Address Book SOP - Leah Ferguson

# Address Book SOP I’ve been fine using Apple’s Contacts app because it integrates into the Apple ecosystem well enough. It also has enabled me to be able to make use of [[04 SOP04 SOPAddress Book SOP#Tags|tags]] in the notes, and create [[04 SOP04 SOPAddress Book SOP#Smart Groups|smart groups]] for contacts as a result. I’ve got access to an app called CardHop (through my [[Fantastical]] subscription), but it hasn’t added enough value in my workflow over Contacts. ## Tags I use a number of tags that allow me to do smart groups. It means I can touch a contact card once, and it automatically updates across my address book and devices as needed. A general note: I’ve designed my tag system so that I can do quick updates. For instance, a *\#coworker* quickly becomes *\#formercoworker* if either one of us change jobs just by adding *former* to the tag. It becomes usable in a different smart group. An important note: Tags don’t replace good metadata. But I also like to keep my metadata up-to-date. For instance, people change jobs. The *Company* field is a good piece of active data, but becomes irrelevant for [[04 SOP04 SOPAddress Book SOP#Smart Groups|smart groups]] when that person leaves the company. Tags allow me to work on a broader timescale, and are more adaptable. | Tag | Category | Description | | ------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **\#ABCD1234** *(varies)* | *Academic* | An academic course code. Varies by program/institution. | | **\#admin** | *Academic* | They are administrators or broader institution contacts. | | **\#alumni** | *Academic* | They happen to be an alumni of my program. | | **\#cityname** *(varies)* | *General* | A tag for cities I’ve lived in, or important cities in my life. | | **\#classmate** | *Academic* | I went to school with them. | | **\#companyname** | *Professional* | A tag for each company I’ve worked at. | | **\#coworker** | *Professional* | A current coworker. | | — **\#formercoworker** | *Professional* | A former coworker. Either they’ve left, or I have. No distinction. | | **\#faculty** | *Academic* | Program or institution faculty. | | **\#housemate** | *Personal* | We are housemates. | | — **\#formerhousemate** | *Personal* | We were housemates. Either they’ve left, or I have. No distinction. | | **\#institution** *(varies)* | *Academic* | A tag for each school I’ve gone to. | | **\#neighbour** | *Personal* | We are neighbours. | | — **\#formerneighbour** | *Personal* | We were neighbours. Either they’ve left, or I have. No distinction. | | **\#organization** *(varies)* | *Academic* *Professional* *Personal* | A tag for industry associations or places I volunteer. | | — **\#organization-sub** | *Academic* *Professional* *Personal* | A sub-tag related to the organization. | | **\#restaurant** | *General* | Favourite and/or frequent restaurants. | | **\#title** *(varies)* | *Professional* | Title, if relevant. (e.g. Co-Chair) | | — **\#formertitle** *(varies)* | *Professional* | Former title, if relevant. (e.g. Co-Chair) | | **\#workcontact** | *Professional* | A work contact, but not a co-worker. | ### Temporary Tags I also make use of temporary tags in my address book for shorter term references. For instance, if I’m travelling, I might toss a *\#2020escapeEurope* tag for more fleetingly relevant entries that may help (travel insurance, hotels, airlines) and may happen to be in my address book. This makes for a quick and organized [[04 SOP04 SOPAddress Book SOP#Smart Groups|smart group]]. (P.S. Pour one out for my epic escape room trip that was supposed to happen in 2020…) ## Smart Groups This is where the [[04 SOP04 SOPAddress Book SOP#Tags|tag-based]] magic happens. And honestly, it’s not all that magical… it just means I don’t have to manually drag cards into groups. I find it’s easier to remember to fillout tags in the note section over manually filing things. One important note when setting up Smart Groups is to change matching *any* conditions to *all* conditions. | Smart Group | Tags | Category | Description | | -------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------ | -------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Coworkers** | \#companyA \#coworker | *Professional* | All current co-workers. | | **Coworkers, Former (Company A)** | \#companyA \#formercoworker | *Professional* | All former co-workers of *Company A*. | | **Organization B** | \#organizationB | *Professional* | All contacts related to *Organization B*. | | **Organization B, Local Chapter** | \#organizationB-chapter | *Professional* | All contacts related to *Local Chapter* in *Organization B*. | | **Organization B, Fellow Co-Chairs** | \#organizationB-chapter \#cochair | *Professional* | All co-chairs in *Local Chapter* of *Organization B*. | | **Restaurants (City Name)** | \#restaurant \#cityname | *General* | All restaurants in the *City Name* area. | | **School C** | \#institutionC | *Academic* | All contacts from *School C*. | | **School C, Classmates** | \#institution \#classmate | *Academic* | All classmates from *School C*. | | **School C, ABCD 1234** | \#ABCD1234 | *Academic* | All contacts related to the course *ABCD 1234*, including faculty and classmates. | | **School C, ABCD 1289** | \#ABCD1289 | *Academic* | All contacts related to the course *ABCD 1289*, including faculty and classmates. | | **School C, ABCD 1289 (Assignment 2)** | \#ABCD1289 \#assignment 2 | *Academic* | \#assignment2 is a temporary tag, included because it’s helpful for email. |