WebProNews

Tag: contacts

  • Google Significantly Upgrades Contacts

    Google just released a preview of its new Contacts experience, which comes across as a major upgrade right off the bat, unlike other recent next-generation email-related offerings from the company.

    As Google says, the new experience makes it easier for you to keep track of the people you know and get the info you need, fast. A quick click on the preview link pretty much confirmed that for me. Whereas in the past, my Contacts have always been kind of a jumbled mess comprised largely of people I rarely interact with, the new experience puts the people I actually know and care about front and center, and with virtually no effort on my part.

    The new Contacts puts together all your contacts, circles, and the people you talk to most in Gmail.

    It also includes a re-tooled “find duplicates” feature to make weeding those out easier.

    “As the people you know change jobs, cities, and names, it can be tough to stay up to date with their latest information,” says product manager Sean Purcell. “The new Contacts ensures that the info you see is still accurate and ready to use by blending your contact’s Google profile information with the stuff you already have.”

    The product will also now show you your most recent emails and meetings with a person right in their contact card. This could be tremendously helpful for recalling who people even are, and what your relationship with them was even based on in the first place. For people who do a lot of emailing that’s a pretty great feature. This doesn’t actually appear to be working for all contacts for me at the moment, but this is only a preview.

    Google says you can expect to find the preview in Gmail sometime in the next few weeks, but you can take a look here in the meantime. It’s not available for Google Apps customers yet, but it will be eventually.

    In some ways, the new Contacts experience follows a similar path as Inbox by Google, the company’s latest attempt at rethinking email. Like Inbox, Contacts is making better use of Google’s various offerings and putting them together to make the product more useful. In my opinion, Contacts is a more practical attempt at this. It’s certainly not as radical a change as Inbox is compared to the familiar Gmail experience, though both do have their helpful traits.

    I guess what I’m trying to say is that I think the new Contacts will be much easier to swallow for the masses of Gmail users than Inbox necessarily will be. Granted, there are quite a few people who do think Inbox is an improvement to the Gmail experience.

    Images via Google

  • Yahoo Is Removing Email Addresses From People’s Contacts

    Yahoo has been removing contacts from Yahoo Mail users’ contacts lists without the consent of these users. We received an email about it from one angry user this morning.

    The user included a message they received from Yahoo Customer Care, which said:

    Yahoo! wants to make sure your address book is filled with the most current and valid emails to those family, friends and contacts you need to reach. We noticed that you had emails in your address book that are no longer valid, so we have removed them.

    Email addresses that have been removed:
    xxxxxx.xxxxxxx@rogers.com
    and %count% more.

    Only retired emails have been removed. All other contact information remains.

    Did you know you can import more contacts from Facebook or Gmail in two easy steps? Get started now.

    “If Yahoo can get into my contacts and remove valid email addresses, what else can they take?” the user said in an email to WebProNews.

    “I called Rogers, my internet provider,” the user said. “They didn’t seem to know anything about it. They gave me Yahoo’s phone number as Rogers uses Yahoo Mail. Yahoo said that it was a Yahoo initiative and they are not prepared to stop it.”

    “I re-input the valid email address and when I tried to email my friend on Oct 7th, the email address had once again disappeared from my contacts,” the user said. “No warning this time….I have no idea how many email addresses that Yahoo has removed.”

    “I consider this an invasion of my privacy,” the user added.

    The user noted that not everyone at Rogers is aware of the issue. “I have to dig hard to get confirmation that it is actually happening. It was admitted in writing when I had a ‘live chat’ with Rogers on October 7th. Unfortunately, I became so frustrated that I did not capture the conversation. Employees that I speak with at Rogers are wowed.”

    The user says her friend (the owner of the email address that Yahoo removed) is wondering how many contacts and lists she has been deleted from.

    Yahoo acknowledges in its help center that it has been deleting contacts. Here’s the message:

    Yahoo Deletes Contacts

    Now, Yahoo claims it is only deleting invalid addresses from people’s contacts. The user insists that the one they deleted from her account was a valid address. Based on the email she sent us, her friend seems to agree. We’re still in the process of trying to confirm that it is indeed a valid address.

