Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

The links below will bring you to the appropriate section. If you can't find the answer to your question here, please see Technical Support and Known Issues.

Lost License Code

I had to reinstall ZipOut due to a hard drive crash or other system failure and I no longer have my license code. How can I reinstate my license?

Send a request to and we will check your e-mail address against our license database. If you have changed your e-mail address, please advise us of your original e-mail address or the name under which you ordered ZipOut. We will return the correct license code via e-mail.

Command Bar Buttons
I ran the ZipOut installation program, but I don't see any toolbar buttons on my messages. What's wrong?
There are several reasons why the ZipOut toolbar buttons might not appear on a message. Here are the most common scenarios: 

1.  ZipOut hasn't loaded yet - ZipOut is loaded when Outlook starts. If you installed ZipOut while Outlook was running and have not shut down and restarted it, then ZipOut has not been loaded. You should close Outlook.  Be sure that you see the "Please wait while Outlook exits" dialog box. If you have any open messages, you will need to close those also in order for Outlook to completely shut down. Now start Outlook again. You should see a Micro Eye ZipOut property page when you select the Options command on the Tools menu of an Outlook Explorer window, and the two ZipOut toolbar buttons should appear on a new message when you open it.

2.  ZipOut is disabled for this message type - The ZipOut toolbar buttons will only appear on enabled item types. You configure ZipOut options on the Micro Eye ZipOut property page. Select Options on the Tools menu to display the ZipOut property page. By default, ZipOut is enabled for Mail, Appointment and Task items, but if one of these is unchecked then the toolbar buttons will not display when that item type is opened. See ZipOut Help for more information on item types. To display ZipOut help, click the Help button on the ZipOut property page.

3. You are using Word as your default e-mail editor and Outlook 2000 - If you have selected Word as your editor and you are using Outlook 2000 only, the ZipOut toolbar buttons will not appear on an Outlook Inspector. ZipOut toolbar buttons are operational with Word as your default e-mail editor and Outlook 2002. This issue is covered in detail below.

4. The message was created using the Windows Explorer Send To extensions - You can send a file, web page, or Office document to someone by accessing the Send To menu.  ZipOut is able to recognize and operate on the attachments to many of these messages while Outlook is running, and in those cases the ZipOut buttons will be visible on the message toolbar.  The ZipOut Options button does not operate when you create a message using Send To extensions. If Outlook is not running, then the ZipOut buttons will not appear on the message and ZipOut will not operate on this message. See below for more details.


How can I control the position and appearance of the ZipOut toolbar in the Outlook Explorer window?

The ZipOut Toolbar provides important ZipOut commands, including Manage Attachments and Find Attachments. Here are some useful tips regarding the ZipOut Toolbar.

1.  The Toolbar is not visible - Click the Outlook View menu, select Toolbars, and then check ZipOut in the pop-up list of toolbars.

2. ZipOut remembers the last Toolbar position - Position the toolbar in a convenient location. You can drag the toolbar to a new location. ZipOut will remember this position when Outlook starts.

3. ZipOut toolbar requires too much screen space - If you have limited screen space due to screen resolution or monitor size, you can customize the location of the command buttons on the ZipOut toolbar. For example, you might want to add the ZipOut Find (binoculars) button to your Standard toolbar.

  • Click the Outlook View menu, select Toolbars, and then click Customize.
  • Press the Ctrl key and drag the Find button to a location on the Standard toolbar.
  • Click the Close button on the Customize dialog box.
Using Word as the e-mail editor
Does ZipOut operate when Word is Outlook's default e-mail editor (WordMail)?
Yes, if you are using ZipOut 2000 version 2.1.2301 or above. With Outlook 2002 ZipOut command bar buttons are fully integrated with the Standard toolbar for all WordMail formats. Due to limitations in the Outlook 2000 object model, ZipOut command bar buttons will not appear on any message (Inspector) where Word is the e-mail editor. In this case the ZipOut command bar buttons will be available on the ZipOut Toolbar in the Outlook Explorer window.

