Address book software

> I hate the fact that Address Book has only one export format, and
> an opaque
> backup format. (That's both a black mark against Address Book, and
> a reason
> to do a bit more research before switching into it.)

Except the VCard format is a standard format for almost all address
book applications, and is used in programs such as Microsoft Outlook.
So, even though it is only a single format, it is a widely used
format. Plus, it is a ASCII file format, so it is relatively easy to
manipulate the format to the way you like with Perl or Python.

The backup format is proprietary, but you can also "backup" your who
application by exporting it in VCard.

I really don't know of other apps. I think it is possible to
synchronize two address books via iSync and Apple's webpage, but I am
not 100% certain.

The more important thing for me is that I can use Apple's address
book program to synchronize to my cell phone via iSync and BlueTooth.
I had to pay 9 Euros for the data plugin because I have a new
Motorola RIZR, and iSync 2.4 doesn't contain the data plug ins
necessary for that. I suspect that Leopard will contain the needed
plugin for syncing to the RIZR, but I didn't want to wait.


David Weintraub

On 6-Oct-2007, at 05:44, Ben Rubinstein wrote:
> I hate the fact that Address Book has only one export format,

But its export format is vcf, which is so standard I've not found
anything that can't read it. Heck, my PHONE imports vcf files...

On 10/07/2007 06:51 AM, "David Weintraub" <davidweintraub.name> wrote:

>> I hate the fact that Address Book has only one export format, and an
>> opaque backup format. (That's both a black mark against Address Book,
>> and a reason to do a bit more research before switching into it.)

> Except the VCard format is a standard format for almost all address
> book applications, and is used in programs such as Microsoft Outlook.
> So, even though it is only a single format, it is a widely used
> format. Plus, it is a ASCII file format, so it is relatively easy to
> manipulate the format to the way you like with Perl or Python.

> The backup format is proprietary, but you can also "backup" your who
> application by exporting it in VCard.

IIRC, Address Book's export format is actually a bundle containing various
vCards and a few index files

--
John C. Welch Writer/Analyst
Bynkii.com Mac and other opinions
jwelchbynkii.com

On 7/10/2007, at 12:44 AM, Ben Rubinstein wrote:

> I'm finally preparing to move to an Intel-based laptop, and
> notwithstanding
> SheepShaver, preparing to say goodbye to Classic. There are just
> two Classic
> apps I still use every day, both in HyperCard. One I'll recode in
> Revolution.
> The other is my address book.

        Have you seen SuperCard? <http://www.supercard.us/index.html> It is
the OSX replacement for HyperCard and according to the trial page
will run on Intel Macs. If you're already happy with your current
address book then this may get it going on your new system with less
work than changing to a different application

Jason

Jason

He's already familiar with HyperCard replacements, since he mentions converting one stack using Revolution. I've used both Revolution and SuperCard and there's no comparison--Revolution has SuperCard beaten by a long shot, especially in its cross-platform capabilities.

No, I don't work for RunRev, but I certain do love working with Revolution.

My 2 cents.

Marian

On Oct 8, 2007, at 3:03 PM, John C. Welch wrote:

> IIRC, Address Book's export format is actually a bundle containing
> various
> vCards and a few index files

Not for me in 10.4. Export vCard produces a single plain text file.

        Chronos makes "SOHO Organizer", which I belive uses Apple's
databases for contacts and calendaring, but also can do shared databases
without using dotMac.

<http://www.chronosnet.com/>

        I was also just reading in O'Rieley's "Learning Cocoa with
Objective-C, Second Edition" (not that I have an illusions about my ability
to actually program anything, but hey, it was near the bathroom...) and it
seemed to indicate that all or most of the Address Book data was somehow
exposed and available in the standard frameworks, so you conceivably could
write your own program to get the data in or out of the database, and
possibly even add your own fields to do with as you would.

--
* Johann Beda - contact link: <http://xri.net/=j-beda> *
* Johann's MostlyMac Computer Consulting - <http://mmcc.beda.ca/> *

Thanks to everyone for taking the trouble to reply.

David Weintraub wrote:
> The backup format is proprietary, but you can also "backup" your who
> application by exporting it in VCard.

John Welch wrote:
> IIRC, Address Book's export format is actually a bundle containing various
> vCards and a few index files

Address Book export is a plain vCard file; the backup is a package of mostly
opaque binary files.

AB can export and import vCard, but it's inconsistent. In particular, it
doesn't round-trip reliably. The backup and restore, I assume, does: but the
format is opaque so can't be used for anything else.

One of the features I'm trying to replicate is a set of flag checkboxes. I
thought I could do this by adding cards to appropriate groups. That works in
some ways; but you can't look at a card and see what Groups it belongs to. In
relation to import and export, although when you export from AB it records
group membership as Categories, when when a vcard is imported, Category is not
imported to set group membership, but instead added to the Note field. (In
theory I can get round this by using AppleScript to post-process the import.)

On the other hand I tried using a custom "RelatedNames" field to record the
flags; which has the advantage that the set flags are clearly visible on each
card (but the disadvantage that they're free text, could be input wrong, and
the 'unset' flags are not visible); but then found that AB doesn't let "Smart
Groups" be based on these fields.

One thing I really don't like about AB is that there's no method of
synchronising two address books without a .Mac subscription (and messages I've
read suggest that even this is incomplete). I don't really want to pay
$200/year just to synchronise my address book with my wife's. If the file
format or the backup format was standard; or if the export format could
reliably be re-imported, that wouldn't be an issue for me. (Hmmm: has anyone
tried <http://www.slamslash.com/address-o-sync/>? Other alternatives?)

