OL98: "Allow Comma as Address Separator" Selected Unexpectedly (187475)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Outlook 98
This article was previously published under Q187475
IMPORTANT: This article contains information about editing the registry. Before you edit the registry, make sure you understand how to restore it if a problem occurs. For information about how to do this, view the "Restoring the Registry" Help topic in Regedit.exe or the "Restoring a Registry Key" Help topic in Regedt32.exe.

SYMPTOMS

During the first run, Microsoft Outlook 98 should allow you to select an option to use commas as address separators. However, if the profile used for the first run of Outlook does not contain the Microsoft Exchange Server service, this option is selected by default.

CAUSE

During its first run, Outlook will check for the existence of the Microsoft Exchange Server service in the profile. If Microsoft Exchange does not exist in the current profile, the "Allow comma as address separator" option is selected.

RESOLUTION

A supported fix that corrects this problem is now available from Microsoft, but has not been fully regression-tested and should be applied only to systems experiencing this specific problem. If you are not severely affected by this specific problem, Microsoft recommends that you wait for the next release of Outlook. To resolve this problem immediately, contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the fix. For a complete list of Microsoft Product Support Services phone numbers and information on support costs, please go to the following address on the World Wide Web:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=fh;EN-US;CNTACTMS

The English version of this fix should have the following file attributes or later: 
   File Name      File version
   ---------------------------
   OUTLLIB.DLL    8.5.5703.0
This fix is supplied in a self-extracting file called UPDATE.EXE. To apply this fix you must run UPDATE.EXE on each Outlook client to install the new OUTLLIB.DLL file. Do not copy OUTLLIB.DLL to each client or you will loose the PID and license information from the splash screen and Help About.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Outlook 98.

MORE INFORMATION

To change this initial behavior of Outlook, you must add a Windows registry entry in addition to installing the newer version of Outllib.dll on the computer.

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

For information about how to edit the registry, view the "Changing Keys And Values" Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) or the "Add and Delete Information in the Registry" and "Edit Registry Data" Help topics in Regedt32.exe. Note that you should back up the registry before you edit it. If you are running Windows NT, you should also update your Emergency Repair Disk (ERD).

Adding the following registry entry after installing the fix described in this article will disable the default behavior and allow the option to be determined at initial startup time:

  1. click the Start button, point to Run, type regedit, and click OK.
  2. If you are running Windows 95, click to select the following registry key:

    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows Messaging Subsystem \Simple MAPI-CMC

    If you are running Windows NT, click to select the following registry key:

    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion \Windows Messaging Subsystem\Simple MAPI-CMC

  3. Right-click the Simple MAPI-CMC key, on the shortcut menu, point to New and click DWORD Value.
  4. Type the following name for the new DWORD value:

    CommaSeparatorOverride

  5. If the DWORD value is not zero, right-click the new DWORD value, on the shortcut menu click Modify and change the Value data to 0 (zero).
NOTE: If the registry entry does not exist or if the value is set to 1, the original behavior is retained.
Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:9/22/2005
Keywords:kbHotfixServer kbQFE kbbug kbfix kbQFE kbsetup KB187475
©2004 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.