Microsoft KB Archive/197237

= OL97: Year 2000 Dates Are Imported and Exported Incorrectly =

Article ID: 197237

Article Last Modified on 5/12/2007

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Outlook 97 Standard Edition

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This article was previously published under Q197237





SYMPTOMS
In Outlook, when you use date ranges that are formatted with two-digit years to import or export text files, Outlook incorrectly designates some of those years to the wrong century.

NOTE: If you are using Outlook 98, please see the following related Microsoft Knowledge Base article:

193604 OL98: Year 2000 Dates Are Imported and Exported Incorrectly

For additional information on Outlook and year 2000 issues, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

216410 OL97: Printing Outlook 97 Calendar Displays Year as 2099



CAUSE
The Outlook translation files, Transmgr.dll and Rm.dll, do not handle some two-digit dates correctly.



RESOLUTION
Microsoft has made a combined fix available, O97dtfix.exe, to correct both the import and export issues. The O97dtfix.exe file contains the following files:   File name      Version Transmgr.dll  1.0.0.102 Rm.dll        1.0.0.104 Readme.txt To install this fix:  Create a new folder on your hard disk to download the O97dtfix.exe file to (for example, C:\O97dtfix). Click the following file to download it from the Microsoft Download Center:

Download O97dtfix.exe now

Release Date: May 10, 1999

For additional information about how to download Microsoft Support files, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

119591 How to Obtain Microsoft Support Files from Online Services

Microsoft scanned this file for viruses. Microsoft used the most current virus-detection software that was available on the date that the file was posted. The file is stored on security-enhanced servers that help to prevent any unauthorized changes to the file. Click Save this program to disk, and then click OK. In the Save As window, click the folder that you created in step 1, and then click Save.NOTE: If you receive error messages when you attempt to download the O97dtfix.exe file, keep trying. If you continue to receive error messages, contact Microsoft Product Support Services. A list of phone numbers is available at the following Microsoft Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?pr=cntactms&style=home

 After you download the O97dtfix.exe file, double-click the folder to which you downloaded the O97dtfix.exe file, and then double-click the O97dtfix.exe file.</li> When you are prompted for a location to extract the files to, click Browse, and then click the folder that contains the O97dtfix.exe file. The Transmgr.dll, Rm.dll, and Readme.txt files are extracted to this folder.</li> Double-click the Readme.txt file for information about how to rename and replace the Transmgr.dll and Rm.dll files on your computer. The "How to Install the Outlook 97 Date Fix" section later in this article also contains the contents of the Readme.txt file.</li></ol>

The international versions of this file are also located on the Download Center.

<div class="status_section">

STATUS
This problem was corrected in Microsoft Outlook 2000.

<div class="moreinformation_section">

Importing Issues
The importing issues are caused by the format of the dates in the incoming import file. For example, an incoming date that is formatted with a two-digit year, such as 7/1/00, is translated to 7/1/1900 instead of 7/1/2000.

Exporting Issues
The exporting issues are caused by the designation of the date range for exportation, for example:


 * If you enter an export date range by using a two-digit year for a valid leap year, such as 2/29/96 or 2/29/00, Outlook does not recognize the valid leap year, and the OK button in the Set Date Range dialog box is not available.
 * If you enter an export date range by using a year value of "99," such as 1/1/99 through 1/31/99, Outlook does not recognize these as valid dates, and the OK button in the Set Date Range dialog box is not available.
 * If you enter an export range by using a year value of "00," such as 1/1/00 through 1/31/00, Outlook exports appointments for the year 1900.
 * If you enter an export range without entering a year value, such as 1/1 through 1/31, Outlook exports appointments for the year 1900.

NOTE: These issues do not occur if you use four-digit year values during the import and export process, nor do they occur when you enter appointments, contacts, and tasks with Outlook forms.

Date Determination in Outlook
The following section describes the intended behavior of the Outlook translation files when they convert dates with two-digit years into dates with four-digit years.

