HELP! Moving back to 10.6, lost all my addresses

[Boyd 9]

So, in moving from 10.8.3, I appear to have lost all my addresses. They WERE there.... because I checked after rebooting from 10.8.3 back into 10.6.8.

So..... here's what I did.....

1) I cloned the SSD with 10.8.3 on it.
2) After successful clone, made sure the clone with 10.8.3 on it booted. Then I put it away for a rainy day.
3) Wiped with three passes of zeros the SSD that had 10.8.3 on it.
4) Cloned the backup drive with 10.6.8 on it to the newly wiped SSD.
5) Rebooted under 10.6.8 with the SSD.

I KNOW that address file HAS to be around somewhere! Any guesses as to where I can find it?

[Boyd 9]

Well, pretty sure I found all the data -- on the backup copy of my Users volume (It's in the "Library" folder.... which of course is invisible while in use.... that's why I was able to find it on the back up).

Anyway, tried to import all the records into Address book. No go. At least the data "seems" to be there. Maybe this is just no more complicated than deleting a preference file somewhere?

[ricks]

It has been a number of years, but.... make sure you have everything pointing away from iCLoud. IF you ever turned on iCLoud it takes your mail and contacts/address book up to the cloud server and keeps that up there to share with all your mobile gadgets.

I do not remember if this is in SL Preferences, but these need to be all unchecked and the database told to be on the local drive.

[ricks]

Sorry, I have been gone for the afternoon. Was taking ambulance call and then had baseball practice.

Rick

[Boyd 9]

No problemo! I understand all too well about real life. I will look into this, plus, fortunately, I still have all the contact info on what used to be my iPhone.... so all is not lost.... just damned inconvenient, is all......

[MacLoon]

It has been a number of years, but.... make sure you have everything pointing away from iCLoud. IF you ever turned on iCLoud it takes your mail and contacts/address book up to the cloud server and keeps that up there to share with all your mobile gadgets.

I do not remember if this is in SL Preferences, but these need to be all unchecked and the database told to be on the local drive.

Er... iCloud isn't relevant until you get to 10.7.5!

[MacLoon]

I suggest that you boot up from your rainy day drive, export the contacts from there as an archive. Then you can use that archive to reimport them into your SL account.

[ricks]

Problem is when he booted to 10.8 his contacts got the account moved to iCloud.

Your solution is properly phrased to not care what happened to the original contact list.

[MacLoon]

Then they are still there, in iCloud, his Macs, his iPhone/iPad or whatever. Nothing "gets moved", they are just replicated. The only place they aren't is in SL which, at best, would probably have had an old list.
All of my contacts are shared through iCloud but all are available on the Macs to be exported sand saved whenever and wherever I like... just done it for the fun of it.
iCloud is nothing more than an online hard drive that can be accessed and shared by any device the owner chooses to use - think of it as a medium of exchange. In itself, it does nothing other than keep a copy of whatever has been created.

[MacLoon]

You're right, I'm not bothered about what happened to the original list, it's not that relevant. Just get a copy from a drive or iCloud and the problem's dealt with.