Why can't my contacts in my address book be printed in "alpha" order?

After over a month and endless hours contacting Apple, I am now informed that, because of the operating system, it is impossible to print alphabetically from contacts. The proposed solutions don't work for me - printing from the clould (I can't access all the info in contacts) and exporting the info in contacts to another system (at least a two step process). One important reason for purchasing a MacAir was for this feature. Really regret my purchase and Apple's inability to address the problem.

Thanks BoPeep45...
not only do I love your suggestion but I love the ostrich on your home page..... I also teach a class and this is the quickest way of printing out a sign-in sheet. I do it with a little more effort but this is extremely quick; Also as a side note, if you want some of your other address book comments to show up you can preset the columns' name with the "exact" field name and it will plop in that information also, ie address or notes... I didn't check on the picture but I know the other fields do show up.
Apple really needs to fix this problem. I really don't like the extra step of going to icloud.com to print out things alphabetically it's so inconvenient. Tim Cook may not see it as a problem but I'm sure Steve Jobs would not tolerate "half-a**ed" software on his operating systems...I just read some terse comments he made to his staff when another program was not up to his expectations (Mobile Me) and that is why he PERSONALLY presented iCloud to the public He expected perfection and when he didn't get it, he let the hammer fall.
This has been a problem ever since Mountain Lion came out and they are totally ignoring it. I, and I'm sure many of you, have reported this "bug" to them to fix over the past year and nothing has been done. It should be an easy fix.
Thanks again for your suggestion....
kattnip333

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Why can't I edit or delete Address Book "On My Mac" or sync with iCloud?

Why can't I edit or delete Address Book cards on my Macs, now that I've migrated to iCloud? I can edit/delete if I go to iCloud, but the changes don't sync with my Macs. What's happening, and what's a solution? Just wait for Apple to fix a bug?

On your mac, if your look at the left panel of the Address Book, you'll find general categories of "iCloud" and possibly "On my mac" - if you have contacts in the latter, then they are only local to your mac, they are not shared with iCloud. If you don't have an "iCloud" category, then your mac(s) is not set up of iCloud. Go to system preferences and look in iCloud. Is the mac signed into iCloud, are contacts turned on for syncing?

HT4489 How can I synchronize contacts between Apple Address Book/iPhone address book and Outlook (I'm on Mac OX10.7.4 and using Office 2011)?

I appear to have done what I should to move to iCloud on my Mac, MacbookAir, iPhone and iPad. Using Outlook 2011 on the iMac and unable to sync contacts between Outlook and my Apple Address Book and iPhone over the cloud. I gather lots of people have the same problem but some appear to have solved it... any ideas?
Also, in some sync, I managed to duplicate the entries on the Address Book on my Mac, whereas the iCloud Address Book is ok. How can I replace the Address Book on my computer with the one on iCloud?
Thank You for any help!

Hi Lucy, I had the same problem with Outlook data sync. Once you've enabled iCloud all your contacts are moved to iCloud and are no longer stored on Mac, that's why Outlook cannot reach them - there is simply nothing to reach as data physically stored in cloud.
I use SyncMate to solve this problem. This app allows connecting and syncing numerous devices and accounts with your Mac and they have recently added iCloud into this list (here the page where they describe sync with iCloud http://www.sync-mac.com/cloud-sync.html ).
This is how I established sync of my Outlook data with iCloud via this app.
1. SyncMate syncs only that data which is located on your Mac so you will need to move your contacts back to Address Book on mac from iCloud and disable iCloud for contacts (in order they were stored on Mac, not in iCloud).
2. You install SyncMate and add iCloud as a new connection (depending on data you want to sync you need to choose "Cloud contacts" or "Cloud calendars" connection in SyncMate wizard and log into your iCloud via SyncMate). Once you've done this, you can sync data on Mac with iCloud via SyncMate.
3. I may assume that automatic sync option is enabled in Outlook preferences (as previously your contacts on Mac were synced with Outlook). If no - please, enable it (got to Outlook preferences).
4. Once all this done, data will be automatically synced betwen Outlook and iCloud (latter via SyncMate). The trick of SyncMate is that data is physically located on your Mac (thus ensuring it will be synced with other devices and accounts SyncMate supports, as I said before, SyncMate works with data which is located on Mac), but you still can have it in iCloud (sync will be performed via SyncMate, no need to enable iCloud itself).
5. And of course, you will be able to sync your iPhone contacts with your Mac (SyncMate supports sync with iPhones also). These contacts will be also synced to Outlook.

