How to use vCard in Outlook 2002 (290840)

MORE INFORMATION

vCard serves as an electronic business card. It is a convenient way of exchanging personal information such as, name, address, phone number, and e-mail address.

How to Create a vCard

Use the following steps to create a vCard:

1. In a Contact folder, click to select the contact for which you want a vCard.
2. On the File menu, click Save As.
3. In the Save file as type box, click to select VCARD Files (*.vcf).
4. In the Save In box, select the folder where you want to save the vCard file, and then click Save.

This creates a vCard file with the same name as that of the Contact.

How to Distribute a vCard

You can distribute a vCard file as you distribute any other computer file. To do this:

1. Open a new message and address it to the recipient.
2. On the Insert menu, click File.
3. Click to select a vCard (.vcf) file, and then click OK.

NOTE: If you want to include Notes with your vCard, you must insert the .vcf file. If the .vcf is attached to your signature, the Notes field (and other fields) are removed prior from the vCard.

How to Automatically Process a vCard

With Outlook 2002, you can automatically convert a vCard received from an external source to an Outlook Contact record. If the vCard arrives as an e-mail attachment, you can double-click the vCard attachment, and then click Save And Close to add it to your default Contact folder. Or you can create a Contact from a vCard by dragging it to the Contacts folder.

NOTE: If the vCard icon appears as a generic Windows icon, it does not open when you double-click the icon, or you may receive an Open With prompt because the vCard File program is not associated with the .vcf file type. For detailed information on how to correct this, click Help on the Start menu, and type associating, file types with programs. Click Display, click Creating or modifying a file type, and then click Display.

If you receive the vCard in the form of a file on a disk, you can import it into your default Contact folder by using the Outlook Import and Export Wizard. To do this:

1. On the File menu, click Import And Export.
2. Click to select the Import a vCard file (*.vcf) check box, and then click Next.
3. Click to select the vCard file, and then click Open.

The vCard data is used to create a Contact record in your default Contacts folder.

How to Store a vCard in a Secondary Contacts Folder

If you import a vCard file or open and save a vCard file, it is placed directly into your default Contacts folder in the default message store. To store the vCard in a Contacts folder other than the default, you can drag the vCard file to the secondary folder or first import it into the default Contacts folder, and copy it to the secondary folder.

How to Include a vCard with Your Automatic Signature

Use the following steps to include a vCard with your Automatic signature:

1. On the Tools menu, click Options.
2. On the Mail Format tab, click Signature Picker.
3. Click New to add a new signature.
4. Enter a name for your signature, and then click Next.
5. Type the desired signature information in the text window.
6. Click New vCard from Contact.
7. In Show name from the, select Contacts or another address list.
8. Click to select the entry to create a vCard for, click OK, click Finish, and then click OK to complete the signature entry.

NOTE: If your vCard contains Notes, UserDefined fields, or Outlook-specific fields, these values are stripped from the vCard that is included with the signature. The Signature Picker specifically includes only those fields in a Contact that are essential to the definition of a vCard.

How to Manually Process a vCard as a Text File

A vCard record is just a text file. If you do not have an automated facility to process vCard records, you can open them with a text editor and use the information. The contents of a vCard file varies with the information inserted by the file creator, but a typical file created from a Contact record looks like the following when opened in a text editor:

BEGIN:VCARD
VERSION:2.1
N:Doe;John;;;
FN:John Doe
ORG:Doe Company, The;
TITLE: President
NOTE;ENCODING=QUOTED-PRINTABLE: This is a note associated with this
contact=0D=0A
TEL;WORK;VOICE:(987) 123-4567
TEL;HOME;VOICE:(987) 765-4321
TEL;CELL;VOICE:(987) 135-8642
TEL;WORK;FAX:(987) 246-1357
ADR;WORK:;;1234 North Street;Anytown;TX 751234;;United States of America
LABEL;WORK;ENCODING=QUOTED-PRINTABLE:1234 North Street=0D=0AAnytown, TX
751234 =0D=0AUnited States of America
URL:
URL:<WWLINK TYPE="GENERIC"
VALUE="http://www.doeweb.com">http://www.doeweb.com</WWLINK>
EMAIL;PREF;INTERNET:jdoe@nowhere.com
REV:19980114T170559Z
END:VCARD
				

NOTE: Text formatting applied to entries in the Notes field is not preserved when the .vcf file is save to your hard disk. The file format is preserved in ASCII text only. For additional information, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: