Sync with iCloud Contacts?

[Matt Wiewel]

I’m a former Bento user and I’m trying to configure TF for Mac to sync with iCloud Contacts.

In reading some of the other forum posts, it appears that this is possible, but I cannot seem to get it configured correctly. I have enabled iCloud Sync within TF and performed a sync with some (17) test contacts in TF. My current iCloud contacts account only has 2 contacts (I’ve been using Google Contacts with Bento currently). These 17 test contacts are not appearing in iCloud Contacts (via the iCloud web interface).

Am I missing something? Will TF really sync with Contacts for the fields that correspond?

[Brendan]

Hello Matt,

No, Tap Forms will not sync with contacts using any of the text fields, even if they have the same name as fields in the Contacts app.

In order to reference a contact within Tap Forms, you need to add a Contact field type to your form. When you click on the button to select a contact, Tap Forms will copy the first and last name into a field in its database. Clicking on the button again after that will display all of the contact details from within the Contacts database.

Hope that clears it up a bit.

Thanks!

Brendan

[Matt Wiewel]

Thanks Brendan,

Is there any way to do this automatically when I import over 5,600 contacts from my Bento database?

Matt

[Brendan]

Hi Matt,

Unfortunately there isn’t a way to link to the contacts at the moment.

I just looked at Bento’s template export when exporting contacts, but it doesn’t seem to have any direct identifying information to link each contact to a contact in the Contact’s database. Well, other than the person’s name. I mean there’s no unique ID which would let me pick out the contact directly. They don’t even identify that the name fields are contacts. It just says they’re regular text fields. So it makes it more difficult to link to a contact. Tap Forms would end up creating separate text fields for each of your contact’s attributes (e.g. first name, last name, etc.) for at least all of the field types that Tap Forms supports. There are some that Bento supports that Tap Forms doesn’t (e.g. Address).

I wonder what would happen if you imported your template to someone else’s computer? Would the imported contacts be added to their contacts database? I haven’t tried that out.

Thanks,

Brendan

[Matt Wiewel]

Thanks Brendan,

So, just that I’m clear. If I link a record in TF to a Mac Contact using the “Contact” field, none of the data in the TF Record will update the Contact Record or vice versa?

Meaning, the fields in the TF Record (ie. address, phone, email address, ect) are really separate fields kept in TF. And, even though I can link that TF Record to a Mac Contact, it’s not really synching TF fields with Contact fields, correct?

[Brendan]

Hi Matt,

When you reference a contact in Tap Forms, there’s a button to the right of a contact field which will display all the contact record details in a popover view. That data comes directly from the Contacts database. The same one used by the Contacts app. So you can edit the contact within Tap Forms and it will change the contact in the Contacts app too. This also works vice versa. But what Bento did was extract all the fields from the contact database, created new separate fields within Bento, then kept those fields in sync with the Contacts database.

Tap Forms is just referencing the contact in the Contacts database. It only displays the first and last name as copied in when you select a contact but the button to the right is what will show you all the contact details.

See attached screenshots. The first one is after you select a contact and then you view the contact details. The second screenshot is editing the contact from within Tap Forms.

As far as printing is concerned, you only have access to the first and last name combined field that Tap Forms copies in when you select a contact. I hope to improve that in a future update to let you get access to more contact details.

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[Matt Wiewel]

Thanks for all of your help Brendan,

I love your app, especially what you’ve done for former Bento users. It would be the perfect replacement for me if I didn’t have to manually link all 5,700 of my contacts to records in TF, and if the fields in TF could update the corresponding fields in the Contacts DB.

Ideally, I would like to have one contacts DB that syncs across Mac Contacts (formerly Address Book), Google Contacts, and the TF record (as Bento does today on Operating Systems older than Mavericks).

That way one could update/add contact info on one (iPhone synching with Google Contacts, for example), and the change/add would propagate out to the others.

Your app would be KILLER if it could do that.

-Matt

[Brendan]

Hi Matt,

Ya, it would be too much word to link all the contacts up manually I’m sure. I’m sorry that Tap Forms doesn’t automate that for you.

If you could email me your Bento template for your contacts library then I could examine it and compare it with my export. I don’t need or want the data, just the template.

Maybe at the very least I could do a lookup based on first and last name and try to connect them up.

Also, you can add a new contact on the iOS version from within Tap Forms, but not on the Mac version. I don’t really see the need though since you can easily have the Contacts app open and you can add contacts there.

Thanks,

Brendan

[Matt Wiewel]

Thanks Brendan,

Here is my Bento template.

Cheers,

-Matt

[Brendan]

Hi Matt,

Just email it to me because the form doesn’t let you upload xml files directly.

Thanks,

Brendan

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