The translation files use a range of 100 years to determine into which century the two-digit year should fall. The default range is computed by subtracting 29 from the current year to derive the lower end of the range, and adding 70 to the current year for the upper end. If the two-digit year plus 1900 falls within this range, the date should be considered to be in the 1900s. Otherwise, the year should be considered to be in the 2000s.

Examples
The translation files use the -29/+70 formula to compute the range as follows:

<pre class="fixed_text">  Current year: 1998         Current year: 1998 -29                       +70   Lower end:    1969         Upper end:    2068

Assuming these dates, the four-digit year would be derived as follows:

<pre class="fixed_text">  9/14/00 - Outlook would add 1900 to the year, giving 1900. 1900 does NOT fall within the 100-year range of 1969-2068. Therefore, 9/14/00 should be interpreted as 9/14/2000.

9/14/30 - Outlook would add 1900 to the year, giving 1930. 1930 does NOT fall within the 100-year range of 1969-2068. Therefore, 9/14/30 should be interpreted as 9/14/2030.

9/14/70 - Outlook would add 1900 to the year, giving 1970. 1970 DOES fall within the 100-year range of 1969-2068. Therefore, 9/14/70 should be interpreted as 9/14/1970.

9/14/99 - Outlook would add 1900 to the year, giving 1999. 1999 DOES fall within the 100-year range of 1969-2068. Therefore, 9/14/99 should be interpreted as 9/14/1999.

How to Install the Outlook 97 Date Fix
The following text represents the contents of the Outlook 97 Date Fix Readme file. Within this file are step-by-step instructions on installing the update files described above. <pre class="fixed_text"> Microsoft Outlook 97 README for O97dtfix.exe May 1999

(c) Copyright Microsoft Corporation, 1999

INTRODUCTION

In Microsoft Outlook 97 for Windows, if import or export text files with dates formatted with two-digit years, some years are designated in the wrong century.

The O97dtfix.exe file contains updated versions of file that fix this problem. The O97dtfix.exe file contains the following files:

Transmgr.dll  Updated file (130,560 bytes) Rm.dll        Updated file (173,056 bytes) ReadMe.txt    Information and instructions

For specific information about the various ways this issue occurs, See the Microsoft Knowledge Base article Q197237. This file can be accessed at the following Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q197/2/37.asp

INSTALLATION

To install the O97dtfix.exe file, follow these steps.

NOTE: Because there are several versions of Windows, the following steps may be different on your computer. If they are, please consult your product documentation to complete these steps.

Downloading and Expanding the O97dtfix.exe File ---

1. Click Start, point to Programs, and then click Windows Explorer.

2. Download or copy the O97dtfix.exe file to an empty folder on your hard disk.

3. In Windows Explorer, double-click the O97dtfix.exe file to expand it.

The Transmgr.dll, Rm.dll and ReadMe.txt files listed in the "Introduction" section are extracted.

Renaming and Replacing the Affected Files -

Quit all programs so that your original Transmgr.dll and Rm.dll files are not in use, and follow these steps to rename the file:

1. In Windows Explorer, navigate to the folder containing your old Transmgr.dll and Rm.dll files. By default, this is:

C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\Convert

If you have installed Microsoft Office in a different location, then use that location to locate your original files.

2. Right-click each file, and then click Rename on the shortcut menu.

3. Rename the files to Transmgr.old and Rm.old and then press ENTER.

Copying the New Files into the Office Folder

1. In Windows Explorer, navigate to the folder where you expanded O97dtfix.exe.

2. Drag the new Transmgr.dll and Rm.dll files to the folder containing the renamed files, Transmgr.old and Rm.old (typically C:\Program Files\   Microsoft Office\Office\Convert).

3. In Windows Explorer, on the File menu, click Close.

4. Click Start, and click Shut Down. Click Restart The Computer, and then click Yes.

Additional query words: 97 Y2K Millennium Bug

Keywords: kbdownload kbbug kbfile kbfix kbgraphxlinkcritical KB197237

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