Technology Troubleshooting: Work Backwards

Over more than 25 years of helping people use technology, I have earned the reputation of being The Technology Tamer. But the title doesn’t make it any easier sometimes. After all, the technology doesn’t recognize the title!

I recently purchased a new computer. Having set up a lot of computers in the past two years, I have a standard set of procedures I go through:

1. Install Microsoft Office.
2. Move Outlook backup file to new computer.
3. Install Getting Things Done (a great productivity tool!)
4. Reboot and test Office installation.
5. Continue installations…

But when I tried step #2, it didn’t work. I put the Outlook backup into the folder the instructions told me to. I went to open the backup – and it wasn’t there.

I searched on the .pst extension for the Outlook files. It didn’t see the file. I checked the location again – and the file was there.

I let it sit for 24 hours, thinking maybe it would cure itself (we humans are so hopeful!)

I copied the file again. (After all, if it didn’t work the first time, maybe I can force it work this time. As Druscilla said in “Cinderella” – I’m going to MAKE it fit! But brute force is an alternative that rarely works with technology.)

I let it sit for another 24 hours, thinking maybe it would grow the file itself.

Then I hit upon a solution: work backwards. I put one email in my Inbox so I would have something to archive. Then I exported a backup file from the new computer. I looked to see where that backup went, thinking if I just put the old backup there, it would work.

When I tried to open the old backup – it was not in the folder!

And that’s when I knew. I had the backup in a folder called “Outlook” – but it was not the correct one. I followed the path to the new tiny backup file I had created, noting every part of it. Then I compared that to the old full backup’s path. And there was one folder difference!

With great glee, I moved the old backup to the correct folder and voila, I’m back in the email business.

The moral of this story: Check the instructions carefully (Yes, the correct path was in the instructions, but I was so sure I was right, I kept reading them wrong.)

If all else fails, work backwards. And learn to relax and enjoy the process. Nothing is so critical that it can’t wait 24 hours till you figure it out.