Address Book Help
Index

# Importing contacts into Address Book

Address Book can import address information only in the following formats:

- vCard

- LDIF format

- tab-delimited file

- comma-separated values (CSV) file

To import contact information from another application, you need to save or export a file in one of these formats. You can export addresses in LDIF format from Netscape, and vCards from Palm desktop, Entourage, Outlook, and others. Most databases allow you to export text files in tab-delimited or CSV format.

To identify the kind of file you are trying to import, select the document and choose File > Get Info.

## To import addresses from other applications:

1. Export your addresses from the other application in one of the appropriate formats.
2. In Address Book, choose File > Import and choose the format of the exported file from the submenu. Choose "Text file" for tab-delimited and CSV files.
3. Select the file that contains the exported addresses.

Tip: To import many addresses at once, create a vCard that has multiple contacts (if the other application supports it).

When importing text files, Address Book uses labels in the file to know how to import the information into your address book database. For example, Address Book uses the label "Last name" in a text file to match up the corresponding information with "Last name" in your card template. In CSV files, a label appears before each item of information. In tab-delimited files, one set of labels appears at the beginning of the file that tells how the rest of the file is organized. Therefore, it is helpful to export information from another application in a standard format in order to import the information into Address Book. When exporting from Palm Desktop, for example, use the default column layout. If your text file does not include labels, Address Book lets you assign the fields during the import process.

To see the last batch of addresses you added to Address Book, click Last Import in the Group column. The list of most recently imported addresses will be updated the next time you import addresses. Use the View menu to show or hide the Last Import item in the Group column.

You can also use iSync to import contacts from your Palm device. For more information, open iSync and search iSync help for "Palm."

## See also

vCards