Fix Files And Remove Duplicate Contacts In Pocket Outlook With TrineFix

With calendars, contacts and task data becoming more and more mobile, pocket PCs are a key home for the storage of mobile organizer information.

Windows Mobile can be synchronised via ActiveSync with your PC or Exchange server to keep synchonrised your contacts list, calendars and flagged emails and tasks – but tourble can arise in the shape of duplicates.

If Microsoft truly intend on aligning the Windows Mobile/Windows Phone platform to the same market spread as Apple, BlackBerry and Palm Pre, resolving the laughable situation with the contacts, calendar and tasks duplicate should be high on their list of priorities.

Until Windows Mobile 7 is released however, Trinefix is by far and away the best solution to this frustrating problem.

Available from www.trineseries.com, the download file is 518 KB and this can quickly be downloaded either directly to your PC or over the air to your phone via this link.

Once installed, it’s time to setup Trinefix to scan your Pocket Outlook items and fix your duplicates!

Using Trinefix

Before continuing, the first thing to do is configure Trinefix for use with your setup.  The Preferences screen is pretty simple and straightforward and has little to do with what the software does, more how it looks.

Configuring Trinefix for use with your setup means considering how you use your Windows Mobile phone. If you store contacts, keep calendar appointments and manage your current tasks using Pocket Outlook and these are all updated by synching to your PC or Exchange server, then a full clean-up is definitely required.

On the other hand you might just need to tidy up an individual element, such as your contacts – in this case you would only need to use the Contacts clean up. We’ll begin looking at how to use Trinefix by focussing on the Contacts tool.

Fix Duplicate Contacts

Start off by switching to or launching Trinefix and scroll down to the Contacts menu item. Each of the duplicate management tools can be accessed from the main Trinefix menu.

Four options are given:

Fix duplicates – this cleans all duplicates in your contacts list. You can designate which fields to be compared and Trinefix will display all duplicate contacts based on this field, allowing you to choose to delete.

Fix FileAs – with this option you can set the “File As” option to display all of your contacts the same way, such as surname first, forename first, etc.

Fix Country Code – allows you to add a default country code to all numbers with none defined. Trinefix can collect all numbers without a country code to allow you to set one of your choice.

Bulk Delete – this obviously facilitates a bulk removal of contacts, either based on a search term or just the whole lot. A confirmation screen allows you to double check your decision.

Fix Duplicate Calendar Items

This intelligent tool compares the start time and date, end time and date and the subject/appointment name and checks for duplicates which are then displayed and an option to delete offered. The  bulk delete option works in the same way as above.

Bulk Delete Tasks

There is no easy way to manage your tasks – Trinefix offers only a bulk delete tool that works in the same way as the contacts and calendar items bulk delete.

With all of these tools at your disposal, time spent resolving Pocket Outlook duplicate issues can be considerably reduced with this very cool freeware app!

Tags: activesync, contact, duplicate, Microsoft Outlook, windows mobile