Mail Format Outlook Editor (Outlook 2000 or 2002) Word as E-mail Editor (Outlook 2000 only)
Microsoft Outlook Rich Text (RTF) OK OK. No ZipOut Command Bar buttons are available on the Word e-mail Inspector. You can use the ZipOut Command Bar buttons on the ZipOut Toolbar to control the operation of ZipOut on a message by message basis.
Plain Text OK OK. No ZipOut Command Bar buttons are available on the Word e-mail Inspector. You can use the ZipOut Command Bar buttons on the ZipOut Toolbar to control the operation of ZipOut on a message by message basis.
HTML OK OK. No ZipOut Command Bar buttons are available on the Word e-mail Inspector. You can use the ZipOut Command Bar buttons on the ZipOut Toolbar to control the operation of ZipOut on a message by message basis.

Note for Word 2002  With Office XP all instances of Word share common toolbars. If you have a message open in Outlook 2002 that uses Word as the e-mail editor and then also open a Word document, the ZipOut command bar buttons will appear on the Standard toolbar in both WordMail and the Word document. Ignore the ZipOut command bar buttons on the Standard toolbar in Word.


I use the File Send command in Internet Explorer and select Page by Email. ZipOut does not consistently compress the HTML page. What's happening?
If you attempt to send an HTML page using the File Send command in Internet Explorer and HTML is your default mail format, Outlook will embed the page in the message and no compression will occur. Due to limitations in the Outlook object model, ZipOut will not operate if you use the Send To command in other applications and Outlook is not running. See the table below for supported Send Methods. 

Send Method Outlook Running Outlook Not Running
Outlook Send Supported  Not applicable
Windows Explorer
Send To > Mail Recipient MAPI
Supported  Not operational
Internet Explorer
File > Send > Page by E-mail
Supported in RTF and Plain Text. When you are using HTML as the default mail format, the page is embedded rather than attached. Not operational
Office Application (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
File > Send To > Mail Recipient
Not operational on the original document. If additional attachments are added to the original document, then ZipOut will operate on the additional attachments. Not operational
Office Application (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
File > Send To > Mail Recipient (As Attachment)
Supported Not operational
Office Application (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
File > Send To > Routing Recipient
Not operational  Not operational
Office Application (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
File > Send To > Exchange Folder
Not operational Not operational
Managing Attachments in Folders
Why do I see uncompressed attachments in the folder where I just ran Manage Attachments?
There are several reasons why uncompressed attachments appear in a folder. Here are the most common scenarios: 
  1. ZipOut will not compress attachments with extensions that are listed in the Exclude Extensions dialog box. You can modify the excluded extensions for manage attachments by clicking the Exclude button in the Manage Attachments dialog box.
  2. Due to the way Outlook views are cached, the Inspector for the message will not show the compressed attachment until you change the view on the folder. Click the View selector on the Advanced toolbar or use the Current View submenu on the View menu to change the current view. Once you have reset the view on the folder, the Inspector for the item will correctly display the icon for the compressed attachment.
  3. If you have the Outlook E-mail Security Update installed,  Manage Attachments will not operate on items located in Contact folders. These folders will be skipped and will not be included in the ZipOut Compress Attachments report.
  4. You did not check the folder that contains the item with uncompressed attachments in the Manage Attachments dialog box.

I just compressed attachments in a personal folders file but there is no change to the figures on the Results page. Why not?

ZipOut does not record results for compression activity in a personal folders (.pst) file. ZipOut only records results for mailbox storage and outgoing messages. If you check the Log box in the Manage Attachments dialog box, it does create a ZipOut Compression Log item in your Inbox folder for compression of personal folders.


Why are attachments in my Contacts folder skipped when I use Manage Attachments?

The Outlook E-mail Security Update is installed on your system, preventing programmatic access to items in a Contacts folder. When ZipOut detects this update, attachment management skips folders that contain contact items. You can still compress attachments to individual contact items by checking Contact Items on the ZipOut Property Page.

Indexing and Finding Attachments
Can I index files in folders that are not in my personal mailbox?

