Outlook shared contacts/groups/distribution lists

[squatman]

Hi,

I'm wanting to be able to click a button in my form and display the contacts I see in my outlook, perhaps in a ListView.

With a possible filter applied, e.g. if TextBox1.Text = "@example.com" then it will only fill the ListView with contacts containing that string.

Or if TextBox1.Text = "Dist1" then the ListView would be filled with contacts from a distribution list named "Dist1".

If anyone can help me with this please, or maybe suggest a better way of achieving this.

Thanks.

[kevininstructor]

Have you tried searching on Google like this one?
Here is the first link for a Google search http://support.microsoft.com/kb/313797 or http://support.microsoft.com/kb/313802

[squatman]

Kevin,

Thanks for your reply.

I had tried searching Google, but to no avail.

The code samples that you found I have tested and do not do anything as far as I can tell.

1st:

' Create Outlook application.
        Dim oApp As Outlook.Application = New Outlook.Application()
 
        ' Get NameSpace and Logon.
        Dim oNS As Outlook.NameSpace = oApp.GetNamespace("mapi")
        oNS.Logon("", "", Missing.Value, Missing.Value) ' TODO:
 
        ' Get the first contact from the Contacts folder.
        Dim cContacts As Outlook.MAPIFolder = oNS.GetDefaultFolder(Outlook.OlDefaultFolders.olFolderContacts)
        Dim oItems As Outlook.Items = cContacts.Items
 
        Dim oCt As Outlook.ContactItem
 
        Try
 
            oCt = oItems.GetFirst()
 
 
            ' Display some common properties.
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.FullName)
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.Title)
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.Birthday)
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.CompanyName)
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.Department)
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.Body)
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.FileAs)
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.Email1Address)
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.BusinessHomePage)
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.MailingAddress)
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.BusinessAddress)
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.OfficeLocation)
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.Subject)
            Console.WriteLine(oCt.JobTitle)
 
        Catch
 
            Console.WriteLine("an error occurred")
 
        Finally
 
            ' Display
            'oCt.Display(True)
 
            ' Log off.
            oNS.Logoff()
 
            ' Clean up.
            oApp = Nothing
            oNS = Nothing
            oItems = Nothing
            oCt = Nothing
 
        End Try

For the logon information when it said "Profile" I wasn't sure if this meant the profile name of the pst by default "Outlook", or my account logon name "firstname" or my full name "firstname surname" or my email address "name@company.com" none seemed to work, so I read that you can use "oNS.Logon("", "", Missing.Value, Missing.Value)" and also that these may not work if outlook is already running..? Well outlook will most likely be running when this program is used, so the code would need to work with outlook already running and also without...

This displayed no information in the console window, but I have definitely got contacts and groups in my Address book.

I tried the 2nd example:

' Create Outlook application.
        Dim oApp As Outlook.Application = New Outlook.Application()
 
        ' Get Mapi NameSpace and Logon.
        Dim oNS As Outlook.NameSpace = oApp.GetNamespace("mapi")
        oNS.Logon("", "", Missing.Value, Missing.Value) ' TODO:
 
        ' Get Global Address List.
        Dim oDLs As Outlook.AddressLists = oNS.AddressLists
        Dim oGal As Outlook.AddressList = oDLs.Item("Global Address List")
        Console.WriteLine(oGal.Name)
 
        ' Get a specific distribution list.
        ' TODO: Replace the distribution list with a distribution list that is available to you.
        Dim sDL As String = "TestDL"
        Dim oEntries As Outlook.AddressEntries = oGal.AddressEntries
        ' No filter available to AddressEntries
        Dim oDL As Outlook.AddressEntry = oEntries.Item(sDL)
 
        Console.WriteLine(oDL.Name)
        Console.WriteLine(oDL.Address)
        Console.WriteLine(oDL.Manager)
 
        ' Get all of the members of the distribution list.
        oEntries = oDL.Members
        Dim oEntry As Outlook.AddressEntry
        Dim i As Integer
 
        For i = 1 To oEntries.Count
            oEntry = oEntries.Item(i)
            Console.WriteLine(oEntry.Name)
 
            ' Display the Details dialog box.
            'oDL.Details(Missing.Value)
        Next
 
        ' Log off.
        oNS.Logoff()
 
        ' Clean up.
        oApp = Nothing
        oNS = Nothing
        oDLs = Nothing
        oGal = Nothing
        oEntries = Nothing
        oEntry = Nothing

In the "for" statement I get an error at "oEntry = oEntries.Item(i)" stating:

NullReferenceException was unhandled
Object reference not set to an instance of an object.

I don't know what is wrong, my Global Address List is full of contacts, have even set up a new TestDL group to practice with, and it doesn't seem to retrieve any contacts...

Any help would be greatly appreciated on this, really want to get this solved.

Thanks again.