Outlook.com

[superboyac]

found this:

Global Address list is NOT available offline for mobile devices (Windows Phone, Android, iPhone...)

http://community.off...ums/172/t/10181.aspx

If that's true, that's it.  I'm out.  No more google, no more microsoft, no apple.  this is too much.  if everyone wants their ecosystem, they can go ahead without me.  Microsoft and their idiotic ecosystem that doesn't even play with their own products is the silliest one.

I'm off to check out owncloud's contact capabilities.

[tomos]

This article may be of interest:
Why I use Outlook.com for my custom email accounts (and how you can too) (Znet/Ed Bott)

(sorry, that link is page two of the article, with the instructions - page one here)

[Stoic Joker]

I'd guess it's this, but SB will have to confirm:
http://en.wikipedia..../Global_Address_List

-tomos (December 12, 2013, 03:01 PM)

Correct, and yes the Exchange online does have one. It's a full fledged Exchange server with a web based configuration interface, and full PowerShell support (from LM).

-Stoic Joker (December 12, 2013, 03:42 PM)

hmmm....I'm really having a hard time seeing where these options are.  Let's say I have a csv file of addresses.  I want to use it to make a GAL, but I can't find that option anywhere.  I'm really having a hard time with all this gui oversimplification windows has done with windows 8 and wp8.  it's too much.  too much white space, not enough buttons.  But they still need the functionality, so they are hiding everything in the weirdest places.  is it really that much of a gui nuisance to have a little menu button somewhere that expands all the options in one place?  is that really going to turn the entire market away from windows to apple?

-superboyac (December 12, 2013, 03:58 PM)

IIRC the csv import option requires PowerShell. Yes it a bit intimidation (CLI...) but it's really not that bad. If I can find the procedure in my notes from the last job (had to pull all sorts of shit from everywhere), I'll post them here later.

[superboyac]

I'd guess it's this, but SB will have to confirm:
http://en.wikipedia..../Global_Address_List

-tomos (December 12, 2013, 03:01 PM)

Correct, and yes the Exchange online does have one. It's a full fledged Exchange server with a web based configuration interface, and full PowerShell support (from LM).

-Stoic Joker (December 12, 2013, 03:42 PM)

hmmm....I'm really having a hard time seeing where these options are.  Let's say I have a csv file of addresses.  I want to use it to make a GAL, but I can't find that option anywhere.  I'm really having a hard time with all this gui oversimplification windows has done with windows 8 and wp8.  it's too much.  too much white space, not enough buttons.  But they still need the functionality, so they are hiding everything in the weirdest places.  is it really that much of a gui nuisance to have a little menu button somewhere that expands all the options in one place?  is that really going to turn the entire market away from windows to apple?

-superboyac (December 12, 2013, 03:58 PM)

IIRC the csv import option requires PowerShell. Yes it a bit intimidation (CLI...) but it's really not that bad. If I can find the procedure in my notes from the last job (had to pull all sorts of shit from everywhere), I'll post them here later.

-Stoic Joker (December 12, 2013, 05:27 PM)

ok ok...I'm warming back up to this solution.  Stoic, I'm trying to come up with a way where, say, Im running a small business and want to deploy android phones.  I want the phones configured like a factory line...like putting an image on a drive and then going with it.  So I'm trying to find the perfect combo of apps, services, etc.  the most difficult has been the contacts so far.  android contacts are klunky.  and i want it secure, corporate style, which means ms exchange or your own hosted version.  but you're convincing me of online exchange more and more, and now 40 also...so i want to make that work.

[Stoic Joker]

found this:

Global Address list is NOT available offline for mobile devices (Windows Phone, Android, iPhone...)

http://community.off...ums/172/t/10181.aspx

If that's true, that's it.  I'm out.  No more google, no more microsoft, no apple.  this is too much.  if everyone wants their ecosystem, they can go ahead without me.  Microsoft and their idiotic ecosystem that doesn't even play with their own products is the silliest one.

I'm off to check out owncloud's contact capabilities.

-superboyac (December 12, 2013, 04:03 PM)

Owncloud is just going to be a different way of getting to the same place ... Key word is Cloud. Here's the thing with the GAL...(key word global)...the object is to centralize information so everyone has access to, with out having to store a copy of the whole thing locally. This also cuts down on the need to use a ton of bandwidth while everybody syncs everything with everybody else.

How often are you really going to be completely offline these days? Any contact that has been previously used on any given device is going to be stored locally in its version of history. So it will only be the newly needed previously unused contacts that are not going to be readily available if you find yourself in airplane mode for some reason.

Actually, if you don't have a connection available to do a lookup, you'll not be able to send/call either...so there's really no loss of functionality. Unless for some odd reason you desperately need to lookup someone's number before writing it on the wall in an airplane bathroom.

[Shades]

GAL was already present in the SBS2000 server I once ran (years ago). What I also can tell you is that GAL isn't your friend when you want to automatize sending and receiving encrypted mail, which requires a feature called: 'extended MAPI' (and CAPI, of course). To my knowledge, Outlook is the only email client that supports extended MAPI, any other client only supports MAPI.

Extended MAPI is no fun to work with...and that is mainly due to very sparse (API) documentation from Microsoft. It feels like you need to visit the blog from a friend of the brother of the hairdresser from the neighbor of one of the developers to get (partial) info. This is in stark contrast with documentation delivered by MS for other MS products.

And with each iteration of Outlook and/or Office/Outlook patch Microsoft manages to break this. Consider this a friendly warning, I sure would have appreciated one when I started.