Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

A friend's Windows Live Mail (version 16.4.3528.331 in Windows 10) has reverted to a contacts list from 3 years ago. Any ideas how this could happen and how to fix it? They live 500 miles away so I can't see what's happened directly. It's not like it's just forgotten some, it's put ones in that she'd deleted.

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 18:55:44 -0000, "Kristy Ogilvie"
wrote:


A friend's Windows Live Mail (version 16.4.3528.331 in Windows 10) has reverted to a contacts list from 3 years ago. Any ideas how this could happen and how to fix it? They live 500 miles away so I can't see what's happened directly. It's not like it's just forgotten some, it's put ones in that she'd deleted.




I don't like Windows Live Mail, know next to nothing about it, don't
know the answer, and can't help except to say that you *can* see
what's happened directly. Download and install the free TeamViewer on
your computer and have your friend do the same on hers. It's excellent
and very easy to use.

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 19:02:48 -0000, Ken Blake wrote:

On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 18:55:44 -0000, "Kristy Ogilvie"
wrote:

A friend's Windows Live Mail (version 16.4.3528.331 in Windows 10) has reverted to a contacts list from 3 years ago. Any ideas how this could happen and how to fix it? They live 500 miles away so I can't see what's happened directly. It's not like it's just forgotten some, it's put ones in that she'd deleted.

I don't like Windows Live Mail, know next to nothing about it, don't
know the answer, and can't help except to say that you *can* see
what's happened directly. Download and install the free TeamViewer on
your computer and have your friend do the same on hers. It's excellent
and very easy to use.

Yes I could do that. If I can explain to her how to install it! And I don't know anything about Live Mail either. There's a built in viewer thing in Windows but I don't think it's easy to get it to connect over the internet as I think Windows firewall thinks it's a security hole?

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 19:15:47 -0000, "Kristy Ogilvie"
wrote:


On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 19:02:48 -0000, Ken Blake wrote:


On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 18:55:44 -0000, "Kristy Ogilvie"
wrote:


A friend's Windows Live Mail (version 16.4.3528.331 in Windows 10) has reverted to a contacts list from 3 years ago. Any ideas how this could happen and how to fix it? They live 500 miles away so I can't see what's happened directly. It's not like it's just forgotten some, it's put ones in that she'd deleted.


I don't like Windows Live Mail, know next to nothing about it, don't
know the answer, and can't help except to say that you *can* see
what's happened directly. Download and install the free TeamViewer on
your computer and have your friend do the same on hers. It's excellent
and very easy to use.


Yes I could do that. If I can explain to her how to install it!



It's very easy to install. Even the friend that I most often used it
with could do it, and she knew next to nothing about computers and was
frightened to death by them. She's suffering from Alzheimer's now, and
she was in the early stages of it when she installed it.

She just has to follow the directions. Worst case, stay on the phone
with her while she does it and you can walk her through it.



And I don't know anything about Live Mail either. There's a built in viewer thing in Windows but I don't think it's easy to get it to connect over the internet as I think Windows firewall thinks it's a security hole?



Even if you can't help her with this problem, it would be good for you
both to have it installed, so you can help her with other problems in
the future. My friend used to call me with a problem almost every week
and we would use it together to solve her problem. While using it, she
would watch what I was doing and I would always stay on the phone with
her, so I could explain exactly what I was doing.

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 19:26:15 -0000, Ken Blake wrote:

On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 19:15:47 -0000, "Kristy Ogilvie"
wrote:

On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 19:02:48 -0000, Ken Blake wrote:

On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 18:55:44 -0000, "Kristy Ogilvie"
wrote:

A friend's Windows Live Mail (version 16.4.3528.331 in Windows 10) has reverted to a contacts list from 3 years ago. Any ideas how this could happen and how to fix it? They live 500 miles away so I can't see what's happened directly. It's not like it's just forgotten some, it's put ones in that she'd deleted.

I don't like Windows Live Mail, know next to nothing about it, don't
know the answer, and can't help except to say that you *can* see
what's happened directly. Download and install the free TeamViewer on
your computer and have your friend do the same on hers. It's excellent
and very easy to use.

Yes I could do that. If I can explain to her how to install it!

