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mustangsally71 · Sep 18, 2009, 12:08 AM

I was using my MacBook yesterday to edit contacts in address book (merge contacts and the like...)

Mail was playing up - had to force quit that AND address book. Restarted computer as all a bit slow and sticky....

Speed improved and then....disaster.... went to send a mail, started typing first couple of letters which usually brings up whole host of addresses and ....zip, nadda, nothing. Went to contact list in address book, whole thing is empty.

Please, please, please help.... and explain in easy words for a TOTAL non techy what you'd try.

By the way, I run Tiger, have a mobile me account (well a .mac) account but don't understand it, have an iphone (which also lost all its contacts when it did one of those remote sync thingys too...)

Wits end.... have read they sometimes magically reappear and notice from mobile me site that work was being done on server - or have I totally lost everything? Please God no....

Please help this daft blonde.

besson3c · Sep 18, 2009, 12:10 AM

Do you have a backup of your files?

mustangsally71 · Sep 18, 2009, 12:16 AM

Ok - now I really show my stupidity. How would that have worked? I DID back up my iphone about 3/4 days ago so have managed to get my phone numbers back on there but unfortunately it never did seem to sync all the addresses I had. I've turned off the function to sync over the air I think so I don't loose them again - but can I send those contacts to my mac? If so - how??

Please don't laugh at my stupidity around back ups. I'm not... And i wish i'd asked how to create one... :-(

besson3c · Sep 18, 2009, 02:18 AM

A backup is a copy of all of your important files you can't do without onto a different storage medium such as an external hard drive, Flash drive, network drive, CD/DVD. Do you have a backup of the files on your Mac?

OreoCookie · Sep 18, 2009, 05:46 AM

You should get a copy of Snow Leopard, a large external harddrive and use Time Machine. Making backups can't be simpler than that.

mustangsally71 · Sep 18, 2009, 08:41 AM

Yes guys - thanks will do.
But does that mean I have lost my address book? What happened - I def didn't delete all!
Do I need a new laptop? Or have it serviced or something? Its not old but I'm speechless this has happened... sooooo many business contacts lost... damn damn....

OreoCookie · Sep 18, 2009, 08:46 AM

No, you won't be able to recover them from upgrading. But upgrading will allow you to get a simple, quality backup that prevents this disaster from happening next time. What kind of Mac do you have? Is it Intel-based?