When you set up indexing you will see a list of all the available "message stores" in your Outlook profile. Your personal mailbox will always be available, but if you any additional personal folder (PST) files such as an archive file in your profile those will also show up. And if you are connected to a Microsoft Exchange server and have added other users' mailboxes to your profile (assuming you have been granted the rights to do so), those other mailboxes will available for indexing as well. ZipOut will index attachments in all of the folders of each message store that you select.

When the results of a search are returned, ZipOut includes the name of the folder where the attachment is located but not the name of the message store. If the attachment is in a PST file, then you must currently have the PST open in your profile to be able to work with the attachment. If the attachment is in another user's mailbox, as long as you still have rights on that mailbox you will be able to access the attachment, even if you have removed the mailbox from your profile.


How do I search for attachments from someone when I'm not sure of their e-mail address?
Find Attachments gives you two ways to search by message sender.
  1. Use the From button to select one or more names from one or more Address Lists, such as your Contacts folder or your organization's Global Address List. The search will return any message where the sender exactly matches any one of the names that you select.
  2. Alternatively, you can enter a semi-colon delimited list of names or partial names to search against. In this case ZipOut will return messages in which the sender's Display Name or e-mail address contains any one of the names you have entered. For example, if you enter Dan; Tom then your results would include attachments to messages from Dan Smith, Ann Daniels, Tom Engel, Jill Tomlinson as well as peg_allen@alliedatomics.com

I log on to my mailbox from a number of different machines. Do I have to regenerate the index each time I change workstations?
No, the index is actually stored in your mailbox so you can access it from any machine where ZipOut is installed. For any profile using that mailbox as the primary message store, you will be searching against the same index. However, if profiles on different machines include different message stores then in some cases all of the results of your search will not be accessible from a particular machine.
Self-extracting files
Sometimes when I send a self-extracting file to a someone the attachments on the message are not compressed. Why not?

Self-extracting files have an overhead related to the code required to display the self-extractor for the recipient. If the overhead (approximately 91 KB) plus the size of the compressed attachments is greater than the size of the original attachments, the message is sent using the original attachments and no self-extractor is created.


I no longer have the option to create self-extracting files. How do I get it back?

A self-extracting file is an executable file with an EXE extension. When Block harmful attachments is checked and EXE files are included in the list of blocked file types, ZipOut will automatically disable the option to create self-extracting files. If you want to be able to create self-extracting files while attachment blocking is in effect you will need to remove EXEs from the list of blocked files. Keep in mind that executable files are one of the most common vectors for virus transmission.

Outlook E-mail Security Update (Attachment Blocking)

Can ZipOut ease the restrictions imposed by attachment blocking in the Outlook E-mail Security Update?

The Outlook E-mail Security Update blocks access to potentially harmful attachments. Potentially harmful attachments could contain a virus or e-mail worm that might damage, destroy, or compromise information on your computer. For example, if you send an .exe attachment (Application) or .mdb attachment (Access database) to a recipient who also uses Outlook with the Outlook E-mail Security Update, the recipient will not be able to open the blocked attachment(s). Normally you should not change the default Outlook Security settings. However, there are some users who want to send .exe attachments and who are certain that those .exe attachments do not pose a threat to the recipient's computer. If you remove .exe from the list of excluded extensions using the ZipOut Property Page, ZipOut will automatically compress the .exe attachment into a .Zip file and include a warning that the .Zip file contains a potentially harmful attachment(s). Change these settings at your own risk and be aware that attachments from untrusted senders should be scanned for viruses.

ZipOut Dialog Boxes

I lost track of a ZipOut dialog box. Where did it go?

If a ZipOut dialog box is open, the dialog box is shown in the Windows Taskbar. If you cannot find a ZipOut dialog box, look for it on the Windows Taskbar (usually at the bottom of your display).

Windows XP only:

If you turn on Windows XP taskbar grouping, Windows XP groups ZipOut dialog boxes and ZipOut Help with Outlook on the Taskbar. You can turn Windows XP taskbar grouping on or off by right-clicking the Taskbar and selecting Properties from the Taskbar shortcut menu. Clear or check the Group similar taskbar buttons box to turn grouping off or on.