It's very easy to install. Even the friend that I most often used it
with could do it, and she knew next to nothing about computers and was
frightened to death by them. She's suffering from Alzheimer's now, and
she was in the early stages of it when she installed it.

She just has to follow the directions. Worst case, stay on the phone
with her while she does it and you can walk her through it.

Yes I may resort to that, although it means us both being at home at once. I work, and she has a very busy social life. I also need to know what the possible solutions are before I bother doing that.

And I don't know anything about Live Mail either. There's a built in viewer thing in Windows but I don't think it's easy to get it to connect over the internet as I think Windows firewall thinks it's a security hole?

Even if you can't help her with this problem, it would be good for you
both to have it installed, so you can help her with other problems in
the future. My friend used to call me with a problem almost every week
and we would use it together to solve her problem. While using it, she
would watch what I was doing and I would always stay on the phone with
her, so I could explain exactly what I was doing.

Most problems I just tell her what to do or email screenshots and she manages. Then we don't both have to be online at once.

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 19:15:47 -0000, Kristy Ogilvie wrote:

Yes I could do that. If I can explain to her how to install it!

There's nothing to install. Just send her the TeamViewer QuickSupport
file through e-mail. All she needs to do is download the attachment (to
Desktop is the easiest), then doubleclick on it and tell you the ID and
Password.

Or you can send her this URL to download it:
https://download.teamviewer.com/download/TeamViewerQS.exe

--
s|b

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 20:54:13 -0000, s|b wrote:

On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 19:15:47 -0000, Kristy Ogilvie wrote:

Yes I could do that. If I can explain to her how to install it!

There's nothing to install. Just send her the TeamViewer QuickSupport
file through e-mail. All she needs to do is download the attachment (to
Desktop is the easiest), then doubleclick on it and tell you the ID and
Password.

Or you can send her this URL to download it:
https://download.teamviewer.com/download/TeamViewerQS.exe

Thanks, I hadn't heard of "quicksupport".

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
A friend's Windows Live Mail (version 16.4.3528.331 in Windows 10) has
reverted to a contacts list from 3 years ago. Any ideas how this
could happen and how to fix it? They live 500 miles away so I can't
see what's happened directly. It's not like it's just forgotten some,
it's put ones in that she'd deleted.

A bit of a long shot: It could be that your friend has accidentily
imported an old contacts list, possible even one in the old deprecated
(sp?) Windows Address Book (.wab file) format.

Let her check if she has a *Windows* Contacts folder *outside* Windows
Live Mail and if so, if that folder contains the correct contacts.

Her (Windows) Contacts folder - if any - should be in:

C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts.

If so, she could:

1. Export the current 'bad' list from WLM, just to have a backup to
return to.

2. Delete all contacts *in* WLM.

3. Import the good contacts from her (Windows) Contacts folder.

I do no longer have WLM - nor its predecessor Windows Mail - so I can
not give specific instructions, but from my notes I understand that the
Import can be done with:

(While in WLM:) File - Import - Windows Contacts...

Similarly for the Export in step 1.:

(While in WLM:) File - Export - Windows Contacts...

Hope this helps.

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 21:37:23 -0000, Frank Slootweg wrote:

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
A friend's Windows Live Mail (version 16.4.3528.331 in Windows 10) has
reverted to a contacts list from 3 years ago. Any ideas how this
could happen and how to fix it? They live 500 miles away so I can't
see what's happened directly. It's not like it's just forgotten some,
it's put ones in that she'd deleted.

A bit of a long shot: It could be that your friend has accidentily
imported an old contacts list, possible even one in the old deprecated
(sp?) Windows Address Book (.wab file) format.

Let her check if she has a *Windows* Contacts folder *outside* Windows
Live Mail and if so, if that folder contains the correct contacts.

Her (Windows) Contacts folder - if any - should be in:

C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts.

If so, she could:

1. Export the current 'bad' list from WLM, just to have a backup to
return to.

2. Delete all contacts *in* WLM.

3. Import the good contacts from her (Windows) Contacts folder.

I do no longer have WLM - nor its predecessor Windows Mail - so I can
not give specific instructions, but from my notes I understand that the
Import can be done with:

(While in WLM:) File - Import - Windows Contacts...

