OK, let's try something fairly simple (hopefully). Close Outlook Express.
Do a file search for any file ending with [ WA* ] w/o the brackets. If you
find several, double click on each one until you find one that has the
contacts you need and write down it's file location. Then open Windows
Explorer (WinKey+E) and navigate to that location and right click on the WAB
file and select Copy [to copy it to the clipboard]. Now navigate in Windows
Explorer to your root drive [ C:\ ] and right click on a blank spot in the
right hand pane of the Explorer window and select Paste. This will place a
copy of the desired address book on the root drive.

Now, still with Outlook Express closed, open the registry editor to the WAB
file path:

\HKEY_CURRENT_USER
\Software
\Microsoft
\WAB
\WAB4
\Wab File Name

and in the right hand pane, clear the existing entry and insert in its place
"C:\nameoffile.WAB" [substituting in place of nameoffile for the actual name
of the file you moved]. Exit the registry editor and reboot. Now open
Outlook Express and see if the address book is working correctly.

As for your problem with Word/Office/Outlook, if you have never installed
Microsoft Office, how did you get a copy of Word? Was it installed from
some other application program? If so, you may have to find that older CD
and run a repair installation, but to get advice concerning that, I'd
suggest posting to whatever newsgroup is appropriate for the program you
installed that gave you Word.

Good luck and let us know the results.
--
Jim Pickering
MVP-Outlook Express/Windows Mail
Please reply to newsgroup only so that others may be helped with your
feedback.

"BAZ" wrote in message
oups.com...
Jim,

I hope I see that I sent you a message... but it is buried above ...
with all of the previous messages beng displayed!

BAZ