Here are a few questions about computers I’ve received recently from people like you, and my answers. I have edited and restated the questions a bit, for readability. This week my mailbox contained questions about Microsoft Access and Macs, the toolbar in the new Internet Explorer and the latest version of Windows XP.

I have an old H-P notebook and am thinking of replacing it with a Mac. However, I use Microsoft Access to keep all the information of my clients and I was told by a friend that the Microsoft Office suite on a Mac doesn’t have MS Access. Is this true? If so, what do you suggest I should do? I mainly use Access and email.

Your friend is correct. Microsoft doesn’t make a Mac version of Access, and while there are some database programs for the Mac, there’s nothing I know of that’s exactly like Access or is fully and easily compatible with it. You could install Windows on your new Mac and boot into Windows when you need to run Access. In my tests of Apple’s Boot Camp software for running Windows on a Mac, Access ran quickly and well.

However, I suggest that you avoid the Mac and buy a Windows machine. If your main use of your computer is to run a single program that only works in Windows, that means that, even with a Mac, you’ll be spending most of your time in the Windows environment, and won’t gain many of the advantages of the Mac operating system and its tight integration with the Mac hardware. So, you might as well just buy another H-P or a Dell or Lenovo.

I was encouraged by your column of Oct. 19 to download Internet Explorer 7. It seems fine but I no longer have the Outlook Express icon on the toolbar. I found this quite convenient and wonder how to get it onto IE 7.

In the new Version 7 of Internet Explorer, Microsoft took pains to strip down and simplify the menus and toolbars, so as to streamline the look and feel. One of the things that was dropped as a default option was the icon for your email program, such as Outlook Express. But IE 7 allows you to restore it. Here’s how:

First, right-click on the toolbar, which is the short strip of icons that includes the Home button, and choose “Customize Command Bar.” Then, choose “Add or Remove Commands…”. From the list on the left, choose “Read Mail” and click the “Add” button. Then, with the “Read Mail” entry highlighted, use the buttons marked “Move Up” and “Move Down” to place the email icon where you want on the toolbar. Finally, click the “Close” button.

Several products you’ve reviewed recently, like Microsoft’s Internet Explorer 7 and Apple’s Boot Camp, require the “latest version” of Windows XP. What is the latest version?

The latest, and likely the last, version of Windows XP is called “SP2,” for “Service Pack 2.” The box will have that phrase on it. However, this version of Windows XP will be superseded in early 2007 by the all-new Windows Vista, which is a complete overhaul of Windows.

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Because of the volume of email I receive, I can’t routinely answer individual questions by email, or consult on individual problems or purchasing decisions. I read all questions I receive and select three each week to answer in the column.

Write to Walter S. Mossberg at mossberg@wsj.com

Here are a few questions I’ve received recently from people like you, and my answers. I have edited and restated the questions a bit, for readability.

If you have a question, send it to me at mossberg@wsj.com, and I may select it to be answered here in Mossberg’s Mailbox.

Do you think the Treo 650 will be the last true Palm OS-based mobile phone?

No. A new, improved Treo that uses the Palm operating system will be available soon. Palm (the hardware company that makes the Treo and other products) has said it isn’t abandoning the Palm OS (which is made by a separate firm) despite the fact that Palm now makes a Treo model that runs on the Windows Mobile operating system from Microsoft.

However, there is reason for Palm OS fans to be concerned. Although I regard Palm’s user interface as superior to Microsoft’s, the Palm system is relatively old and limited under the covers, compared with Windows Mobile. Its maker, PalmSource, came up with a prototype of a new version, but never completed it. Now, PalmSource has been acquired by a Japanese company, Access, that is said to be working on yet another new version of the Palm OS, based on Linux. Palm is optimistic about this project, but I haven’t seen it, and have no idea when it will appear.

Last week, you alluded to the fact that some Web-based calendars can synchronize with hand-held devices. Can you cite an example?

Yahoo provides Intellisync software that can synchronize its Web-based calendar, address book and notepad with Palm and Windows Mobile hand-held devices, as well as with such Windows PC programs as Outlook, Outlook Express, Lotus Organizer and ACT. For more information, see: help.yahoo.com/help/intsync.

Do you recommend using a registry-repair program on a Windows PC?

For most people, I don’t recommend fooling in any way with the Windows registry, which is a part of the operating system that contains important instructions for every program on your computer. It is quite dense and technical, and poking around in it can lead to dire consequences.

I know that there are registry-repair and editing programs that claim to be so safe and simple that anyone can use them, and it’s true that they are simpler than manually editing or repairing the registry. But I still advise mainstream users with little or no technical knowledge against touching the registry. If your computer is behaving badly enough that you’d consider trying to “fix” its registry, then it’s time to call in a pro.