[AccessD] Checking Outlook Contact Info from Access

Erwin Craps - IT Helps Erwin.Craps at ithelps.eu
Fri Aug 3 04:26:07 CDT 2007


Thats about the same I do, except for the (automated) synchronising.
Mainly it means that, opposing to your technique, I use the uniqueID in
Access to identify the items in Outlook, cause I know that is rock
solid. The entryID could change in certain situations.

I have a central Access database (wel 2 infact), I added a Outlook
contact button next to the company or contactperson in Access.
The first time I create a new company or contact in my database I also
click on that buttom.
This will create a new contact in my outlook contacts and set the
outlook contact item "Customerid" property to the id from my database.
If I alter my contact data in the Access datebase, I click again on this
button. But first Access will search in the contact items by using the
ID from the Access database and in the "Customerid" property of the
Outlook contact item.
If it does exists it updates the item inmediatly, if it does not exists
Access asks if I want to add the contact to my Outlook contacts.

I do not update automaticly, I do not sync in both directions, but with
the technique I use I could if I wanted to.

What I believe/suggest you should do is.
Adapt your routine that when you read the EntryID from a Outlook
Contactitem and add the new contact to the Access database, you should
inmediatly add the unique Company and/or ContactID that u use in the
Access Database to the "Companyid" property of the Outlook Contact item.
>From that point on u always identify and/or link contact in both Outlook
and Access based on that CompanyID and no longer on the entry ID.
Infact it is pointless from that moment on to even store that entryID.


The CompanyID is in Outlook visible in other fields, I even see them
when i'm in my contact folder. Don't know if that is by default or after
a form alteration from me.

It is posible for the user to change the CompanyID field from within
Outlook. This is maybe an issue for you, it is not for me in my
situation. I believe, but not sure, you can resolve this by using a
customer property instead of the CompanyID property.

I use a custom property for linking E-mails to my Access database, so I
supose you can also use custom properies in contacts.


 Hope this helps.

Erwin














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