Can't change contact images in Address Book

I am trying to update contact images in Address Book. Everytime I add a new image, it blinks for a moment, then goes back to being black. In my email, the images flit between being available, being old images, and being blank. I've been trying for two hours so it's not a "sync" or "just wait" issue. It keeps telling me that I am a different person, assigning a different contact card to myself, flitting back and forth between contact cards declaring that they are "me," and randomly allowing or not allowing pictures to be updated. What's going on?

hives wrote:
Problem solved. Finder > Library > Preferences. There were three files: com.apple.something or another and address book.something.. (I can't remember).
Please realize that is only slightly more helpful than it started with a letter in the alphabet and ends in plist. Almost everything in that folder starts with com.apple. That is the default naming convention. It is a reverse domain name system (think reverse web address). So all Apple's preferences start with com.apple.
For anyone trying to fix a similar problem, please don't randomly delete plist files. While most will cause no harm and will get rebuilt automatically, deleting some will cause a little shock and awe. com.apple.mail.plist being the most shocking. If you delete it, you will not see your email in Mail until you recreate your accounts exactly as you had them before you deleted the plist. The email is still there, it is just that Mail doesn't know how to find them.

Can iPhone 4 contacts overwrite MacBook Address Book contacts?

Can someone please help me, perhaps Allan Sampson? My problem is that I somehow have >2,000 duplicate contacts in my MacBook's Address Book. Though I do backups, I've added dozens of new contacts to my iPhone where, so far, I do not have any duplicates. Basically, I need to somehow, if possible, overwrite all of my desktop contacts with the contacts from my iPhone. I've searched in the Apple Discussions for 2 hours and can't find an answer to this. The closest Google hit I found was http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2111565 but it did not work for me.
Some background:
- OS X 10.6.6
- iTunes ver 10.1.2
- iPhone OS 4.2.1
- I am syncing iPhone with MobileMe account
- iTunes is also syncing contacts with MobileMe
- Under iPhone "Info" tab in iTunes, it is NOT set to Sync Address Book Contacts
- This is not the first time I am syncing.
- I called Apple Support. Zero help.
- I can't use the Address Book "Look for Duplicates..." feature because I have a few dozen contacts that it will combine that I need to keep separate.
Could anyone possibly help me with this? My only other option is to manually delete >2,000 duplicate contacts...that would take me several months.
Thank you!

I tried this http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1472736 , specifically Allan Sampson's suggestion (below), but it did not work either.
"The sync process for contact information, calendar events, and bookmarks with an iPhone is bidirectional with the supported application on your computer.
Enter at least one contact in the Address Book application and one calendar event in iCal on your Mac before syncing. Pay attention to any message provided when syncing such as merging data. If you are unsure about any such message provided, cancel the sync until you are sure."

How can I sync contacts in my address book to my iPod Touch 2nd Generation with iTunes 10.5.2?

My iPod Touch with OS 4.2.1 will no longer sync contacts from my address book on my computer now that I've upgraded to iTunes 10.5.2 and to Lion. I have ensured that the iPod Touch is set to synchronize all my contacts. The calendar continues to sync.

I have the same situation. I believe I disconnected iCloud by going into preferences and also unclicking the box for Contacts. What am I missing?
Larry

Can I group contacts like in Address book

I think the answer (at least for now) is no, but I figured I'd ask.
On my ipod, I can view my photos by "album", I can view my calendar by "calendar" why can't I view my Address' by "Group".
This would make things a lot easier. I'd also like the option to view by company vs. by person. Maybe I can do that by clicking the "Company" checkbox in address book. I imported everything from my palm desktop, and for contacts without a name this seemed to happen.
FYI - I'm on mac using ical, addresss book, and iphoto as source apps for the ipod.

