If your organization uses FirstClass as its email application, you'll see a Contacts folder in the WORKSPACE pane.
FirstClass lets you store personal contact information, such as the email address, phone number, and street address of a friend or business associate, in your Contacts folder. Contacts provide a quick way to address messages to people who aren't registered on your server (and therefore aren't in the Directory). You can even create contacts for people who are already in the Directory, if you usually think of them by nickname.
In addition, you can create mail lists to simplify sending messages to multiple people at the same time.
As long as your administrator gave you access to the contact management feature, contacts you create will be visible in your personal view of the Directory. This allows you to address mail to them by name, just as you would address others on your server. Even if you don't have this feature, you can create contacts purely for reference.
To open your Contacts folder, select it in the WORKSPACE pane.
You may also have access to, and be able to create, public contact databases that work like your Contacts folder. These contact databases can be created in containers where others have access to them. You can also create them in your Contacts folder as a way to organize your contacts. If you have permission, you can move or copy existing contact entries into these contact databases. If you discover a contact database that you'd like on your homepage, choose Add to Home from its menu.
To add a contact, use the New Contact button, then complete and save the contact form.
You can also choose Add to Contacts from the menu of a name in a message envelope, your people list, or your chats. This prefills the quick name.
If you address a message to, or reply to, someone who isn't already on your server, a contact is automatically created representing them. You can turn off this behavior by choosing Preferences from the application menu, then going to the Messaging section. Clear the Auto create contact for external recipients checkbox.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| contact image | A picture of the contact. To upload a picture of the contact, select the Change Picture button, then browse for and select a file on your device, or take a picture. |
| personal ID | The contact's name and title. At Quick name, type the contact's name as you want it to appear in the Directory. This is how you will type their name when addressing mail to them. You can also leave this blank and FirstClass will fill it in with the names you enter below. Then type their first, middle, and last names, and choose the appropriate title. |
| work ID | The contact's job title, company name, department, and office location. |
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Business | Business contact numbers, plus the name and phone number of the contact's manager. |
| Personal | Personal contact numbers, plus the name and phone number of the contact's personal assistant. |
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Business email | The contact's business email address. If the address is not yet in the Directory, type it, then tab. If the address is in the Directory, enter it the same way you would address a message. |
| Company website | The website of the contact's company. |
| Personal email | The contact's personal email address. |
| Personal website | The contact's personal website. |
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Business | The contact's business street address. |
| Personal | The contact's personal street address. |
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Category | The type of contact. |
| Birthday | The contact's birthday. To supply this information, select this field, then select the date from the popup. |
| notes field | Type any additional information you want in the bottom field. |
To attach a file that is on your device to this contact, choose Attach from the menu (or use the Attach button), then browse for and select the file, or take a picture.
Shortcut
Drag a file from your computer to the section.
A mail list consists of multiple email addresses. Sending a message to a mail list results in the message being sent to everyone in the mail list.
To create a mail list, choose New Mail List from the New button's dropdown menu, then complete and save the mail list form.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | The name of the mail list as you want it to appear in the Directory. This is how you will type its name when addressing mail to it. |
| Members | Enter everyone you want in this mail list just as you would address a message to each one. When you save the list, it sorts alphabetically by first name. |
You can import contact information to your FirstClass Contacts folder or a contact database. This information must be in vCard 3.0 format.
To import the contact information from a vCard (.vcf) file, open your Contacts folder or the contact database to which you want to import this information, choose Import Contacts from the New button's dropdown menu, then choose the file to import.
You can also export FirstClass contact information. This information is exported in vCard 3.0 format.
To export a contact, choose Export from its menu. You can select multiple contacts and export them in one file. You are given the opportunity to rename the export file.
Note
You can't export mail lists.
To create a contact database inside a container, open the container, choose New Container from the New button's dropdown menu, then select Contact Database. Follow the prompts to give your contact database an icon and name, then select Create. You can access your new contact database using the container's Folders button.
In your Contacts folder
If you are creating the contact database in your Contacts folder, choose New Contact Database from the New button's dropdown menu.
To protect your contact database from being deleted by accident, open it, choose Properties from its menu, then tick the Protected checkbox. If you really want to delete this contact database in the future, you must first clear this checkbox.
You can also create contact databases on your homepage for your own personal use by choosing New Container from the homepage's menu.
If you created this contact database as a collaborative area, you need to give others access to it. To do this, you first set permissions that control what they can do in your contact database, then you make your contact database available to them.
To set contact database permissions, open the contact database, choose Permissions from its menu, then fill in the permissions form.
To make your contact database display in column view, tick the Use view from server checkbox.
To specify what you want someone to be able to do in your contact database, update the Who section of the permissions form. You must do this for every person and group with access to your contact database.
First, enter the person or group's name under Who just as you would address a message to them. The order in which you list people matters, because when someone opens your contact database, FirstClass checks the Who list from the top down. When it finds the first occurrence of this person, or the first group to which they belong, it uses the permissions it finds there. This means that if the first thing you list is the All Users group, and make the access for that group Disallowed, no one will be able to access your contact database.
Second, choose the access level for the person in the field to the right of their name. Access levels are predefined sets of permissions. You can assign an access level as is, or customize it by selecting and clearing the individual permissions which follow.
| This level | Gives these permissions |
|---|---|
| Disallowed | Prevents the person from accessing your contact database. We recommend that you add the All Users group at the end of your list with this access level, to prevent anyone from inadvertently being able to access your contact database. |
| View List | The person can open the contact database and address messages to entries in it, but can't open the entries themselves. |
| Open Items | The person has the permissions of View List plus can open contact database entries, but can't update them or add entries. |
| Creator | The person has the permissions of Open Items plus can update and add entries. |
| Custom | Access is defined by the individual permissions that are selected. If you add or remove individual permissions for someone with another access level, their access level automatically becomes Custom. |
The icons to the right of the access level field represent the individual permissions that make up the levels. To toggle a permission on and off, select its icon.
Limitation
Be aware that certain permissions will only work if the person has been given appropriate privileges by your administrator.
From left to right, the individual permissions are:
| Permission | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Edit permissions | The person can edit this permissions form. This includes adding people at Who and making them members of the contact database. |
| Moderator | Doesn't apply to contact databases. |
| Delete any item | The person can delete any entry, including entries created by others. |
| Create items | The person can create entries, and move entries into the contact database. |
| Edit read-only items | Doesn't apply to contact databases. |
| Edit items | The person can edit entries. |
| Save window and view properties | Doesn't apply to contact databases. |
| Approve items | Doesn't apply to contact databases. |
| Delete own items | The person can delete and change the properties of entries they have added. |
| Open conference | The person can open your contact database. This lets them see the entries in the contact database, but not open them. |
| Search items | The person can search your contact database. |
| Send items | Doesn't apply to contact databases. |
| Open items | The person can open entries. |
| Create subconferences | The person can create contact databases in your contact database. |
| Download files & attachments | The person can download files attached to entries. |
| View permissions | The person can view this permissions form, but not edit it. |
| View history | Doesn't apply to contact databases. |
To create a description of the contact database for others to read, use the About button on the contact database's permissions form.
To make your contact database available to someone, either create it in a container to which they already have access, or make them members of your contact database. Making someone a member puts a link to your contact database on their homepage.
To invite someone to become a member of your contact database, use the Members button on the contact database's permissions form. Enter the person's name in the members list just as you would address a message to them.
When you are done with the members list and permissions form, close them using the x button in the top right corner. Your changes are automatically saved.