By David Gewirtz
Reader Sam M. has some problems sending attachments:
If I try to attach a file to an email using the insert tab, it crashes Outlook. However I can drag and drop a file onto the email to attach.
Unfortunately, Sam gave us no other details, so -- as is often the case -- generalities will have to do.
This problem can occur for a bunch of reasons. Sam could be trying to attach an open file that's currently locked by the operating system. Sometimes you might not know the file is locked, but it is -- and trying to fiddle with it can cause a crash.
Sam could be running into a conflict with his antivirus program or anti-spyware program. Symantec's antivirus, for example, is known to conflict on occassion with opening attachments -- and it could also have a problem with inserting attachments into an email.
Sam could also have a virus or a spyware program running on his machine, causing all sorts of havoc with the filesystem, and this manifesting itself with adding attachments to email messages.
Sam's Outlook profile could be corrupted. This is an easy fix. Delete your Outlook profile and create a new one. A corrupted profile is one of the more common problems for all sorts of Outlook woes, so recreating it is likely to help -- and it's a five minute task.
Sam's hard drive could have drive errors. Run a disk check on the system and make sure there are no problems on the drive's structure. A corrupted drive or filesystem could also cause Sam's problem.
Outlook itself could be corrupted from a crash or bad install. If it's crashed more than once, it's likely something got corrupted. Run Outlook's install repair option and you should have a cleaner, more robust Outlook after.
I could go on, but there's one strong suggestion I need to make: don't open attachments. Attachments often carry payloads of malware, viruses, spyware, click loggers and more. Since you shouldn't open attachments, don't send them. If Sam didn't send attachments ever again, his problem would go away -- and everyone getting his mail would be safer.
Finally, Sam asked one more question:
My reminders have stopped working.
Since we get asked this question on a weekly basis, I'll just send him (and you) to OutlookPower's Reminders troubleshooting resource section. You can also visit OutlookPower's Reminders tips section for more Reminder goodness.
