Why can't I click on address as a link and make it appear as a map?

Question

Level 1

67 points

Why can't I click on address as a link and make it appear as a map?

This is for both iCal on the desktop and on the iPhone.

I enter the pertinent information for an appointment in iCal, such as address, time, etc - once it's in there, it shows it to me as a time stamp on the date, and if I go to it it does show me the address and such info - so why I can't I just click on that address info as a link, so that it pops up on Safari as a GoogleMap place and also the same thing on the iPhone where it would be able to show it to me on Maps? Why do I have to take the extra step of going to the Contacts on iPhone to make it clickable to go to the Map from there? What I mean is, sometimes you set up and appointment with an Alarm, right, so you hear it ding, it reminds you of what's coming next, and you want to know where it is on the map but you haven't put it in your address book/contacts and so the address is in the detail of the appointment in iCal. You want to just click on that but you can't. Know what I mean?

It's a real bother. Somebody needs to fix this.

Posted on Jun 25, 2011 11:09 AM

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Answer 1

MadisonP

Level 5

4,832 points

Jun 26, 2011 9:10 PM in response to 24Golfer

Greetings,

The location section of the iCal event window is designed for use with server based calendars which have a listings of locations. For example in a company the location field would be a meeting room and when the person making the event types in the name of the meeting room it shows as "in use" for anyone else who might try to book that same meeting room.

While you can type in standard mailing addresses, these are not the type of "location" that iCal (or the iPhone's Calendar app) was designed to interpret.

If you would be interested in seeing a feature like the iPhone Contact app map ability, let Apple know:

iCal: http://www.apple.com/feedback/ical.html

iPhone: http://www.apple.com/feedback/iphone.html

Cheers.

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Answer 2

24Golfer Author

Level 1

67 points

Jun 26, 2011 9:51 PM in response to MadisonP

Ah. I see. So what's the point of having it on the iPhone then? I don't get it. I didn't understand that the iPhone Calendar is only for indoor office use. I don't know why I bothered to buy the iPhone then! 😁

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Answer 3

MadisonP

Level 5

4,832 points

Jun 27, 2011 5:52 PM in response to 24Golfer

The iPhone is a little bit of both. The location field of the iOS Calendar app can be used just like in iCal if the calendar you are using is part of a calendar server which has locations loaded. Otherwise it is simply a field to type in locations "Grandma's house, Mike's deli, etc".

If I had to guess as to "why" the location field on the iPhone does not function as a "tap to map" field like in the Contacts app it is because the Calendar app has no way to know if what you are typing in is a "real" address (5959 No Street Your City, Your State ZIP) versus a generic address reference like "mom's house".

In the Contacts app there are pre-defined fields for street, city, state, zip etc. so when you tap on these locations, the app can easily figure out what it is searching GoogleMaps for. In the case of the location field in the Calendar app it is just one big field with no defined areas to type in the various components of an address.

All that said, your suggestion has merit. Let Apple know you'd like to see this feature added:

iCal: http://www.apple.com/feedback/ical.html

iPhone: http://www.apple.com/feedback/iphone.html

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Answer 4

ATillman

Level 1

0 points

Jul 7, 2011 9:00 PM in response to 24Golfer

It is inconvenient, but until they get it fixed, here's a simple alternative. Instead of typing the address into the location field, type it into the notes. It is then a clickable link to Maps. Maybe they'll get things more integrated soon. 🙂

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Answer 5

Oct 5, 2013 12:40 AM in response to ATillman

"It is inconvenient, but until they get it fixed, here's a simple alternative. Instead of typing the address into the location field, type it into the notes. It is then a clickable link to Maps. Maybe they'll get things more integrated soon."

I have tried that but only the street number and name are linked, the suburb remains simply as text?

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