If you have Contacts in the Contacts folder but they are not accessible when
you click on the To button, check these settings:

Make sure the Contact folder is enabled as an email address book. Right
click the Contacts folder, choose Properties then Outlook Address Book. Is
the box to enable as email address book is checked?

If this is grayed out...

Go to Tools | Email Accounts, choose View or change existing directories or
address book. Is the Outlook Address Book present? If it isn't listed, add
it and close and restart Outlook.  If it is listed, then remove it and close
then restart Outlook and repeat these steps to add it.

http://www.outlook-tips.net/howto/vista.htm

Did you paste the file into the default location and overwrite the existing
file?? if so, that is your problem. You should never overwrite an existing
file.
Copy the file (again) to somewhere in (say) My Documents (or the Vista
equivalent). open Outlook and do File-Open-Outlook data File and navigate to
where you copied it to.

HTH

thanks everyone for your responses... i took a look at what i did and found
out i exported just the inbox to a pst file..i went back and exported the
contacts to another pst file and took this new file and used to on the new
vista computer. in OL 2002 on the new computer, i used the import feature to
import the contacts pst file.. it worked...hope this helps someone...