Jason Campbell suggested using SuperCard to carry on with my own stack. I am
familiar with SuperCard, but - like Marian - find Revolution the best
successor to HyperCard. I've already used it to upgrade most of my old
HyperCard solutions, and plan to use it for the other remaining items; but in
this one case of an address file, I'd rather find a standard application to
live with - not least to share it with my wife.

In the end I guess I'm going to be using Address Book - but grumbling a lot.
I was just hoping that there might be a superior alternative out there. Thanks
to everyone who responded.

- Ben

On 2007-10-12, at 10:23, Ben Rubinstein wrote:

> I could do this by adding cards to appropriate groups. That works in
> some ways; but you can't look at a card and see what Groups it
> belongs to.

If you select a card in Address Book and then press the Option key,
the groups the card belongs to will be highlighted...

> One thing I really don't like about AB is that there's no method of
> synchronising two address books without a .Mac subscription

        Ben,

        Take a look at "SOHO Organizer", which I belive uses Apple's
databases for contacts and calendaring, but also can do shared
databases without using dotMac. I used an earlier version of their
software for a few years and was fairly pleased with it. As I recall
they have a limited time free trial system that might allow you to
test it out - as I recall, one of your systems can act as the central
server with the others syncing to that.

<http://www.chronosnet.com/Products/sohoorganizer.html>

--
* Johann Beda - contact link: <http://xri.net/=j-beda> *

Ben Rubinstein wrote:
> That works in
> some ways; but you can't look at a card and see what Groups it belongs to.

That fact drives me nuts. I had imported thousands of addresses from
Palm Desktop and it is impossible to tell which ones I have filed into
groups.

Then one day suddenly when I would click on a name in the central panel
I saw a yellow highlight on each group to which that name was assigned.
I swear I was awake, luckily when I sleep I do not dream about my geeky
activites (at least not since the days I was a typesetter doing a
million words of entry per week, and would see amber letters moving
across a monochrome monitor when I slept).

I don't visit my AB often and the next time I thought of it I noticed
that highlight was gone.

Is it possible that the version of AB that runs on an Intel (Mac Mini)
*does* highlight the groups for a selected name? And that AB on my PPC
does not? They both run 10.4.10.

kazar

On 10/11/2007 17:23 PM, "Ben Rubinstein" <benrcogapp.com> wrote:

> One thing I really don't like about AB is that there's no method of
> synchronising two address books without a .Mac subscription (and messages I've
> read suggest that even this is incomplete).

To be specific, that's synchronizing across systems, not between
applications on the same system, and there are a number of utilities that
address this sans .Mac.

--
John C. Welch

Tom Robinson wrote:
> On 2007-10-12, at 10:23, Ben Rubinstein wrote:
>
>> I could do this by adding cards to appropriate groups. That works in
>> some ways; but you can't look at a card and see what Groups it
>> belongs to.
>
> If you select a card in Address Book and then press the Option key,
> the groups the card belongs to will be highlighted...

doh, thanks for that tip!! and never mind my earlier question, then. I
just looked in Address Book Help (briefly, I'll admit -- the Mac help
system on my G4 is just so painfully slow I almost never use it) and
could not find that info ... I guess I must've discovered the Option key

I find that sometimes a full day or even 36 hours goes by with no
messages from this list, and then suddenly I get a spate of messages.
Often I make a comment or ask a Q that is obsolete by the time it is
actually distributed. I visited the web-xing interface and looked for a
preference to get emails sent immediately (or at least more often) but
couldn't find one ... did I miss something?

kazar

On Oct 12, 2007, at 8:21 AM, Johann Beda wrote:

> Ben,
>
> Take a look at "SOHO Organizer",

Honestly, SOHO Organizer may be the worst choice based on user
feedback I've ever seen. Check on MacUpdate or Versiontracker.

Perhaps Contactizer is worth looking at.

Regards,

Howard

On 12/10/07 13:21, Tom Robinson wrote:
> If you select a card in Address Book and then press the Option key,
> the groups the card belongs to will be highlighted...

Aha! Thanks Tom

- Ben

>>> I could do this by adding cards to appropriate groups. That works in
>>> some ways; but you can't look at a card and see what Groups it
>>> belongs to.
>>
>> If you select a card in Address Book and then press the Option key,
>> the groups the card belongs to will be highlighted...

Answered!

On Oct 12, 2007, at 6:13 AM, Datatude wrote:

> Ben Rubinstein wrote:
>> That works in
>> some ways; but you can't look at a card and see what Groups it
>> belongs to.
>
> ..............
> Is it possible that the version of AB that runs on an Intel (Mac Mini)
> *does* highlight the groups for a selected name? And that AB on my PPC
> does not? They both run 10.4.10.

I have a 20" 2GB PPC iMac bought in June 2005 running 10.4.10.
Pressing the option key while clicking a name in Address Book
highlights the group the person belongs to in yellow.
Dan

This is no solution, just a way of doing things -- past, alas, as many
of the best things for us Mac users.

In the bygone days before the 'marvelous' OS X I was a Eudora Pro user
(from v 1.0 on, was even a beta-tester when these were not public and
had to sign physical NDA). One of its best features was precisely Eudora
Nicknames: it had less eye-candy but functionally it was wonderful.

BTW will it ever be resuscitated? Penelope is a bad joke :- (

Cheers

On 2007-10-14, at 23:40, Datatude wrote:

> I find that sometimes a full day or even 36 hours goes by with no
> messages from this list, [...] I visited the web-xing interface and
> looked for a
> preference to get emails sent immediately (or at least more often) but
> couldn't find one ... did I miss something?

It's a moderated list. I assume the moderators do batches at a time...

[That's exactly correct. -Joe]