[kde-linux] Problems with KAddressBook KDE-4.3.4

[Duncan]

Dr. Edgar Alwers posted on Tue, 29 Dec 2009 22:33:30 +0100 as excerpted:

> Hi all, Hi Duncan,
> 
> after installing the new KDE-4 from the scratch, I imported my old
> ~/.kde/share/apps/kabc/std.vcf  to the new home and tryed to load the
> Addresses under KAddressBook 4.3.4. No way. I can, however, import that
> list with the import vcard feature.Then, everythink is OK, until I boot
> the PC next day. Although I saved all things, the old damaged list (
> aprox. 5 addresses from 100 ) shows up. I cannot delete the list, or the
> new program is damaging my new imported list, always in the same way.
> 
> Is this a bug in kde4 ? It is very annoying ! TIA,
> Edgar

I remember your name, but please refresh me on what the old version 
you're importing from was?

FWIW, I copied my entire kde3 config to the new kde4 config location when 
I switched, and both kmail and kaddressboot imported (or used existing, 
whichever) everything just fine.  But I didn't have a damaged one to 
worry about, and that was with kde 4.2.4, which would put it real close 
to six months ago.  Actually, the mail and address book bit was one of 
the things that DID go without a hitch, for me! =:^)

Anyway, it sounds to me as if the damaged version got stuck in the 
addressbook, and the import apparently only happens in memory.  It can't 
write it out, probably because the damaged version is too damaged.  When 
something like that happens, first thing I check (after I find the file 
it's using) is the permissions, just in case something got screwed up 
there and it's read-only.  Then I check the file, see if it's obviously 
screwed up -- a text file that suddenly turns binary, or other similar 
obvious corruption.  Doing an fsck on that partition never hurts either, 
just in case.

If those all come up clean, given that you have the vcard set you can 
import, I'd backup the bad version and then delete it (with the address 
book applet, kontact, kmail, etc, not running, of course).  THEN try 
restarting kaddressbook, do the import, and immediately shut it down.  
Then start it backup and hope the data is still there.  If it is, it's 
probably worth doing a backup of the newly imported clean data, while you 
can.

The problem then becomes one of finding the location of the file to 
delete, for sure, but it seems you've done that already.  A quick check 
to see if that location seems to match mine...

Hmm...  ~/.kde/share/apps/kab (no terminating c) should be the kab (K 
Address Book = kab).  kabc is the kaddressbook conversion utility, I 
think.  So (after making a backup and with the address book and all 
related apps, so kmail, etc, stopped), I'd try deleting everything in the 
kab dir.  Then restart kaddressbook and do the import.  Then shut it 
down.  Then start it back up and see if the data is actually still 
there.  Hopefully it is, in which case take the opportunity while you 
have it to backup that dir!

-- 
Duncan - List replies preferred.   No HTML msgs.
"Every nonfree program has a lord, a master --
and if you use the program, he is your master."  Richard Stallman