Online contacts or address book?

[Santilli]

Hi
I was wondering what folks are using for Contacts or an address book?

I am thinking using google gmail contacts list as an address book, so if I have a backup
of my address book.

Any other solutions you are using, and why?

Thanks

Gs

Happy New Year

 

[Mercutio]

I deal with contacts by remembering their phone number and email address. This works pretty well.

 

[ddrueding]

My memory is exceptionally bad. I keep my contacts in my phone and in my gmail account. Occasionally I manually sync the two.

 

[Mercutio]

My memory is exceptionally bad. I keep my contacts in my phone and in my gmail account. Occasionally I manually sync the two.

I really hate gmail's presentation and the "no email to yourself" rule, and I've yet to find a sync system between it and a local email or calendar client that I actually like.

 

[ddrueding]

I email myself all the time? My complaint is that I can't print a single contact. I use CSV to manually import/export.

 

[LunarMist]

If I want to communicate with myself I just do it in my head or talk out loud. There is no need for e-mail.

 

[ddrueding]

If I want to communicate with myself I just do it in my head or talk out loud. There is no need for e-mail.

It's good to have a paper trail. That bastard could be lying....

 

[Mercutio]

I email myself all the time?

If you send an Email from your native gmail address to that same address, regardless of what client you use, it doesn't show up in your inbox. It's my biggest single issue with Gmail.

 

[ddrueding]

Heh. Just for the record, it works fine with a Google Apps domain. I've never tried a client besides the web interface and the Google Blackberry app.

 

[Mercutio]

Heh. Just for the record, it works fine with a Google Apps domain.

Doesn't work for me on any hosted domain I can try it for. It works if I'm sending from a different domain, even a different identity that's registered to the same account, but I can't go from @gmail.com to @gmail.com with the same address.

 

[Santilli]

My memory is exceptionally bad. I keep my contacts in my phone and in my gmail account. Occasionally I manually sync the two.

How, and with phone and program?

 

[ddrueding]

How, and with phone and program?

It isn't streamlined at all. The phone is the master, as I'm usually on the road/in a meeting when I get new contact information. I use the program that came with my phone (Blackberry desktop something) to export to a CSV file on my computer. Then I manually modify the file to conform to what Google wants, then import using their online interface. I do it maybe once a month.

 

[ddrueding]

Doesn't work for me on any hosted domain I can try it for. It works if I'm sending from a different domain, even a different identity that's registered to the same account, but I can't go from @gmail.com to @gmail.com with the same address.

Don't know what to say. I just logged into ddrueding@gmail.com and sent a message to myself. It appeared immediately in my inbox without any error message or warning.

 

[Howell]

I use an app called Pocket informant to sync my gcal to the iPhone. Incedentally I also sync PI to toodledo.
I use synkinablink to sync my gcontacts to the iPhone built in address book which then syncs to exchange. I also set up gcaldaemon to download my contacts periodically for backup purposes.

 

[Mercutio]

I just checked again. I see a sent item but nothing in my inbox. And I'm not the only person who has an issue with this.

 

[ddrueding]

Not doubting you, just that I haven't seen it.

 

[theSwede]

Don't know what to say. I just logged into ddrueding@gmail.com and sent a message to myself. It appeared immediately in my inbox without any error message or warning.

That works fine for me as well. I do it all the time to send reminders to myself.
I have a normal, free gmail account, no google apps or anything. I just enter my own @gmail.com address as destination.

 

[Fushigi]

Palm webOS Synergy. It seamlessly merges my contacts from Exchange, Gmail, FaceBook, and LinkedIn into a single contact list on the phone. Duplicates are automatically merged together so someone who I have as a contact on LinkedIn and in Exchange only shows once. Updates are synced automatically in either direction - phone to service or service to phone. It pulls profile pics from FaceBook etc. to associate with the contact.

Except for one thing I don't care where a contact resides as it's basically always available. The exception is that I've taken to migrating my personal contacts who don't exist anywhere else away from Exchange and into Gmail since if I ever lost my job the Exchange access would go away.

Unfortunately it is not an automatic sync to push my contact list from the phone to my car's address book (enables voice dialing via Bluetooth). So I'll periodically do a mass delete and re-import.

 

[sechs]

Am I strange in actually using an address book for this purpose? You know, one of those things with dead trees in it....

 

[time]

Mercutio, isn't that likely to be some sort of anti-spam measure?

 

[ddrueding]

Am I strange in actually using an address book for this purpose? You know, one of those things with dead trees in it....

My parents had one of those, in the 80s I think. Most of the names/addresses were crossed out, as they were no longer accurate. There might have been 5 pages of legit data in a 30 page book, but I couldn't read the handwriting anyway.

Not a chance I'll be bothered to carry something else around with me.

