How to Install PostCheck

1. Quit Address Book if it is open.
2. Open the PostCheck.dmg file that you downloaded if your browser (for example, Safari) hasn't already done so for you.
3. Double-click "Install PostCheck".

PostCheck will be installed in /Users/[Your home folder]/Library/Address Book Plug-Ins/. If you'd like all user accounts on your computer to have access to PostCheck, you can either install it for each user, or put the plugin in the root /Library/Address Book Plug-Ins/ folder.

Uninstalling PostCheck

1. Quit Address Book if it is open.
2. Open /Users/[Your home folder]/Library/Address Book Plug-Ins/
3. Move PostCheck.bundle to the Trash.

Check the root /Library/Address Book Plug-Ins/ folder if you manually installed the PostCheck.bundle yourself.

How to Use PostCheck

Using PostCheck is easy, the basics are outlined on the Overview page.

If you hold down the Option key while you click on the PostCheck menu, you can change how you'd like your addresses formatted.

Holding down the Shift key while you click on the PostCheck menu will bring up the Group Lookup window. (Group lookups are not available in the Demo version.)

Capitalization or Abbreviation Issues

The USPS returns all corrected addresses to PostCheck in UPPERCASE. So, it's not straightforward to convert to regular capitalization. There may be words or special cases that I haven't accommodated for. Please send me any examples and I'll be sure to integrate fixes into future updates.

The same goes for abbreviations. The USPS returns addresses in extremely over-abbreviated formats. The USPS provides a list of their standard abbreviations, so PostCheck tries its best to un-abbreviate the odd ones and leave the standard ones alone. Sometimes the USPS even abbreviates cities in odd ways, by removing vowels in the names. PostCheck gives you a way to customize how abbreviations are handled and you can add new abbreviations as needed.

General Problems Looking Up an Address

PostCheck works by sending the parts of your address that you have to the USPS. If there's enough information for the USPS to work with, then the USPS sends back the address with all of its components formatted to USPS specifications. PostCheck 2.0 is better at compensating for misspelled names and missing information than previous versions, but the more information you have, the more accurate the result will be.

PostCheck does not find address by a person's name like a phone book.

PostCheck requires the parts of the address to be in the proper fields in Address Book. (For example, the City belongs in the City field.) PostCheck tries to intelligently handle Street fields with multiple lines, such as when apartment or suite numbers are written above the street address:

Finally, PostCheck currently only works with United States addresses.

If you come across any problems or have any suggestions, feel free to write to me anytime. Example addresses are most welcome!