I recently responded to the suggestion from Outlook that I archive my old
entries. I only use the Calendar system to set out my appointments, but
decided that I could archive old ones. So I clicked on the automatic button
and now see that I now have two 'archive' files (.pst) with the same date
(one file slightly smaller than the other) in my C drive, in an 'Outlook'
folder, way down several levels under 'Documents and Settings'.

Is this how the automatic archiving process usually works?

Do people often create their own archive file for this data, somewhere that
is less deeply buried (say, in My Documents)?

Why would two files of the same date, one larger, one smaller, be created?

Can I look at the contents of either file? I went to open one and, in
effect, was warned off.

If I can't look at these files in their present state, can they be restored
back into the Outlook calendar if I need to see their contents?

Thanks very much. I just wanted to know if I should ever do this again and
the best way to do it.

Peter

The My Documents folder actually is a subfolder of Documents and Settings.

You can create an archive .pst file anywhere you want. Just make the change in the TOols | Options | Other | AutoArchive dialog.

YOu can open any .pst file with Outlook's File | Open | Outlook Data File command.

--
Sue Mosher, Outlook MVP
Author of Configuring Microsoft Outlook 2003
http://www.turtleflock.com/olconfig/index.htm
and Microsoft Outlook Programming - Jumpstart for
Administrators, Power Users, and Developers
http://www.outlookcode.com/jumpstart.aspx

"PeeDee" wrote in message news
I recently responded to the suggestion from Outlook that I archive my old
entries. I only use the Calendar system to set out my appointments, but
decided that I could archive old ones. So I clicked on the automatic button
and now see that I now have two 'archive' files (.pst) with the same date
(one file slightly smaller than the other) in my C drive, in an 'Outlook'
folder, way down several levels under 'Documents and Settings'.

Is this how the automatic archiving process usually works?

Do people often create their own archive file for this data, somewhere that
is less deeply buried (say, in My Documents)?

Why would two files of the same date, one larger, one smaller, be created?

Can I look at the contents of either file? I went to open one and, in
effect, was warned off.

If I can't look at these files in their present state, can they be restored
back into the Outlook calendar if I need to see their contents?

Thanks very much. I just wanted to know if I should ever do this again and
the best way to do it.

Peter