed up with the Outlook Inbox.

I tested out importing mail from NS4 to OE5.5 on my old Win95 PC (I don't have NS4 on my WinXP machine) . In OE5.5 you can choose whatever NS4 mailboxes to import (Inbox, Sent. Drafts, etc, and any special Mail folders you've created) I imported the Inbox mailbox from NS4 and the imported mail was placed inside the OE Inbox, intermixed with the Inbox mail already there, by date.

When I went back and copied my Netscape 4 Inbox messages to a new folder named NS4Inbox, then imported that NS4Inbox folder into OE5, a new OE5 mail folder named "NS4Inbox" was created containing those messages.

Thanks again for your generous help!

You're welcome

P.S. I just noticed in my earlier post I said:
If you have Netscape Communicator installed then you can copy the Inbox, Sent and other mail files (the ones without extension) from the NS7 ...\Application Data\Mozilla\Profiles"profilename"\xxxxxxxx.SLT\MAIL"mail.ISP.com" subfolder into the NS4.xx C:\Program Files\Netscape\Users"profilename\MAIL"mail.ISP.com" folder

I just wanted to clarify that there are no "mail.ISP.com" subfolders in the Netscape 4 MAIL folder, like there are in NS7. All your NS4 mail files are inside the Netscape\Users"profilename\MAIL folder . I hope that didn't confuse you.

UserAgent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.7) Gecko/20040514

[Rick Crume]

Alice, thanks for your helpful advice again. Apparently Outlook 2003 cannot import Netscape Communicator 4.7 mail directly. Since Outlook 2000 and 2002 seem to have had that feature, you wouldn’t think Microsoft would have dropped it from Outlook 2003. (I have Office 97, but not 2000 or 2002.)

I converted messages from Netscape 4.7 to Outlook Express 6, but text and Word document attachments were lost. OE6 preserved graphical attachments, but links to text and Word documents are greyed out. You can’t view or open them. Is it possible the attachments will reappear if I use Outlook 2003 to import the messages?

I’m going to contact Microsoft technical support for Outlook Express or Outlook. Microsoft sure doesn’t make it easy to import mail from Netscape!

Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions!

UserAgent: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.1; .NET CLR 1.1.4322)

[Fulvio]

Rick, let us know how you do.
You may get some useful info from this. It goes back to the time when I really tried with Microsoft software. I like the name of the site: "Darnit"! http://inetexplorer.mvps.org/Darnit.htm It used to be part of an IE message board.

UserAgent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.7) Gecko/20040514

[Rick Crume]

I asked Microsoft technical support why links to text and document attachments in messages imported to Outlook Express were greyed out. The reply noted that the program’s default settings prevent such attachments from being opened or saved. To open or save them, you need to change the setting:

Outlook Express->Tools->Options->in the security tab, clear "Do not allow attachments to be saved or opened that could potentially be a virus" and restart Outlook Express.

I had forgotten about that setting. Anyway, I made the change and then could open or save all attachments. Then I exported my messages from Outlook Express to Outlook and the process went smoothly.

So now I have successfully imported all my Netscape messages into Outlook 2003. Woohoo! I’m very glad to have that done! Thanks, Alice, for your help.

Fulvio, thanks for alerting me to the Darnit! site for help with Microsoft programs. I’ll take a look.

UserAgent: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.1; .NET CLR 1.1.4322)

[Alice]

Outlook Express->Tools->Options->in the security tab, clear "Do not allow attachments to be saved or opened that could potentially be a virus" and restart Outlook Express.

I had forgotten about that setting.

I just experienced that in OE6... I've only been using OE6 for a month now, since I got my WinXP machine. ... before that I was using Win95/OE5.5/OE5.5. The first time I got an attachment in OE6 I noticed that. Very annoying, since I had to hunt around for that setting. Microsoft is now so paranoid now about security (or lack of it) it has gone off the deep end.

Glad to hear you got the mail imported OK. Too bad Microsoft makes it so difficult. It's a piece of cake importing the other way, from OE to Netscape7/Mozilla.

UserAgent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.7) Gecko/20040514