I don't think so. It seems that the iPod software reads in all vcf files in the Contacts folder or any subfolders and then sorts and displays them in one list. I tested this by creating a subfolder "friends" in the Contacts folder and dragging my iSync.vcf file into it. Doing so made no noticable difference in how contacts were displayed on the iPod.
Looking at the iSync.vcf file in a file editor it doesn't appear that any group information is recorded in the vCard entries, so even if the iPod software could display people in groups the sync process between Address Book and the iPod doesn't include the group information.

How can I transfer contacts in my address book to numbers?

How can I transfer contact information in my address book to a chart in numbers to create a data base spreadsheet?

Right now transfering contacts from Numbers 3.X does not work. Import them to Number 2.3, then copy from ver 2.3 to 3.X

HELP- can't view contact info in address book

i've got the address book in 'book' view (left contacts - right contact detail)... i click on a contact and the details do not show up to right- it's 'stuck' on my 1st contact detail.
the only way to view contact detail is by double clicking contact on left side list and a new window pops up with info... AND, i can't search for a contact- HELP!
THANKS!

Go to your Finder "Go" menu hold the option key to choose "Library"
Then go to Preferences/com.apple.addressbook.plist And delete that file, now relaunch AB.

Why can't I sync my .mac address book with my address book on my imac?

Ive read all the instructions made sure all my settings and preferences are correct, but my .mac contacts simply wont download into my contacts book on my .mac
Very very frustrating!
Please help!

here's some more information from michael lafferty, a frequent contributor:
"You also need to understand that now is not a particularly good time to be dealing with .Mac Sync issues, because server side changes have been made to accommodate the release of Mac OS X 10.5, and synchronization between Mac OS X 10.3 and any later version of Mac OS X is no longer supported. Substantial performance problems evident over the last few days have also made life difficult for many .Mac users.
"And, now more than ever—despite the likely slower response due to these changes and the large numbers of those likely affected—you should work with a .Mac support representative to resolve your registration or connection issue before attempting to reset your synchronization data. You've got the right idea, but you cannot proceed until you are able to connect and exchange information is a session with .Mac.
"To trigger a support request, fill out the web form on the lower part of this page. The status indicators at .Mac show that the synchronization update is still in progress, and that users may not see expected results."

HT2486 can I print out the contact info for all contacts in my address book?

I haven't found anything on support to determine if I can just take a group with 10 contacts from my address book and print it out like a CSV file or just a plank page.
Any suggestions if this can be done?
Thanks in advance,
Clay Anderson

To print out a group, select the group name of the contacts or select them holding down the Command key and clicking on each name. Then Addressbook > File > Print > click the Show details button > select the items below in the dialog box > select the fields to print > print or print to PDF.
Regards,
Captfred

Why can't I select and drag addresses from contacts to mail

Why can't I select and drag addresses from contacts to mail

Re: can't drag email addresses from contact list

Contacts per iMac address book: 1,301 iCloud: 1,486 iPhone 4s: 1,508 iPhone 4: 1,489 How can I make them all the same?

