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Don't Lose That Address!

This handy utility intelligently transfers field-to-field contact information between applications with a single click.

by Glenn McDonald, special to PC World
February 26, 1999, 9:28 a.m. PT

  Snail mail, voice mail, e-mail, phone, and fax: The list of ways we keep in touch isn't getting any shorter. While these modes of communication were all intended to simplify our lives, having to manage the multiple layers of contact info is way too complicated.

ProdEx's $89 AddressGrabber Business Edition simplifies and shortens the management tasks enough to make this program a real winner. It lets you capture and transfer contact information from e-mail, Web pages, and text documents directly into your address book of choice without retyping--and it's even smart enough to know where to put most elements without being told.

One-Click Transfers

While several contact managers provide multistep import/export features for transferring contact information, AddressGrabber actually allows you to move data from various sources into any compliant contact manager or address book with just one click of the mouse.

Here's how it works: When you install AddressGrabber, the program automatically detects all your various address books and puts them into a movable toolbar you can resize or hide to fit your desktop.

So let's say you get a new e-mail from a prospective client and want to move the contact information from his note directly into your address book. His address info might look something like this:

Joe S. Moe, Contractor
Good Citizen Construction Company
1000 Main St.
Detroit, MI 48240
home: 313-555-1212
work: 313-555-2121
joe@moe.com

AddressGrabber is able to intelligently "figure out" which information belongs in the respective fields of your address book--name, title, address, phone number, e-mail, and so on. You simply select all the address information, click the destination application from the AddressGrabber tool bar, and the data is transferred automatically field-by-field.

I tested AddressGrabber using Netscape Navigator's built-in address book as the destination program and was duly impressed with the utility's discretion. Transferred information almost always landed in the proper place--AddressGrabber seemed to get confused only by too many entries on the same line of text. These instances are easily tamed, however, by choosing to confirm--and fix--extraction results before transferring.

Expandable Support

Besides grabbing contact info from text documents, AddressGrabber can also move information between different address books--say, from the Netscape address book to Act and back again. If your target address book is closed, AddressGrabber automatically launches the necessary application.

Some of the common programs currently supported by AddressGrabber include Act, GoldMine®, Maximizer, Outlook®, Lotus Organizer, Word, WordPerfect, Excel, and Outlook® Express®. (Minor limitations exist for several of these applications: They're spelled out in AddressGrabber's readme file.)

Certain MAPI-based address books, such as Windows 95's default Internet Mail and News Client, aren't yet included. ProdEx says it is working on support for the additional apps. The company promises to make future add-ons available free via its Web site.

AddressGrabber is available in three versions that provide different levels of flexibility. The $29 Standard version allows you to choose just one destination address book program. The $49 Standard package extends this to multiple applications and address books. And the $89 AddressGrabber Business (the version I tested) includes additional support for QuickBooks, along with Federal Express and United Parcel Service shipping applications.

Little extras--an automatic phone dialer and envelope printer--are added to make AddressGrabber a useful, basic contact manager. Considering its capabilities, I found it surprising that a default address book wasn't provided. ProdEx told me to expect one in its next upgrade.

Overall, AddressGrabber passed my litmus test for really useful utilities: It has found a permanent home on my hard drive. You can download a free trial version from ProdEx's Web site.

Published 2/99 by: www.pcworld.com/news