This should be helpful for Mac users who use Gmail and/or Salesforce. For various reasons, I sometimes use all of these apps/devices for accessing email and contacts.

• Address Book on Mac OS X
• Outlook 2007 on XP (on Parallels on my MacBook Pro)
• Google Apps - IMAP (Gmail)
• iPhone
• Salesforce.com - All our customer data is in this system

How do you get all your contacts in all these places?

Step 1

You have to use Address Book as the primary data store. I have contacts in here that I don’t need in Salesforce, because they are friends and family.

So the first step is supplementing this with all my customer data from Salesforce. No problem in Outlook 2007 as you just install Salesforce Outlook Edition and sync with Salesforce. However, there is no equivalent solution from Salesforce for Address Book on Mac OS X.

Luckily, these clever chaps are working on an open source tool that does this:

sfCubed

This is in beta, but it works fine for me.

Step 2

Now I just sync my iPhone via iTunes and I have all my customer information on my phone. Easy.

Step 3

Now I want everything in Gmail as well so that I can access all the contacts, if for any reason, I can only use web mail.

Download A to G

This simple utility exports your Address Book to a .csv file that can be imported into Gmail.

Conclusion

This is a satisfactory but still manual process for getting all contacts data everywhere I want. Ideally this would be all achieved via iSync on Mac OS X, however, I think this will probably be a little while away.

I have been looking for a decent aggregated instant messaging application for Mac for a long time. Microsoft’s MSN Messenger for Mac is hopeless, so I stopped using it a long time ago. I also struggle with iChat even though it supports Google Talk, I haven’t found it that reliable or easy to use.

Adium is definitely the answer, it supports everything I need. It even has an early plug-in which supports Skype.

Technorati Tags: adium

Last year rumours surfaced that Apple intend to release an ultra-thin lightweight solid state drive MacBook laptop.

Now, a patent application from Apple describes what looks like at a docking station for the same MacBook that would be integrated into a widescreen LCD monitor. You could have all the portability but then just slide your new ultra-thin MacBook into the screen to have a full desktop set up.

If this is true, it would be amazing.

Mobilewhack got the scoop on this one.

Technorati Tags: apple

I have had a bit of lull in installing anything new on my iPhone as I have been so busy before Xmas, however, having had a bit of time now, I’ve found some excellent new apps.

telekinesis

telekinesis is a remote control app for your Mac. It allows you access your computer from your iPhone and

• Stream music and videos from your computer learn how
• Screen capture with mouse click and basic typing support
• Simple iTunes Remote control
• Browse your files
• Run applescript remotely
• iSight image capture
• Basic Spotlight search

This is a very early release and considered a prototype only and there would be some major security considerations to take into account. It does however provide a framework to easily create and add more apps, so if this is picked up we could so a lot more remote control functionality added quite quickly.

Read more on teleinesis at MobileWhack.com.

Camera Pro for iPhone

Camera Pro supplements the very, very basic functionality you get with the Apple Camera application.

The Free version gives you:

• Digital Zoom
• Black & White
• Image Size
• Auto-orientation

Or if you are prepared to pay USD$19.95 you will also get:

• Self-Timer
• Burst Mode
• Burst Speed
• Silent Shutter

They are also working on Flickr integration, although there are already some good free apps that do this (iFlickr and iPushr). This is a great app especially for the ability to zoom, although I’m not sure I need the paid version.

iPhoneSender

iPhoneSender is not strictly speaking an iPhone app, but it is very handy all the same. I love the Google Maps app and use it frequently. All iPhoneSender do is allow you to look on Google Maps in your desktop browser and then with one click email a link to your iPhone that will then open up directly in Google Maps on the iPhone.

WiSync

WiSync is something that Apple should support right out of the box. As the name suggests, this let’s you sync files between your computer and your iPhone over a wireless network rather than using the cable. It does not replicate the sync that you get in iTunes, but is useful nonetheless.

Apple must be working on a bluetooth and/or WiFi sync for iTunes, this functionality exists in Windows Mobile devices.