Similarly for the Export in step 1.:

(While in WLM:) File - Export - Windows Contacts...

Hope this helps.

Thanks. How will she know if the one in C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts is a good one?

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

Boris wrote:
"Kristy Ogilvie" wrote in
:

On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 21:37:23 -0000, Frank Slootweg
wrote:

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
A friend's Windows Live Mail (version 16.4.3528.331 in Windows 10) has
reverted to a contacts list from 3 years ago. Any ideas how this
could happen and how to fix it? They live 500 miles away so I can't
see what's happened directly. It's not like it's just forgotten some,
it's put ones in that she'd deleted.

A bit of a long shot: It could be that your friend has accidentily
imported an old contacts list, possible even one in the old deprecated
(sp?) Windows Address Book (.wab file) format.

Let her check if she has a *Windows* Contacts folder *outside*
Windows
Live Mail and if so, if that folder contains the correct contacts.

Her (Windows) Contacts folder - if any - should be in:

C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts.

If so, she could:

1. Export the current 'bad' list from WLM, just to have a backup to
return to.

2. Delete all contacts *in* WLM.

3. Import the good contacts from her (Windows) Contacts folder.

I do no longer have WLM - nor its predecessor Windows Mail - so I can
not give specific instructions, but from my notes I understand that the
Import can be done with:

(While in WLM:) File - Import - Windows Contacts...

Similarly for the Export in step 1.:

(While in WLM:) File - Export - Windows Contacts...

Hope this helps.

Thanks. How will she know if the one in C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts
is a good one?

Hi,

I'm running the same version of WLM 2012 on my Windows 10 laptop. I don't
have any contacts folder outside of WLM, but if you do find one, the
Import/Export function in WLM is:

launch WLM
find and click on the Contacts folder (for me, it's in the lower left
along with Calendar, Feeds, etc. look at the ribbon of commands up top,
and you should see Import, and Export

Click Import to find:
Comma separated values (.CSV)
Windows Address Book (.WAB)
Business card (.VCF)
Address book for current user
(I don't know what this one is for; I tried it, and it said, Completed,
No contact information was imported.)

This is the choice which will import from the user's Contacts folder,
i.e. C:\Users\user\Contacts.

So WLM calls the 'Contacts' folder the 'Address book'. Why use
consistent terminology if you can confuse the user!? :-(

Click Export to find:
Comma separated values (.CSV)
Business card (.VCF)

Good luck.

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 21:37:23 -0000, Frank Slootweg wrote:

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
A friend's Windows Live Mail (version 16.4.3528.331 in Windows 10) has
reverted to a contacts list from 3 years ago. Any ideas how this
could happen and how to fix it? They live 500 miles away so I can't
see what's happened directly. It's not like it's just forgotten some,
it's put ones in that she'd deleted.

A bit of a long shot: It could be that your friend has accidentily
imported an old contacts list, possible even one in the old deprecated
(sp?) Windows Address Book (.wab file) format.

Let her check if she has a *Windows* Contacts folder *outside* Windows
Live Mail and if so, if that folder contains the correct contacts.

Her (Windows) Contacts folder - if any - should be in:

C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts.

If so, she could:

1. Export the current 'bad' list from WLM, just to have a backup to
return to.

2. Delete all contacts *in* WLM.

3. Import the good contacts from her (Windows) Contacts folder.

I do no longer have WLM - nor its predecessor Windows Mail - so I can
not give specific instructions, but from my notes I understand that the
Import can be done with:

(While in WLM:) File - Import - Windows Contacts...

Similarly for the Export in step 1.:

(While in WLM:) File - Export - Windows Contacts...

Hope this helps.

Thanks. How will she know if the one in C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts
is a good one?

(Windows) File Explorer will show the contents as a list of
name-adrress combinations.

For example for myself, it shows:

Frank Slootweg Frank.Slootweg@...

So it's easy to check whether the entry should be there and if so, is
still correct.

