vCard import group

user1724 wrote:
I am not able to find any spec that works with the Apple Address Book that allows the imported card to land in particular groups.

Anyone know a spec line you can put in your vCard format to auto import into groups?

there is no such field and there can not possibly be one. group membership is not recorded on a vcard of a person. you have to add a person to a group inside Address Book.

user1724,

(continuing from where V.K. left off) BUT, I'd bet money that if you dragged the Vcard from the Finder, into a specific group in the Address Book window, that contact would end up in your Address Book and the desired group.

Scott

EDIT: In fact, I just checked, and I win the money!

V.K.,

Wanna know what's nifty? OK, open Text Edit. Start typing email addresses; for purposes of demonstration, just make up a bunch of nonsense email addresses, but formatted properly (whosit@anywhere.com). Here's the catch: Type them with no spaces, but separated by by commas (whosit@anywhere.com,jane@doe.net,etc.@blah.org).

When you think you have typed enough, select all the text, then drag it out to your Desktop.

Now, I'm sure you're aware of how we can drag any text out of just about any application to get "text clippings." As it turns out, Leopard's Finder combines this tech with the newer "data detectors," and Voila!!, we get instant email lists!

Try it out. Once you have dragged that clipping out of Text Edit, quit it (don't bother saving the document, just the clipping). Instead of a normal clipping, it becomes a "Mailto" file (with a ".mailoc" extension). Double click it. Pick up your jaw, and close your mouth, V.K.

Scott

that's a neat trick. you are right about the categories entry in vcards - I was wrong about that. Apple does use it actually. if you select an address book entry belonging to a group and drag it to the desktop, this will create a standard vcard. if you open it in any text editor, you'll see the the categories field with the name of the group in question listed. However the way address book keeps data to add card to a group you have to modify the vcard for the group, not the vcard of the group member.

user1724,

Address Book does use the "categories" entry. I'm not sure your Vcards are formatted properly, though. The Vcard standard is just regular XML, with certain conventions in place.

It might help if we knew where these Vcards came from. You may even be able to figure out where the problem lies yourself, using Text Edit. Create just a few contacts (or use ones you have already) in Address Book, place them into a small group, then control-click on that group for the "Export Group Vcard..." option. Save the group Vcard to your Desktop.

Open the Vcard in Text Edit, and study the formatting. Now, do the same with one of the Vcards you are attempting to import.

Scott

user1724,

OK, I've done some testing, and you are correct, but only to a point. Address Book will not import groups; no way, no how. It won't even import groups exported from itself as such. If you haven't followed my previous instructions to get a peek at Address Book's own formatting of Group Vcards, here is an example:


<pre style="overflow:auto; font-family: 'Monaco'; font-size: 10px">BEGIN:VCARD
VERSION:3.0
N:Doe;Sam;;;
FN:Sam Doe
EMAIL;type=INTERNET;type=HOME;type=pref:sl_Doe56@yahoo.com
EMAIL;type=INTERNET;type=HOME:fraggle_stone73@hotmail.com
TEL;type=CELL;type=pref:4407737264919
item1.ADR;type=HOME;type=pref:;;13 Ascott Road;Aylesbury;Buckinghamshire;HP21 2HX;England
item1.X-ABADR:us
CATEGORIES:Rat Pack
X-ABUID:99F85D1A-6C84-44B7-B0E4-FEB92351AC30\:ABPerson
END:VCARD</pre>


Notice the "CATEGORIES:Rat Pack" part. There's your implementation, and everything you need should be there. Of course, what I have posted here is just one contact that is included in a "group Vcard." The other included contacts all appear just like this, and the delimiters are "BEGIN:VCARD" and "END:VCARD."

However, that "CATEGORIES" part is apparently ignored by Address Book when the card is imported. The contacts come in fine, but group placement becomes the domain of that particular Address Book user. I can see some logic to this, as your "run of the mill" user won't want the importation of a Vcard to unilaterally place groups into their Address Book (one would end up with all sorts of irrelevant groups just by importing contacts one at a time). In other words, Address Book isn't supposed to import groups, and we probably wouldn't want it to.

All this said, you can import group Vcards, and have them grouped properly! The trick is that you'll need to create those groups in Address Book first:

1) Create a new group. Select it (it should be blank, so you'll see no contacts).

2) Drag your group Vcard into the window.

Yeah, it's that easy.

Scott

that's pretty nifty.

yes, that's pretty cool too. not necessarily jaw dropping but still quite cool. 🙂