VoiceNotes

This functionality is available from Apple’s 1.1.3 software update, but if you don’t want to brick your hacked iPhone (like me) then this app will do the same thing. Get this via the Installer app.

In a meeting last month Katie accused me of having a Crackberry addiction as she watched my eyes flick to my Blackberry when the little red light started blinking to tell me there was a new email message.

She was absolutely right, I loved my Blackberry. So when I got my new iPhone I wasn’t sure I would actually switch to it, as I had played with one the week it was launched and wasn’t sure about the email functionality, which is really my key requirement in a phone.

I could not have been more wrong. I am cured of my Crackberry habit, but it has been substituted with a serious addition to the iPhone. Here are 5 signs you may be addicted to your iPhone.

1. You check the weather on your iPhone rather instead of looking out the window.
2. You choose where you get your coffee based on their WiFi availability. You are even considering drinking Starbucks for this reason.
3. Your index finger is starting to get sore from the touch screen.
4. You nearly drive into the car in front of you because you were too busy checking Facebook on your iPhone.
5. Your data usage costs more than your voice calls on your cell phone bill from all the web browsing.

Technorati Tags: blackberry, crackberry, iphone

Have finally had some time to try and hack this 1.1.1 iPhone again. Managed to do it WITHOUT downgrading the firmware to 1.0.2, which is what all the guides say you have to do.

It was quite a process though. I’ll post up full instructions soon as I’m sure I can’t be the only person that has problems. Most of the guides out there assume a certain older model of iPhone I think.

But for now, I’m too busy setting up my toy.

Technorati Tags: iphone

Well not for you, just for me. My esteemed business partner is in the US at the moment and has just picked us up a new Apple iPhone each and it should be in my hands by Tuesday.

Technorati Tags: iphone

Rod and I share the same desire…the perfect home network/backup solution.

I agree with Rod, offsite storage is definitely the answer, but it all comes back to faster, cheaper broadband. I too miss the Briefcase/Offline Files feature of Windows since I moved to Mac. I actually use it in my Parallels Windows XP machine (this allows you run Windows on your Mac simultaneously) to sync with the file servers at the office. There is a great new feature in Parallels 3.0 where you can open a file from Windows in an app on OS X or vice versa. You can also now mount up the drive without booting up the virtual machine. I tried Chronosync, but it just gives you errors without any explanation of what you might do to solve those errors? Also, it corrupts certain files if you have applications open during the sync.

Regarding backup of iTunes and iPhoto, the only solution I have found is to use Chronosync to my firewire drive at home via a network shared drive on the home Mac. There is also the ability to have multiple iTunes/iPhoto libraries, you just hold down the alt/option key when starting the application. This allowed me to have a cut down iTunes library which I use when I’m traveling and leave the massive one with all my video at home.

There should be a simpler solution though. Back up technology is just so disappointing, I just don’t think it has really advanced at all except the type of media you back up onto.

Apple recently dropped their price on the new iPhone only a couple of months after it was launched. This caused a massive backlash from all the early adopters who queued up outside Apple Stores all over the US the first day it went on sale.

Now they Apple is offering $100 US store credit to anyone who feels disaffected. I think this is extremely admirable of Apple, but what do these people expect? Of course you pay more for being an early adopter. This is the same with virtually any product, especially mobile phones and other consumer electronics. I’ll never forget buying my first PlayStation within months of it being released, I don’t even want to remember exactly how much I paid for it. Maybe I can get Sony to give me some store credit?

I’ve tried very hard to resist my early adopter urges in recent years as you also end up dealing with potential problems with new hardware. The iPhone is not immune from such issues.

You have to have a valid AT&T account number to get this, so too bad if you bought an iPhone and hacked it to use it on a different network.

Technorati Tags: apple, iphone

Microsoft have announced they will release their answer to the iPhone:

Of course, I found this on FakeSteveJobs.com. Read his “Dead Man vlogging” post, very funny.

If you still feel like some more Microsoft bashing, checkout the Windows Vista Upgrade Decision Flowchart. You can get more useful flowcharts on BoingBoing.

Technorati Tags: apple, microsoft