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

On Sun, 16 Dec 2018 14:52:35 -0000, Frank Slootweg wrote:

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 21:37:23 -0000, Frank Slootweg wrote:

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
A friend's Windows Live Mail (version 16.4.3528.331 in Windows 10) has
reverted to a contacts list from 3 years ago. Any ideas how this
could happen and how to fix it? They live 500 miles away so I can't
see what's happened directly. It's not like it's just forgotten some,
it's put ones in that she'd deleted.

A bit of a long shot: It could be that your friend has accidentily
imported an old contacts list, possible even one in the old deprecated
(sp?) Windows Address Book (.wab file) format.

Let her check if she has a *Windows* Contacts folder *outside* Windows
Live Mail and if so, if that folder contains the correct contacts.

Her (Windows) Contacts folder - if any - should be in:

C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts.

If so, she could:

1. Export the current 'bad' list from WLM, just to have a backup to
return to.

2. Delete all contacts *in* WLM.

3. Import the good contacts from her (Windows) Contacts folder.

I do no longer have WLM - nor its predecessor Windows Mail - so I can
not give specific instructions, but from my notes I understand that the
Import can be done with:

(While in WLM:) File - Import - Windows Contacts...

Similarly for the Export in step 1.:

(While in WLM:) File - Export - Windows Contacts...

Hope this helps.

Thanks. How will she know if the one in C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts
is a good one?

(Windows) File Explorer will show the contents as a list of
name-adrress combinations.

For example for myself, it shows:

Frank Slootweg Frank.Slootweg@...

So it's easy to check whether the entry should be there and if so, is
still correct.

I don't have access to her machine just now and she's out, but on another forum I was told it's:
C:/Users/{USERNAME}/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows Live/Contacts/
not
C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts

Looking on my own machine, only the 2nd one exists (and is empty), but I've never set up Live Mail.

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
On Sun, 16 Dec 2018 14:52:35 -0000, Frank Slootweg wrote:

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 21:37:23 -0000, Frank Slootweg wrote:

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
A friend's Windows Live Mail (version 16.4.3528.331 in Windows 10) has
reverted to a contacts list from 3 years ago. Any ideas how this
could happen and how to fix it? They live 500 miles away so I can't
see what's happened directly. It's not like it's just forgotten some,
it's put ones in that she'd deleted.

A bit of a long shot: It could be that your friend has accidentily
imported an old contacts list, possible even one in the old deprecated
(sp?) Windows Address Book (.wab file) format.

Let her check if she has a *Windows* Contacts folder *outside* Windows
Live Mail and if so, if that folder contains the correct contacts.

Her (Windows) Contacts folder - if any - should be in:

C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts.

If so, she could:

1. Export the current 'bad' list from WLM, just to have a backup to
return to.

2. Delete all contacts *in* WLM.

3. Import the good contacts from her (Windows) Contacts folder.

I do no longer have WLM - nor its predecessor Windows Mail - so I can
not give specific instructions, but from my notes I understand that the
Import can be done with:

(While in WLM:) File - Import - Windows Contacts...

Similarly for the Export in step 1.:

(While in WLM:) File - Export - Windows Contacts...

Hope this helps.

Thanks. How will she know if the one in C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts
is a good one?

(Windows) File Explorer will show the contents as a list of
name-adrress combinations.

For example for myself, it shows:

Frank Slootweg Frank.Slootweg@...

So it's easy to check whether the entry should be there and if so, is
still correct.

I don't have access to her machine just now and she's out, but on another forum I was told it's:
C:/Users/{USERNAME}/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows Live/Contacts/
not
C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts

The confusion is in the difference between the *Windows* 'Contacts'
folder and the 'Address book' *inside* Windows Live Mail.

The former is accessible to *any* Windows program. The latter is
*only* available to/within Windows Live Mail.

Having an address_book/contacts_list/whatever within a program is
rather stupid, but sadly that's how it is most of the time.

For example a contact can have a street address. That's not very
useful *in* a mail program, is it? But *outside* a mail program, i.e. as
part of Windows, it can be very useful, for the user, for other
programs, etc..

That's why on for example Android devices (smartphones/tablets) the
'Contacts' app/list is *seperate* from apps which might want to *use*
those contacts, for example 'texting'/SMS app, phone (call) app, email
app, instant messaging app, etc., etc..

