Another "not forum" tech question - online address books

[Clive Long]

All,

This question may be a bit wooly as I'm not clear what I really want.

I have contacts in my Palm Pilot, my phone SIM, my Yahoo email address book, various Outlook/Exchange servers, a Plaxo account - and probably on scraps of paper in trousers in the washing machine

I want a consolidated, consistent, up-to-date set of contact that I can use for email and phone. If I add a contact to my mobile device I want it to be available to the other environments and vice versa.

I want to be able to tag my contacts as personal and business - so if I go to a new company which has Outlook / Exchange I only share contacts relevant to that client with "their" Exchange server.

Currently I sometimes sync my Palm contacts with my desktop Outlook instance - but just to back up my contacts. But sync suffers from the "almost-but-not-quite-identical-duplicate-entry" syndrome.

I might upgrade my phone and Palm to a "converged" device with mobile email < gollum > need it, want it, mmm shiny, not listening LMC < / gollum >

What do I need to look at to cut through all of this?

Ta,

CRL

[WittyBird]

The holy grail that you ask for isn't available. Lots of people claim it, but I haven't seen it.

So to answer the question...

"What do I need to look at to cut through all of this?"

A miracle!

You can get close with a Smartphone and an online backup service.
I don't know of any sync products that let you sync certain contacts only though. :waycool:

[azande]

The holy grail that you ask for isn't available. Lots of people claim it, but I haven't seen it.

Maybe not the holy grail but try and have a look at Plaxo (http://www.plaxo.com).

[LMC]

I might upgrade my phone and Palm to a "converged" device with mobile email < gollum > need it, want it, mmm shiny, not listening LMC < / gollum >
Try "la la la la la la la" and sticking fingers in your ears? Preferably your own, unless you really like the taste of earwax on Cadburys choc fingers...

ANYWAY, if you use the Work of the Devil (Outlook) for your contacts, Outlook will synch with a Blackberry. Which can, although rather brick-like, also be used as a mobile phone. Don't know if it will synch with a traditional mobile phone as well though...

[Clive Long]

I'm really not a "toys" person

But take a look at this (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/08/25/mio_a701_exposed) :drool: (don't think it has been released yet)

CRL

[azande]

You can also have a look at memotoo (http://www.memotoo.com/index.php?lang=en)