(Contributed by Jim Coulston)
After upgrading to Mac OS High Sierra, I noticed that I became unable to create new Contact records on my Mac. I’d be part way through creating a new Contact in the Contacts app, and the screen would suddenly refresh to an existing Contact - and the one I was creating just vanished! If I did get to finish entry (for example, if I just entered a first and last name and the Done), the new Contact would appear in the list briefly, but disappear again after a few seconds. At first, I thought I was hitting some strange key combination, or that I was doing something else wrong. However, nothing I tried seemed to work. The problem persists today. I can edit existing Contact records, but I just cannot create them on my Mac. We use a Gmail account for our shared business contacts and the issue seems to be related to Gmail accounts. It seems I’m not alone in having this problem. I checked the Apple support forums and there’s lots of reports of the same issue. Here are some suggested work-arounds.
None of these options are ideal, but at least I have a work-around until Apple and/or Google get around to fixing this annoying problem! Leave a comment if you too have been suffering this problem. And, if you have a solution, please let us know.
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 I see so many clients who have so many duplicated Contacts on the iPhone, iPad or Mac. The good news is that there is a really quick and easy way to identify and merge your duplicated contacts. Find out how in this week's Handy Hint for iTandCoffee Club members. If you are not yet a member, find out more about the club and how to join here » Related Handy Hints and ArticlesMac Handy Hints (for iTandCoffee Club members only) iPad and iPhone Handy Hints (for iTandCoffee Club members only)
iPad and iPhone iBlog articles Here's how to learn more about your Mac!
 A frustrating 'gap' on the iPad and iPhone is the inability to create 'contact groups' in the Contacts app, and then easily email or message such a group from your mobile device. I have just seen a really handy app that fills this gap well, and that is currently free (as at 11/2/17). I actually prefer it over a previously featured app that includes group creation functionality (Mail2Group). The app is called ContactsXL 2016 and can be found here ». (There is also a paid Contacts XL 2017 version - but the 2016 version seems to work well, so have just been using this free version.) Try it out and let us know what you think by leaving a comment below. Related Handy Hints and ArticlesHandy Hints
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Last newsletter featured an article about how to correct the name on your iPad or iPhone, in Settings -> General -> About.
Since that newsletter, I have had a couple of other queries from people who have found that their Contacts app shows someone else's details at the top of the list of their contacts. Check your own Contacts app to see what is showing above your first entry. Is it your own name, or perhaps another family member's? Incorrect details here can be easily corrected. In iOS 8 and earlier, go to Settings -> Mail, Contacts and Calendar, to the My Info field. In iOS9 and later, got to Settings -> Contacts -> My Info ​Tap this field, and choose YOUR OWN contact card. (If you don't have a contact card with your phone number and email address, create this first in the Contacts app - then come back and adjust this setting.) ​ 
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 Do you have a group of people who you need to email on a regular basis on your Mac? This group could be your team, committee members, your book group, your family, or just a group of friends. Creation of Groups is done in the Contacts App. The process is
View the step-by-step instructions for creating a Contacts Group, and then how to email that group, in this week's Mac Handy Hint for iTandCoffee Club members. Join the iTandCoffee Club today to view a huge list of hints and tips like this one. Related Handy Hints and tips For some reason, Apple does not seem to want to make it easy for us to set up Contact Groups on our iPads and iPhone using its standard apps. Why are Contact Groups important? Let's look at an example. You may regularly want to send an email to your Book Group, which perhaps has 10 people in it. Wouldn't it be great if you could just choose a 'book group' Contact group and have all the email addresses filled in automatically in your 'To' field of the email. This would be far easier than typing the names of each member of the group every time you send such an email. For those of us who have a computer, we can get around this limitation of the iPad and iPhone by creating a group on the computer and emailing the group from there. However, many people these days don't actually have a computer. They only have an iPad, and perhaps an iPhone. I've done some research on this. The good news is that there IS a solution for the iPad and iPhone. You CAN actually create a Contact Group on your iPad or iPhone and you CAN select that group and insert the corresponding list of contacts into your Mail's To field (or Cc, Bcc field) with just a tap. Find out how in the following Handy Hint for iTandCoffee Club members. Not yet a member? Join the club today! Related Handy Hints for iTandCoffee Club members (Find out how to Join the Club here)
 This question was asked at iTandCoffee twice this week, and I know that it is something that is especially great to know when it comes to addressing those envelopes for the Christmas cards.
Printing of addresses on labels and envelopes is SO easy when you have a Mac. I wrote a Handy Hint on this topic a couple of years ago not, so I figure now is a good time to recycle that hint, which is available in the iTandCoffee Club's members only area. For those of you who are members, here 'tis! 16/10/2015 0 Comments An easy way to quickly call, message or Facetime people using your iPad and iPhone iOS 9 has brought some great new features to the iPad and iPhone.
One that I have been finding particularly useful allows me to really easily search people's contact details and call or text them (for those occasions where I don't want to ask Siri to do this for me). This feature is one of the new Spotlight Search capabilities. Find out more about this feature in this iPhone Handy Hint, for iTandCoffee Club members. Make sure you have signed in - use the link in the right-hand sidebar if you haven't yet.) Not yet a member of The iTandCoffee Club? Why not join today. You'll get access to iTandCoffee's ever-growing library of Handy Hints, special members-only information sessions and other special offers advertised from time to time.  I have a friend called Sueanne, and Sueanne is someone who I call and text on a regular basis. However, Siri has never been able to understand me when I say 'Call Sueanne', translating this to 'Call Sue and' instead. This means that I am then asked with Sue I want to call - and Sueanne is not in the list that is provided. Normally, when Siri 'misunderstands' me, I get the chance to tap 'Edit' at the top right and correct 'her' translation of what I said. (By the way, if you would rather have a smooth-talking male Siri instead, check out this other Handy Hint about how to change Siri's voice.) Today, I finally took the time to sort out this Siri annoyance. It involved setting up some additional information in Sueanne's Contact record. Find out how in this Handy Hint for iTandCoffee Club members. (Sign in here first, if you are not already signed in.) Not yet a member of The iTandCoffee Club? Why not join today, for access to iTandCoffee's vast library of Handy Hints, special members-only information sessions and other special offers advertised from time to time. Related Articles and Handy Hints
 Yet another reason why I love Evernote (not that I needed any more!)
If you are an Evernote user, try this out next time you get a business card from someone - one that you want to save to your Contacts. Clever Evernote can scan the business card, work out the details of the person from the business card, and then automatically create a Contact from the details it detects! Find out more about this great feature of Evernote in this article on the Evernote website. Everyone needs Evernote in their life!! Do you have it is yours? If you want to learn about Evernote and how to use it, why not come along to our next 'Introduction to Evernote' class scheduled in July. Further details of this class can be found here. Why not join us to find out how organised you can become by using Evernote. |
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