OL2000: Category List is Blank

When you view the Category list in Outlook 2000, after you select an item (for example, an e-mail item, a calendar item, or a task item), and then click Categories on the Edit menu, the Category list will be blank.

This problem may occur if you enter many categories. For example, this problem may occur after you enter 700 or more categories, or the number of characters in your list of categories is more than approximately 15,000 characters.

A supported hotfix is available from Microsoft. However, this hotfix is intended to correct only the problem that is described in this article. Apply this hotfix only to systems that are experiencing this specific problem.

If the hotfix is available for download, there is a "Hotfix download available" section at the top of this Knowledge Base article. If this section does not appear, submit a request to Microsoft Customer Service and Support to obtain the hotfix.

Note If additional issues occur or if any troubleshooting is required, you might have to create a separate service request. The usual support costs will apply to additional support questions and issues that do not qualify for this specific hotfix. For a complete list of Microsoft Customer Service and Support telephone numbers or to create a separate service request, visit the following Microsoft Web site: Note The "Hotfix download available" form displays the languages for which the hotfix is available. If you do not see your language, it is because a hotfix is not available for that language.

The Global version of this fix should have the following file attributes or later: After the hotfix is installed, the Global version of this fix will have the file attributes (or later) that are listed in the following table. The dates and times for these files are listed in coordinated universal time (UTC). When you view the file information, it is converted to local time. To find the difference between UTC and local time, use the Time Zone tab in the Date and Time tool in Control Panel. This fix is a post-Office 2000 Service Pack 3 (SP-3) fix. To install the fix, you must have Office 2000 SP-3 installed. For additional information about Office 2000 SP-3, click the following article number to see the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: Additionally, you may have to install Windows Installer 2.0 to install this fix. For additional information about the Windows Installer requirement for post-Office 2000 SP-3 fixes, click the following article number to see the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.

To add a new category in Outlook 2000, follow these steps:

1. With the Inbox selected, on the Edit menu, click Categories.
2. In the Categories dialog box, click Master Category List.
3. In the New Category box, type the name of a new category, and then click Add.
4. Click OK to close the Master Category List dialog box.
5. Click OK to close the Categories dialog box.