Voting tracking not working in standalone Outlook 2003

[Dan]

I have Outlook 2003 in standalone mode (ie: not connected to an Exchange
server). I sent out emails with voting buttons, and am getting responses,
but the tracking tab does not show.

Unfortunately, I moved the original email from sent to another folder, and
then back again to sent. And when emails arrive, a rule moves them to Junk,
so I manually move them back to Input. So now that they are where they
should be, when I manually open them, why isn't the tracking updating?

Please advise.

Dan

 

[Judy Gleeson \(MVP Outlook\)]

You broke the tracking functionality by moving the email from the Sent
folder. Even though you put it back, it will remain broken. That's just
the way it is. It's a bummer.

Start again with a new email and an apology to the recipients.

Regards

Judy Gleeson
MVP Outlook
Trainer and Consultant

There are various articles about using Outlook here: www.judygleeson.com
Canberra, Australia

 

[Dan]

Thanks. A couple more questions:

Please confirm: I don't have to be connected to an Exchange server for
Tracking to work. The key is just don't move the original email from the
Sent folder.

Q: is it OK to use a rule to move responses to a different folder? Or do
they have to remain in the Inbox for Tracking to work.

Suggestion:

Please forward a suggestion to Microsoft Outlook Development Team to fix
Tracking by NOT checking the history of all the folders the email has been
moved to, but just whether the email exists in the Send folder. Actually, it
would be nice if it worked in any folder. I would think it would be easy for
the Outlook app to keep a list of all voting emails and their location
folders, in a hash of key-value pairs.

Just my too sense

 

[Judy Gleeson \(MVP Outlook\)]

Hi Dan

there's no need for Exchange.

there are a few key ingredients to making voting work:

; between each button when you make them. eg red; green; blue; pink
must open each reply in your Inbox
must leave the Sent email in the Sent items folder
open the sent email to see the tracking tab
if people vore more than once, their most recent vote will replace older
ones (if you open them in Inbox)

you can circumvent the way it was designed to work this way:

make a folder for each type of response, eg Blue, Red etc.
use Rules to auto move replies Unread to relevant folder.
use the Blue (12) unread number to "know" how many votes that choice
received.

Note: this method is not exact when people vote more than once!! But it
great for sending 1000 votes out.


Regards

Judy Gleeson
MVP Outlook
Trainer and Consultant

There are various articles about using Outlook here: www.judygleeson.com
Canberra, Australia

 

[James]

Hi Judy,

I am in a somewhat similar situation to Dan's, and I must say, that stinks!
It is very disappointing that Microsoft would develop such a useful
functionality, but then make it so fragile that as soon as the user does
anything with the original message, the entire tracking function is "broken"
as you put it.

Peronally, I don't like using the Sent folder at all. Messages that I send,
I then re-file into the appropriate project folder I have set up. And for
that matter, I really wish I could have Outlook ask me where to store my sent
message, like Lotus Notes does, rather than giving me no choice but to
re-file each message after it's been sent.

Anyway, I appreciate your solving my own tracking question too. I just wish
the answer wasn't so disappointing.

James

 

[Brian Tillman [MVP - Outlook]]

I really wish I could have Outlook ask me where to store my sent
message, like Lotus Notes does, rather than giving me no choice but to
re-file each message after it's been sent.

You can enable the option in Outlook of storing outgoing messages in the
same folder as the message to which you are replying or you can use this:
http://www.outlookcode.com/article.aspx?id=48