However on Windows it's a mess and it's mostly each 'app' (program)
for its own, i.e. the email program (WLM in this case) and instant
messaging program (for example WhatsApp), each have their own non-shared
contacts lists, which hence have to be maintained seperately.

Looking on my own machine, only the 2nd one exists (and is empty), but
I've never set up Live Mail.

Your contacts list is probably *inside* Opera Mail. I.e. equally
stupid as the one in WLM, the one in Thunderbird, the one in ..., ad
infinitum.

In Microsoft's defense, they *tried* to do the right thing with the
'Windows Address Book' (in earlier Windows versions) and the Windows
'Contacts' folder [1], but apparently could not convince/force programs
to use those, not even their *own* WLM software.

[1] I am not quite sure when the 'Windows Address Book' was replaced by
the 'Contacts' folder, nor whether the 'Contacts' folder is still a
standard part of recent/current Windows version. My Windows 8.1 system
has a 'Contacts' folder, but that folder may have been copied/restored
from my earlier Windows versions (XP and Vista).

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

On Sun, 16 Dec 2018 18:56:46 -0000, Frank Slootweg wrote:

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
On Sun, 16 Dec 2018 14:52:35 -0000, Frank Slootweg wrote:

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
On Sat, 15 Dec 2018 21:37:23 -0000, Frank Slootweg wrote:

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
A friend's Windows Live Mail (version 16.4.3528.331 in Windows 10) has
reverted to a contacts list from 3 years ago. Any ideas how this
could happen and how to fix it? They live 500 miles away so I can't
see what's happened directly. It's not like it's just forgotten some,
it's put ones in that she'd deleted.

A bit of a long shot: It could be that your friend has accidentily
imported an old contacts list, possible even one in the old deprecated
(sp?) Windows Address Book (.wab file) format.

Let her check if she has a *Windows* Contacts folder *outside* Windows
Live Mail and if so, if that folder contains the correct contacts.

Her (Windows) Contacts folder - if any - should be in:

C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts.

If so, she could:

1. Export the current 'bad' list from WLM, just to have a backup to
return to.

2. Delete all contacts *in* WLM.

3. Import the good contacts from her (Windows) Contacts folder.

I do no longer have WLM - nor its predecessor Windows Mail - so I can
not give specific instructions, but from my notes I understand that the
Import can be done with:

(While in WLM:) File - Import - Windows Contacts...

Similarly for the Export in step 1.:

(While in WLM:) File - Export - Windows Contacts...

Hope this helps.

Thanks. How will she know if the one in C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts
is a good one?

(Windows) File Explorer will show the contents as a list of
name-adrress combinations.

For example for myself, it shows:

Frank Slootweg Frank.Slootweg@...

So it's easy to check whether the entry should be there and if so, is
still correct.

I don't have access to her machine just now and she's out, but on another forum I was told it's:
C:/Users/{USERNAME}/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows Live/Contacts/
not
C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts

The confusion is in the difference between the *Windows* 'Contacts'
folder and the 'Address book' *inside* Windows Live Mail.

The former is accessible to *any* Windows program. The latter is
*only* available to/within Windows Live Mail.

Having an address_book/contacts_list/whatever within a program is
rather stupid, but sadly that's how it is most of the time.

For example a contact can have a street address. That's not very
useful *in* a mail program, is it? But *outside* a mail program, i.e. as
part of Windows, it can be very useful, for the user, for other
programs, etc..

That's why on for example Android devices (smartphones/tablets) the
'Contacts' app/list is *seperate* from apps which might want to *use*
those contacts, for example 'texting'/SMS app, phone (call) app, email
app, instant messaging app, etc., etc..

However on Windows it's a mess and it's mostly each 'app' (program)
for its own, i.e. the email program (WLM in this case) and instant
messaging program (for example WhatsApp), each have their own non-shared
contacts lists, which hence have to be maintained seperately.

Looking on my own machine, only the 2nd one exists (and is empty), but
I've never set up Live Mail.

Your contacts list is probably *inside* Opera Mail. I.e. equally
stupid as the one in WLM, the one in Thunderbird, the one in ..., ad
infinitum.

