Convert your PalmOS Contacts to vCard

Modern versions of Palm Desktop keep your data in highly proprietary databases and file formats. In order for it to be of any use to you, you will have to convert the data to something more "industry standard". In this example, we will convert Palm Desktop’s Contacts (PD version 4.1.4) into the vCard format, which is much more popular with other email programs, PIMs, mobile phones and websites. Fortunately, by using Palm Desktop’s export capabilities supports vCard, and so you too can achieve "data portability".

1. Make sure you have HotSynced your Palm with your Palm Desktop to make sure the data is up to date. If you have difficulty HotSyncing your Palm, make sure you check Fixing HotSync Problems.

2. From the Palm Desktop, click on "Contacts", and from the Menu > "Edit" > "Select All".

3. Then go to the Menu > "File" > "Export vCard".

   

4. This will save all your contacts into a single vCard file.

5. Now you need to edit the vCard file with a text editor. With some good editing and Find/Search and Replace, you can fix some of the missing/incorrectly labeled data in the vCard file. Unfortunately, the "Custom" fields don’t usually get transfered in the vCard. Look for "X-Palm-CustomX:" in your vCard file (where X is some number starting from 1). For one VCARD, each line of custom text will be labeled "X-Palm-Custom1:", "X-Palm-Custom2:", "X-Palm-Custom3:" and so on. You need to combined them all into one single line with the header label "NOTE;QUOTED-PRINTABLE:". Here is an example of some wrong strings:

   X-Palm-Custom1:This is
   X-Palm-Custom2:my long
   X-Palm-Custom3:additional note

   Here are the correct strings:

   NOTE;QUOTED-PRINTABLE:This is my long additional note

   

6. Once you have made all the changes you need, don’t forget to save it.

Congratulations, you have now converted your proprietary Palm Contacts into a more common vCard file which is more commonly supported by other software and systems.

Share this article:   f g t l