 

[Fushigi]

Am I strange in actually using an address book for this purpose? You know, one of those things with dead trees in it....

If it's the only thing you carry, then it's not strange at all.

But if you're also carrying a portable electronic device - cell phone, pager, PDA, laptop, etc. - then why carry more than one device? The advantages of convergence can lighten your load. The penalty is typically having to recharge the battery and any service costs but if you already have an electronic device you're already paying that penalty.

My wife used to have a Palm Pilot for contact management (and some games) in addition to a basic cell phone. Then she went with a cell that allowed texting. Then she converged and got a Palm Centro. Besides a single device to carry - she noticed her purse was lighter - the convergence means there's only one contact list to maintain and it's integrated so that she can call or text from within the device itself. And click on an address to launch it in Google Maps. And if I ever talk her into moving off a free Yahoo email account she'd be able to email as well (she isn't willing to pay for POP access).

Other devices like my Pre go even further like launching the GPS with a clicked address and letting you manage conversations across the spectrum of options. Start with an SMS text but continue with Gchat and then write on someone's FaceBook wall before ending the thread with an email that might be followed up by an actual phone call.

 

[Mercutio]

Mercutio, isn't that likely to be some sort of anti-spam measure?

That's what I thought, but ddrueding says it's working on his accounts, so it must not be a global thing. It's not really an issue, since my default "send from" addresses aren't Gmail, but it's something my customers on Google Apps tend not to like.

 

[Mercutio]

Am I strange in actually using an address book for this purpose? You know, one of those things with dead trees in it....

I seriously doubt that there's even a working pen anyplace in my apartment.

 

[ddrueding]

I have a pen, but it is only for writing POs, and only until I get that system paperless.

 

[LunarMist]

Am I strange in actually using an address book for this purpose? You know, one of those things with dead trees in it....

No. They work just fine, and are more reliable and long lasting. I have one from the last 60s or early 70s somewhere. Most of the people are probably dead by now, though.

 

[udaman]

Don't know what to say. I just logged into ddruedingATgmailDOTcom and sent a message to myself. It appeared immediately in my inbox without any error message or warning.

Uh, hope that isn't your real addy, cause if it is, ur going to have to really work the spam filter. As a mod, can you edit ur post past <5min? Already shows up via Google search, so spiders/crawlers are probably going to mine it any second.

I put up as little personal info on the web as I can, via web mail contact lists or whatever. Sooner or later, they are all at risk of being hacked/compromised in some manner.

Anything you really need should be safe on an password protected, encrypted file on whatever device you've got.

Remember how someone hacked/obtained Admn acct access on SR and harvested hundreds of usr emails?

 

[ddrueding]

The advantage of having your mail hosted with Google is that you don't need to worry about spam. That address is all over the place, and I see perhaps one SPAM a month.

 

[LunarMist]

Doesn't Google read all your e-mails and use them for advertising purposes?

 

[ddrueding]

Doesn't Google read all your e-mails and use them for advertising purposes?

Google has computers that read my e-mail and would be giving me targeted ads....if I weren't blocking them. That bothers me not at all.

 

[Handruin]

Doesn't work for me on any hosted domain I can try it for. It works if I'm sending from a different domain, even a different identity that's registered to the same account, but I can't go from @gmail.com to @gmail.com with the same address.

Maybe something is wrong with your filters. I sent an email to myself from my same account and it shows up as a new email in my inbox.

 

[Mercutio]

I'm not the one who is worried about it. It seems to be a Gmail global issue for people I deal with. Since I've never changed any settings related to the spam filtering on Gmail for anyone I deal with, it's got to be something that's part of the default setup.

 

[Adcadet]

I regularly email myself either via my work address or Gmail and send it to both addresses; works great. I prefer to talk to myself over email.

 

[Mercutio]

Goddammitsomuch.

 

[sechs]

If it's the only thing you carry, then it's not strange at all.

I don't carry it all. It sits in my desk drawer.

 

[sechs]

I seriously doubt that there's even a working pen anyplace in my apartment.

How do you write checks?

 

[ddrueding]

How do you write checks?

Checks? I haven't written one of those in years. Even bought the car with a bank transfer initiated online.

 

[sechs]

Checks? I haven't written one of those in years.

Thanks for subsidizing my free checks.

With the pennies I earn playing the float, I will soon rule the world!

 

[Fushigi]

I regularly email myself either via my work address or Gmail and send it to both addresses; works great. I prefer to talk to myself over email.

For both work (Exchange) and Gmail I'll often just compose a draft message and save it. Drafts persist across sessions and machine so they can be stored forever and viewed/updated from any PC or my smartphone.

 

[Mercutio]

How do you write checks?

I haven't written a check in years. Everything I do is electronic payment, even my rent.