Contact Names Are Backwards (OL2000 sp1, CW Install)

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When I type a name into the Full Name field of a new contact record (I type them “first last”), Outlook sees the first name as the last name (and vice versa). When I click on the Full Name button, the last name is in the first name field (and vice versa). Also, the File As field (which is set to “last, first”) displays “first, last”. Another workstation has this problem too. All help appreciated!!!

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There’s a setting in Tools – Options – Preferences tab – Contact Options button that you need to change. We use Default Full Name Order as “First (Middle) Last” and Default File As Order as “Last, First (Company).” This was new in O2k, I think, and has caused several people problems.

By the way, if you’re using Corporate Outlook, you’ll also want to go (at least on our system) to Tools – Services, select your Outlook Address book and click Properties. For each of your address books, you want to specify the sorting order. Since our global address list sorts by last name, we tell users to set their Contacts folder to sort by “File As (Smith, John).”

Hope this helps.

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Very helpful…that was exactly it. Thanks!

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Interesting, selecting “File As (Smith, John)” in Outlook Address book Properties is supposed to change the sort order when you select adresses for your email?

I’ve been doing this and it doesn’t seem to do anything.

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Someone else mentioned that to me in our PC Support department, and it turns out that this is one of those lovely Microsoft options that only takes effect after you exit Outlook and re-enter the program. At least on our system, if you don’t do this the Contacts list is searched by first name, while the Global Address List is searched by Last Name – which makes shortcuts for adding names to a new message not work correctly. Hope that helps!

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Thanks, that explains why it mysteriously seems to work today.

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