Duplicate contacts when transferring my Thunderbird address book
J-Charles33
Posted messages
2
Status
Member
-
spilal -
spilal -
Hello everyone and thank you for the warm welcome to this forum.
So, I have two computers (one for me and my girlfriend) and we use Thunderbird as our email software.
We have combined our personal email addresses, which is super practical when we are on the go.
During these trips, we only have one computer and we collect new addresses, and when we get home, I would like to be able to transfer these new addresses.
So I export and then import the address book to my other computer that stays at home.
At that point, the new addresses are there, but the ones we already had are also copied and end up being duplicated.
Is there a way to avoid these duplicates?
Thank you for your responses.
J-Charles
So, I have two computers (one for me and my girlfriend) and we use Thunderbird as our email software.
We have combined our personal email addresses, which is super practical when we are on the go.
During these trips, we only have one computer and we collect new addresses, and when we get home, I would like to be able to transfer these new addresses.
So I export and then import the address book to my other computer that stays at home.
At that point, the new addresses are there, but the ones we already had are also copied and end up being duplicated.
Is there a way to avoid these duplicates?
Thank you for your responses.
J-Charles
1 answer
Hello,
When exporting an address book, only the one that is selected (on the left) is exported.
If the "all address books" level is selected, they are all exported.
During import, a new book is created under the name of the export file, containing only what the export file contains.
So put the new addresses to be transferred in a separate address book and only export that book.
On the recipient system, move the imported contacts to the personal book (select multiple and drag-and-drop), then delete the import book.
When exporting an address book, only the one that is selected (on the left) is exported.
If the "all address books" level is selected, they are all exported.
During import, a new book is created under the name of the export file, containing only what the export file contains.
So put the new addresses to be transferred in a separate address book and only export that book.
On the recipient system, move the imported contacts to the personal book (select multiple and drag-and-drop), then delete the import book.
Now I have another question that comes to mind.
When I modify a contact's information on one of my computers that is already registered on both computers, how can I transfer it without creating a duplicate?
I think I can move it to a separate folder before exporting it, but when moving it back to the personal folder after importing, I find that I have two. How can I do this without having to sort and delete the contact(s)?
Moreover, we sometimes work on both computers and on different contacts, and it is a huge task to have to check and delete the old contacts that we have modified on each side each time.
Thank you.
There is no simple solution other than manual for your problem.
In fact, what you're looking for is a synchronization of contacts between the two computers.
There is an extension for Thunderbird that allows you to synchronize address books with those of Gmail on Google: gContactSync.
I mention it reluctantly because the idea of handing all my contacts over to Google bothers me somewhat.
I don’t know how you use your two computers, so it’s difficult for me to provide you with a solution that truly meets your needs, but I imagine there’s a "main" PC and a "secondary" one (for traveling). Or perhaps only one is used and the other is rarely? Or both simultaneously?
The solution probably lies more in the organization you have or need to adopt than in just syncing the contacts.
I imagine you have more than just contacts to synchronize, but also emails, in order to keep the history of those emails in one unique and safe place.
Know that there are synchronization software available (and I even know of a free one) that allows you to copy what is missing from one side to the other.
It is also possible to make a copy of the entire "Profiles" folder from one Thunderbird to the other to create a mirror image. This folder contains everything: Mail, attachments, contacts, settings.
Finally, there is a "portable" version of Thunderbird.
This is a version of Thunderbird that installs on a USB key and stores all your personal email there.
You can download it from here: https://portableapps.com/apps/internet/thunderbird_portable after clicking "French" in "Other Languages." It behaves exactly the same way, with the same settings, updates, and version level as the regular Thunderbird.
You take your USB key, plug it into any PC, and you have all your emails with you, just like at home, without leaving any trace on the temporary computer you are using. The key is not to forget to put this key in the back of your pocket when you go on a trip!
In your case, if only one of the two PCs is used at a time, you just need to move the USB key from one to the other to carry all your emails with you and make them work on any PC as if you were at home.
perfectly clear and interesting.
There used to be a plugin that cleaned up duplicate contacts in the address book.
This plugin is no longer operational: let's wait for a new application.