Davis McCarn wrote:

The April 2006 patch for the Windows Address Book (or one of the related
patches) has left me unable to open any WAB file; I am prompted to
reinstall Outlook Express.

This is definitely a file related issue because I restored my registry to
before the patch and it was still broken. A Sytem Restore to April 16th
(before the patch) did fix it; but, the update reinstalled last night and
it is broken again.

The system is running XP Pro SP2 with all prior updates applied and has no
Spware, Trojan, Worm, or Virus issues.

Somebody didn't test thoroughly enough, guys! How do I fix it?

Davis please see he http://www.oehelp.com/OETips.aspx#14

Courtesy of Bruce Hagen, MS MVP - Outlook Express [Ciao]:
If that resolves it, for now, you may want to configure Automatic Updates to
either "Notify Only" or "Download but do not install". You can also choose
not to download or install 911567 and check: Do not tell me about it again.
How to configure and use Automatic Updates in Windows XP:
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=306525

--
Vincenzo Di Russo
Microsoft® MVP - Most Valuable Professional
Windows - Internet Explorer since 2003
My home: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/
My Blog: http://blogs.dotnethell.it/vincent/