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          Microsoft Outlook Express Year 2000 Update
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How To Use This Document
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For best viewing of Readme.txt, maximize the Notepad window. 
Then, click Edit, and click Word Wrap.

To print Readme.txt, open it in Notepad or another word processor,
click the File menu, and then click Print. For best printing results, 
click Edit, click Set Font, type 9 in the Size box, and then click OK.

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Contents
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1.0  SUMMARY OF THE PROBLEM

2.0  UPDATING YOUR SYSTEM
     2.1  Determine the Outlook Express Version
     2.2  Apply the Update to Your System

3.0  KNOWLEDGE BASE ARTICLES

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1.0  Summary of the Problem
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If Microsoft Outlook Express 4.x or 5.x receives an Internet Message 
Access Protocol (IMAP) mail message or a news message with a 
two-digit year as the sent date, the date can be misinterpreted under 
certain conditions. 

If the sent date includes a two-digit year that is anything other 
than '99,' Outlook Express uses the current century value. For 
example, if the current year is 2000 and you receive a message using 
the two-digit year '97,' Outlook Express interprets the sent date as
2097. However, if you receive the two-digit year '99,' and the current
year is a multiple of 100 (for example, 2000), the year is interpreted 
as the current year plus 98 (for example, 2098). 
This scenario occurs when the news server or IMAP server only uses 
a two-digit year date. It is unknown which specific servers fall into
this category, nor how many of them exist.
This issue does not affect message contents. Users will only see that
the date of a news or mail item is incorrectly displayed in their 
Inbox, which subsequently affects sorting by sent date.

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2.0  Updating Your System
======================================================================

There are separate updates for different versions of Outlook Express, 
both of which can also be found at:

http://www.microsoft.com/msdownload/iebuild/oey2k/en/oey2k.htm

The updates discussed here are for Outlook Express for
Windows 3.1 and Windows NT 3.51.

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2.1  Determine the Outlook Express Version
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To determine the Outlook Express version

	1. Start Outlook Express.
	2. Click the Help menu, and then click About 
	   Microsoft Outlook Express.
	3. In the About Microsoft Outlook Express dialog box, the 
	   version number is immediately beneath the words 
	   "Outlook Express."

The appropriate update is related to this version number, as follows:

   * If the version number is 5.00.0913.xxxx, use 
     the update Q237824.exe.  

   * If the version number is 4.01.21xx, use
     the update Q237823.exe.   

   * If the version number is 4.0.18xx.x, upgrade to Internet Explorer
     and either Outlook Express 4.01 or 5, and then use the 
     appropriate update. 

     To download Internet Explorer 5 for Windows 3.1 and 
     Windows NT 3.51, visit the Microsoft Internet Explorer 
     Web site at:

     	http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/

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2.2  Apply the Update to Your System
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After you determine your version of Outlook Express, download
the appropriate update from the Microsoft Windows Technologies
Internet Explorer Web site at:

http://www.microsoft.com/msdownload/iebuild/oey2k/en/oey2k.htm

Each update package contains three update files: MSOErt16.dll, 
IComm16.dll and Readme.txt.

To apply the update to your system

	1. Run the update (Q237824.exe or Q237823.exe) to extract
	   MSOErt16.dll, IComm16.dll and Readme.txt.

	2. Unsubscribe to the newsgroups you are already subscribed
	   to by doing the following:

	     a. Run Microsoft Outlook Express.
	     b. Click on Tools -> Newsgroups.
	     c. Select "Subscribed" Tab.

	     Note: If needed, please note down the newsgroups you
	           are subscribed to, before proceeding.

	     d. Highlight all newsgroups for each news server and
	        click on Unsubscribe.

	3. Close all open applications.

	4. Verify the location of the existing MSOErt16.dll and
	   IComm16.dll. They are typically found in

    		C:\Winnt\System or C:\Windows\System.

	Note: As a precaution, you should back up these files
	      before proceeding.

	5. Copy the new MSOErt16.dll and IComm16.dll that are
	   provided in this update to the location noted in
    	   Step 4, overwriting the older version of each file.

	6. Reboot your system.

	7. Run Microsoft Outlook Express and subscribe to the
	   newsgroups (noted down during Step 2).

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3.0  Knowledge Base Articles
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For more information, go to the Microsoft Personal Online Support 
Web site at:

	http://support.microsoft.com/support/.

Then, search the Knowledge Base for articles Q237823, Q237824, 
and Q187245.

