This is an update.

I don't know what I have done to cause the change, but now, whenever I minimize an Outlook window on the Outlook desktop, it disappers from the system entirely. The window I minimized is nowhere to be found on Tasks Manager or Windows Explorer, neither on the Outlook virtual desktop nor on the Default Desktop. This is so whether I have a rule to add all windows to the Outlook virtual desktop with "OUTLOOK" contained in the path, or whether I disable the rule (by setting it to be applicable to no windows).

Now let me make it worse. What I describe above happened. Then I experimented with an Outlook Contacts window, and with enabling and disabling the rule using the Desktops Switcher, right-click on Outlook desktop, left-click properties, and what is happening NOW is that whenever I minimize an Outlook window, it disappears from the taskbar but Desktops Switcher shows it as displayed (right click Outlook desktop in Tasks Switcher, left click displayed windows) and Tasks Manager shows it as being in the Outlook Desktop but hidden. I can retrieve the window by clicking on it in the displayed windows part of Tasks Switcher or by clicking on it in Tasks manager, but as soon as I minimize it, it becomes hidden again. This is so whether my Outlook rule is enabled or disabled.

In other words, in the time I have been posting this message my system has reverted to the bahaviour described in my first posting.

Now let's make it worse: I thought this behaviour was limited to windows created by Outlook 2003. I just tested that, and it is not true. The first time I ran Ufony (trial version) -- a shareware sound file manager -- on another virtual desktop, the window disappeared altogether from the system when I minimized it. The second time I ran the program on that same desktop, the window became hidden when I minized it. Since I haven't restarted the system since I started experimenting, that may be the rule for Outlook too: the first version of a window disappears altogether, but if you create the window again, it goes hidden when minimized.

The windows created by NewsLeecher and RPNCalculator and QuickPar minimize and restore normally every time. (Newsleacher has the rule you recommended in connection with another posting, but I don't believe it is relevant to this post.) On the virtual desktop where I started those programs, Tasks Manager shows those windows as Minimized. Back on the Outlook virtual window, those windows show in Tasks Manager as being on their virtual desktop, but _hidden_, which confuses me, but proves that I still don't understand hidden windows.

Thank you for any help you can give me.

Incidentally, you may still have the Autorun scenario and registry files I sent you in connection with my Newsleecher problem. They still accurately describe my setup with the sole exception of the Outlook rule I keep enabling and disabling in the Outlook window, and perhaps they lack a Word rule attached to "A Word Desktop" that adds any window with "winword" contained in its path to that desktop. If you want another copy, please ask.

Regards,

Ross Porter

Version 2.51.2 -- the latest, I think. Today it hid a window for IFOEDIT when I switched away from that virtual desktop, and lost it from the default desktop. I may just revert to an earlier version until this gets sorted, because that stunt cost me 2 1/2 hours work.

But for heaven's sake, don't worry about it during your vacance. September will be fine.

Ross

This new version (2.52) is available; can you please try?

(Hmmm. I guess I forgot to log in last time....)

The new version 5.22 changed things, all right. Now, instead of losing the first copy of an Outlook 2003 window that is minimized and hiding each subsequent window of the same title that is minimized, it just loses them all. Completely. The lost windows are not in my Outlook virtual desktop or on its task bar, on the default desktop or on its taskbar, or shown on either Tasks Manager tab. They are gone.

Minimized Word 2003, Excel 2003 and Firefox windows behave quite properly, even when I switch away from the virtual desktop and switch back.

I think Microsoft will still let you download a sort-term evaluation version of Office 2003 if you would like to see how many windows you can make disappear using Outlook. I want to try some of the other software that was troublesome before, but the next few days will be a little busy as I have three clients who want contracts by Monday, so I am likely to stick mostly to using Outlook and Word for a few days.

Regards,

Ross Porter