Apple has included some very nice features with OS X: Safari,
iTunes, iCal, a built-in spell checker, iSync, and Address Book among
them. I use them all, although I haven't made any use of Address Book
beyond email addresses used in Mail and GyazMail, as well as backing up
synchronizing phone numbers in my cell phone.
This week I found a new challenge. I've used a wonderful shareware
program called AddressBook for years, but it's strictly a Classic
application. The original author died, and the guy who took it over
hasn't updated it in year. Fact is, I can't even find this great old
app on the Web.
AddressBook is a "just right" solution for people who want to print
addressed envelopes and print hard copy phone directories from their
data. It even lets you add a graphic by the return address and adds
postal bar codes to mail addressed within the US and Canada. It would
be the perfect way to address my Christmas cards so the Postal Service
wouldn't have to decipher my horrid handwriting. (Best penmanship grade
in school: D.)
Alas, the only printer driver I have in Classic mode is LaserWriter
8, and the Epson Stylus Color 880 I have when away from home doesn't
work with it. And I can't boot the 1.25 GHz eMac into OS 9
to install drivers - if they even exist.
Time to look for an OS X solution, so I went to MacUpdate,
searched OS X apps for "print envelope," and found five
freeware and shareware contenders. I tried them all and soon discovered
that one wasn't a crippled demo version and was very easy to use -
Snail
Mail.
As it says on the Snail Mail page, "It's primary function is to
quickly address and print single or multiple envelopes based on entries
in the Mac OS X Address Book database. Batches of envelopes can be
based on Address Book groups, or ad-hoc lists selections of addresses.
Snail Mail can print barcodes for more efficient mail handling."
Nik Sands, the author, explains that Snail Mail was created when he
couldn't find an existing program to print envelopes using the Address
Book. Although others have since come to market, Snail Mail's tight
focus and simple integration with Address Book make using it a
breeze.
Step one was creating a group called Christmas Cards, to which I
added addresses one at a time. If the name already existed in the
Address Book (about half did, but usually with only a phone number or
email address), I could double-click the name in the main Snail Mail
pane and jump right to that record in Address Book, where I could
immediately edit it (below).
I chose to add addresses one at a time and print envelopes
individually, but next year - now that I have all of these addresses on
file - I'll be able to do it in a batch.
As you can see in the screen shot above, Snail Mail does a very nice
job of printing US postal bar codes above the recipient's address. It
doesn't support Canadian bar codes, something I've suggested to the
author.
One very nice feature of Snail Mail is
that the Page Setup dialog (right) not only tells you the paper size by
name (A10, Monarch, Letter, Legal, etc.), but it also displays the
actual size below it. Since my Christmas cards came with envelopes
measuring 7" wide and 5" tall, I chose JBS as the next-best thing.
(There is a way to add custom page sizes to Snail Mail, but I couldn't
get it to work consistently. That said, I'm a Mac user and don't like
to read manuals.)
The envelopes printed out very nicely with only a few glitches - two
caused by me mistyping Zip codes and three caused by Snail Mail
inexplicably changing the return address as I added new addresses to
the Address Book. (I've suggested to the author that he add a "lock
this address" feature to fix that.)
I know now that I should pay more attention to details. Sigh.
Anyhow, Snail Mail works nicely, and it's essentially freeware,
although those who really appreciate it are encouraged to send money,
beer, or some other token of their appreciation.
All things considered, Snail Mail is a good program with a few
glitches, so it earns three out of a possible four LEMs.