My address book has been an intense problem for me for a while (i.e. even pre-iPhone 4s/iCloud). Before I upgraded, my iPhone 4 had thousands of duplicate contacts. The address book was up to ~7,500 even though what was then Mobile Me had somewhere in the 1,000 to 1,500 range for contacts. So after I upgraded, I attempted to fix it by doing the following:
I connected my iPhone 4S to the iMac (after I set it up with the latest iPhone 4 backup), went to the iTunes info tab for my device and unchecked syncing for any address book contacts, calendars, email accounts. And then I synced it. This didn't work. I believe my contacts were still at ~7,500.
So next I tried checking just the Sync Address Book Contacts option on the info tab which then allowed me to check contacts under the Advanced/Replace Information on this iPhone section at the bottom of the info tab. This made my iPhone contact list further balloon up to 13,000 + contacts.
So the next thing I did (still in the info tab) was to select Selected Groups under the "Sync Address Book Contacts" section of the info tab. I believe I still had the option to replace the info on my iPhone selected. I then selected one of my contact groups that had no contacts in it. Why would I create a contact group with no contacts in it? I didn't. I created some smart groups and prior to my iPhone 4s upgrade I noticed the smart groups contact lists I spent some time setting up were not populated with anything. Same with some of the non-smart group contact lists I had created.
After telling it to only sync that empty group and to replace the contents on my iPhone I ended up with 1,508 contacts. Why I didn't end up with either zero or the same number as in iCloud is beyond me. This at least seems closer to my true number of contacts but as mentioned in my subject above the number of contacts differ between all three places (iPhone 4s, iCloud and iMac address book). I also noticed that my wife is no longer in my iPhone 4S or in iCloud as a contact but she is listed in the iMac contacts which has fewer contacts than the other two places.
So I believe that in all three locations, there are situations where the address book includes contacts not in the other two locations, and vice versa (excludes contacts that are in the other locations). Can somebody help me understand how I can truly sync my contacts so that they are identical in all locations? This has been a huge problem for me since the Mobile Me roll out and sadly continues to persist now that I've migrated to iCloud.
Blah, I am so fed up with this persistent issue.

I assume you never got a solution. My own painful story is here:
http://tech.kateva.org/2012/06/icloud-transition-went-as-expected.html
I've given up on Lion/iCloud. I'll try Mountain Lion.

Is there any Contact Manager or Address Book that I can install on my PC (Windows 7) that when synced to my Iphone that will accept my custom Lables for type of entry, such as you have- Home, Work, then "Private Line" ?

I am wondering if in fact there is any Contact Manager or Address Book that I can install on my PC running Windows7 that when synced with my 4s that it will retain all my custom lables for phone numbers in Contacts on my iPhone, such as Sandra's Private Line, Cadillac, Bat Phone or what ever?

Hi sahgin,
The issue eventually resolved itself, I still don't really know why. I kept up with Windows update, and attempted downloading iTunes again from the Apple website, and it just... worked. It now works fine. I don't know why it took approximately 4 months to work, though.
I'm sorry I don't have any more helpful information. Posting here was my last resort, and clearly Apple never bothered to reply.

Moving contacts into icloud, address book and ultimately onto iphone 5 is impossible. Why so hard?

NEED TO TRANSFER/SYNC CONTACTS FROM 500+ VCARDS ON MY COMPUTER ---> TO MY IPHONE5.
Why not just make the phone an open device? Drag and drop. I've spent three days trying to figure out how to easily get my contacts from my dumbphone to the new iPhone 5. I bluetoothed off my dumb phone to my computer. Both my iMac and MacBook Pro have the vcards. And another thing, Address Book, contacts, gmail, iTunes, whatever, I can't import multiple vcards. They have to be done one at a time.
No mass transfers of any kind? I have over 500 contacts to move. I've tried the following:
-Importing to contacts onto iMac; address book won't read vcard
-Importing to contacts on MacBook Pro w/Mountain Lion; reads vcards, only 1 at a time
-Importing to iCloud; doesn't work
-Importing to gmail contacts; only reads 1 at a time
-E-mailing 500+ to self in an e-mail and trying to open/transfer/read all on MacBook Pro and iPhone5; won't do multiple files
I know I can go pay Verizon to do it but I want to know WHY and HOW this works the way it does.
Beyond frustrated. Hulk, smash. Please for the love of god help me, and not in an "ambigous remark: sync to iCloud'" kind of way.
THANK YOU!
-Yancy

Seriously folks? I know it was long but I added all info to negate a need for endless back/forth clarifications. No answers???
FYI, i tried syncing contacts to google/gmail and it was a total clusterF as well. No gmail contacts, synced iphone, gmail contacts populated w/ all info but w/lots of repeat entries. Used seek and merge repeats in gmail and then resync but no such luck. Lots of iterations and nothing but fails. Seems everytime the phone and the gmail lists are "as desired" a new sync puts a ton of repeats back into gmail or onto phone. Still perplexed and still needing help....
pretty please....

Why can't my contacts in my address book be printed in "alpha" order?

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