    We’ve also reached out to Yahoo for comment, and have yet to hear back. We’ll update if we do. They do appear to acknowledge in the help center article that errors are possible, but it’s interesting that the user in question restored the address only to have it removed again.

    Either way, the whole thing brings to light another issue posed by Yahoo’s email address recycling program. We’ve already seen claims of security issues that have been discovered where users are getting emails from the original account holders, sometimes containing sensitive information. Yahoo has even acknowledged that this has actually happened, and responded with a button for users to let Yahoo know when they get other people’s email. This does little to prevent bad actors from taking advantage, however.

    Yahoo has received a fair amount of criticism from people in the security field over the program, which was simply designed to give its loyal users better email addresses. Now, we have people thinking that Yahoo itself is invading their privacy.

    Update: Here’s the response we got from Yahoo:

    “In June, we announced an opportunity for users to sign up for the Yahoo username they’ve always wanted. We’re able to do this because we’re freeing up usernames that were inactive for at least 12 months. As part of this recycling process, if an inactive account is listed within a Yahoo address book, it is automatically removed when the account is recycled. This is so that we can ensure that email is sent to the intended recipient. Any other information such as phone numbers, mailing addresses, or alternate email addresses within the contact remains.

    If a user believes their Yahoo! Contacts were removed in error, we encourage them to review this help article about restoring missing contacts for more information.”

    Update 2: We’ve confirmed that the address in question was indeed valid.

    Images: Yahoo

  • Google Adds Gmail Contacts To Search Field Trial

    Last summer, Google launched the search field trial for users to opt into, and have Google return results from their Gmail accounts, when relevant, when performing regular web searches. This also included flight information, and Google eventually added data from Google Drive and Calendar into the mix.

    Now Google has announced the further expansion of the field trial, with users now able to search Gmail contacts from the web search box.

    Google says it will also soon add data from Google+ profiles into the mix.

    Google had this to say in a Google+ update:

    Google

    Google13 hours ago

    If you’re in the Google Search field trial (g.co/searchtrial), you can now look up your Gmail contacts directly from Search. Want quick directions to your friend Brittney's house while on the move? You can use Voice Search to ask "What’s Brittney's address?" and Google will show you the address, with turn-by-turn directions in one tap on your phone. If you need quick access to your friend Joanna's phone number, just say "Joanna's phone number" and it's there; with one tap you can call her. Join the field trial at http://g.co/searchtrial and let us know what you think.

    We currently support all of your Gmail contacts and we'll be adding support for G+ profiles soon.

    354    36 Powered by socialditto

    The field trial search has been one of the most significant things Google has done in search in terms of bringing together users’ data from its various products, which it technically should be able to do for any signed-in user. It will be interesting to see how long this functionality remains on an opt-in basis. The company, of course, still faces issues over the privacy policy that allows it to share its data from product to product.

  • LinkedIn Launches New LinkedIn Contacts

    LinkedIn Launches New LinkedIn Contacts

    LinkedIn announced the new LinkedIn Contacts today. This is described as a way to bring all your contacts into one place.

    Specifically, LinkedIn Contacts brings contacts from your address books, email accounts, and calendars together with your LinkedIn network.

    “From these sources, we’ll automatically pull in the details of your past conversations and meetings, and bring these details directly onto your contact’s profile,” says LinkedIn’s Sachin Rekhi.

    LinkedIn Contacts is available on LinkedIn.com, and has a standalone app for the iPhone. Stilly, you have to get an invite, and the company will start sending them to a limited number of users in the U.S. over the coming weeks.

    While LinkedIn does not mention Android or other mobile platforms, one can only assume that the app will broaden its audience at some point.

  • Sprint Lets Subscribers Use Their Name as Their Number

    I’ll admit it. There are only a couple of numbers in my smartphone’s contacts list that I know by heart, and I only know those because I’ve known them since before I got a cell phone. I couldn’t tell you my girlfriend’s phone number from memory if you put me on the spot.