In Microsoft's defense, they *tried* to do the right thing with the
'Windows Address Book' (in earlier Windows versions) and the Windows
'Contacts' folder [1], but apparently could not convince/force programs
to use those, not even their *own* WLM software.

[1] I am not quite sure when the 'Windows Address Book' was replaced by
the 'Contacts' folder, nor whether the 'Contacts' folder is still a
standard part of recent/current Windows version. My Windows 8.1 system
has a 'Contacts' folder, but that folder may have been copied/restored
from my earlier Windows versions (XP and Vista).

Actually I prefer having them seperate for each application. I only use ONE email program, and I'm sure pretty much everyone else does the same, so why have the files accessed by more than one?

Windows Live Mail reverts to 3 year old contact list?
 

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
On Sun, 16 Dec 2018 18:56:46 -0000, Frank Slootweg wrote:

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
On Sun, 16 Dec 2018 14:52:35 -0000, Frank Slootweg wrote:

Kristy Ogilvie wrote:
[...]
Thanks. How will she know if the one in C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts
is a good one?

(Windows) File Explorer will show the contents as a list of
name-adrress combinations.

For example for myself, it shows:

Frank Slootweg Frank.Slootweg@...

So it's easy to check whether the entry should be there and if so, is
still correct.

I don't have access to her machine just now and she's out, but on another forum I was told it's:
C:/Users/{USERNAME}/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows Live/Contacts/
not
C:\Users\your_friend\Contacts

The confusion is in the difference between the *Windows* 'Contacts'
folder and the 'Address book' *inside* Windows Live Mail.

The former is accessible to *any* Windows program. The latter is
*only* available to/within Windows Live Mail.

Having an address_book/contacts_list/whatever within a program is
rather stupid, but sadly that's how it is most of the time.

For example a contact can have a street address. That's not very
useful *in* a mail program, is it? But *outside* a mail program, i.e. as
part of Windows, it can be very useful, for the user, for other
programs, etc..

That's why on for example Android devices (smartphones/tablets) the
'Contacts' app/list is *seperate* from apps which might want to *use*
those contacts, for example 'texting'/SMS app, phone (call) app, email
app, instant messaging app, etc., etc..

However on Windows it's a mess and it's mostly each 'app' (program)
for its own, i.e. the email program (WLM in this case) and instant
messaging program (for example WhatsApp), each have their own non-shared
contacts lists, which hence have to be maintained seperately.

Looking on my own machine, only the 2nd one exists (and is empty), but
I've never set up Live Mail.

Your contacts list is probably *inside* Opera Mail. I.e. equally
stupid as the one in WLM, the one in Thunderbird, the one in ..., ad
infinitum.

In Microsoft's defense, they *tried* to do the right thing with the
'Windows Address Book' (in earlier Windows versions) and the Windows
'Contacts' folder [1], but apparently could not convince/force programs
to use those, not even their *own* WLM software.

[1] I am not quite sure when the 'Windows Address Book' was replaced by
the 'Contacts' folder, nor whether the 'Contacts' folder is still a
standard part of recent/current Windows version. My Windows 8.1 system
has a 'Contacts' folder, but that folder may have been copied/restored
from my earlier Windows versions (XP and Vista).

Actually I prefer having them seperate for each application. I only
use ONE email program, and I'm sure pretty much everyone else does the
same, so why have the files accessed by more than one?

For - amongst others - the uses I mentioned:

for example 'texting'/SMS app, phone (call) app, email
app, instant messaging app, etc., etc..

These are partly phone-only/mainly, but also on Windows you can have
instant messaging, (video/voice) calling, (route-)navigation, etc.,
etc..

On my (Windows) system, I have at least three programs, each with
their own 'contacts' list, email (Thunderbird), instant messaging
(WhatsApp) and video/voice calling (Skype). Rather stupid to have three
seperate 'contacts' lists - with partly overlapping data -, which have
to be *seperately* maintained, don't you think!?

For example WhatsApp contacts and Skype contacts contain a (mobile)
telephone number. Why would anyone want enter/update/delete that in/from
*two* lists, instead of just one!?

Anyway, either the (Android(/Apple(iOS))) one-contact-list method is
the smart way *or* the seperate-contact-lists method is the smart way.
Guess which of the two methods is used on billions and billions of
devices!?