    Today, Sprint is making it easier for all of us by unveiling its StarStar Me program. The feature will function as a sort of phone number DNS service, allowing users to pick a short name, word, or phrase, proceeded by two asterisks, in place of their number. For example, I might choose to be contacted by **SEANP, my first name and last initial (the nickname has to be 5 to 9 characters long, so I can’t use just my first name).

    “Sprint customers will be the first people to get StarStar Me,” said Kevin McGinnis, vice president of Product and Technology Development at Sprint. “We expect this service to be especially popular with professionals, students and family customers, who can tailor its use to their individual preferences, lifestyles and interests with a few simple clicks.”

    The only catch is that the service won’t be free. Sprint subscribers will be charged $3 per month for the feature. There is a smartphone app that goes along with it, though. It enables features such as managing incoming calls, automatic texting, and sending contact information, including social media accounts. The app is currently available for Android, and will be coming to iOS soon.

    Sprint has set up a website for subscribers to choose their StarStar nickname, and those who want the service should sign up quickly to get their desired moniker. As expected, many common names are already taken, though some provocative combos such as **STEVEJOBS, **BILLGATES, **BRUCELEE, **TOMHANKS and **BOBAMA are still available.

    Below is an explanatory ad that Sprint released to coincide with the launch of the service. Though **CHLOE and **JAVAGUY are taken, some of the nicknames shown in the video (such as **SUPERMOM) are still available.

  • Google Launches New Way To Sync Contacts

    Google has introduced a new way to sync Google Contacts between the desktop and mobile devices. This comes in the form of the CardDAV open protocol. Developers will be able to take advantage of the protocol to make their apps better in how they handle your contacts.

    Product manager Jeff Ellingson explains in a blog post, “For many years, we’ve supported two open protocols for accessing Gmail and Calendar from mobile apps and devices: IMAP for email and CalDAV for calendar. These protocols, combined with the options to access Gmail, Calendar, and Contacts with your desktop or mobile browser and via native apps on iOS and Android, help ensure you have a great experience regardless of the device you use.”

    “Starting today, we’re adding CardDAV – an open protocol for contacts – to that list,” he adds. “CardDAV enables 3rd party clients, like the iOS contacts app, to sync your Google contacts. By supporting IMAP, CalDAV, and CardDAV together, we’re making it possible for 3rd parties to build a seamless Google Account sync experience.”

    To sync your contacts to your device, open the Settings app on your device, select Mail, Contacts, Calendars, then select Add Account, then Other, then “Add CardDAV Account.” From there, fill out your account info. Under “Server,” enter “Google.com”. Under “User Name,” enter your full Google Account or Google Maps email address. Enter your password a description of your account. Then select Next at the top of the screen, and make sure that the Contacts option is turned on.

    After you do all of that, just open the Contacts app on your device, and syncing will automatically begin. You can find more about the process in this help center article from Google.

  • Connected Acquired by LinkedIn

    LinkedIn has acquired contact management company Connected, which is designed to help people manage their contacts across services from a single place.

    In a message on the Connected Blog, Conected’s Sachin Rekhi and Ada Chen write:

    We’re excited about the acquisition by LinkedIn because they share our passion for helping individuals maximize the value of their professional connections. As part of the acquisition, we will be joining the LinkedIn team and working to truly revolutionize contact management. We’ll now be able to do this better and faster and bring this functionality to LinkedIn’s audience of over 120 million professionals.

    We’re also happy to announce that starting today we’re making Connected completely free! You can now experience the joys of managing your contacts in Connected without the price tag. If you’re an existing user of Connected, please visit our FAQ for how this affects you.

    We would like to thank all of our early adopters, advisers, and investors who have helped us get here. The product would not have grown to what it is today without all of your inspiration, feature suggestions, bug reports, and overall support. We look forward to continuing to improve how you manage your professional relationships!

    Here’s a close look at what Connected does (from the company site):

    Connected

    Terms of the deal have not been disclosed (hat tip to Liz Gannes for first reporting).