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Mobile number format

SMS Mac requires that a mobile phone number is in 'international format'.

What is 'international format'?

A number in international format consists of a plus sign, a country code, followed by the mobile phone number, without the first "0" of the number:

'+', country code, network prefix without the leading "0", number, no spaces, only numerals.

For example, the UK number 07777123456 becomes +447777123456. The number 44 is the country code for the UK.

For example, the US number (248) 123-7654 becomes +12481237654. The number 1 is the country code for the US.

So, the mobile numbers stored in your Address Book must be in international format or, if they are not ininternational format, you can make use of some preferences in SMS Mac to adapt them 'on the fly'.

You can enable the preference Add default country code to automatically add the country code for you at the moment the SMS is sent.In this way, you do not need to modify the mobile phone numbers you currently have stored in your Address Book.You can enter the Default country code in question in the same preference panel. A list of all country codes is available.

You can also enable the preference Strip Zero, which you can use in countries where it is custom to start a mobile number with a "0", likein the UK, France and The Netherlands.

Might you have international contacts: just make sure that the mobile phone number of this contact is stored with included'+' sign and country code. If a mobile phone number already starts with a '+' sign, SMS Mac will not add the default country code.

Coverage

SMS Mac covers almost all countries. Here is a full list.

Deinstall

To deinstall the SMS Mac Address Book plug-in, proceed as follows. Delete the file 'SMSMac.bundle' from:

/Library/Address Book Plug-Ins/

Account

Before you can send SMS with SMS Mac, you need to have an account to SMS Mac and have a balance of SMS. To subscribe to SMS Mac, goto the order page.

One subscribed, you will receive from us your Account ID and PIN. These two items are needed toauthenticate you with the SMS Mac accounting database.

Note: the Account ID is your email address. It should be an email address your read regularly, becausethe delivery reports of SMS (once enabled) will also be sent to this email address.

You can enter your account information in the Address Book plug-in or the backside of the Send SMS widget.

Address Book plug-in: just open the Address Book card of your friend or contact, click the 'mobile' label and choose the command'Send SMS' from the popup menu. Click the "Configure..." button and in the Account tab enter your account ID and the PIN code.

Dashboard Widget: on the backside of the widget (first click 'i' on the front side), enter your Account ID and the PIN code.

Caller ID

Caller ID is supported. We support caller ID for all mobile number destinations except:

  • USA
  • South Korea
  • Turkcell Turkey
  • Vodacom South Africa

For the Address Book plug-in first choose the command 'Send SMS' from the mobile label of a card in the Address Book. Click the Configure button of the Send SMS window and select the caller ID tab. Enter your own mobile phone number and enable the 'Add caller ID' checkbox.

For the Dashboard Widget click the 'i' button to turn the Widget. Select Caller ID from the popup menu, enter your phone number and enable the checkbox.

For the Konfabulator Widget right click or Control-click and select 'Widget Preferences...'. In the Caller ID tab enter your phone number and enable the checkbox.

With caller ID, the recipient of the SMS sees you as the sender of the message. If your name is in the address bookof the recipient's phone then the recipient will see your name instead of your phone number. If he replies to the SMS, you will receive it on your mobile phone.

USA: at the moment, caller ID is not supported in the USA. Please use the Add signature preference to add your name or mobile number at the end of the SMS automatically. For example, we suggest you set your signature to:

reply to:132143214321

On most mobiles, the mobile number will be inverted (shown in black) and can be selected by the recipient. In this way,she/he can easily reply to your SMS.

Caller ID format

Please set your caller ID to your own mobile number in international format. If you insist onan alphanumeric caller ID, you can only use characters from the set A..Z/a..z and 0..9. The space character is not allowed.

SMS length

One SMS can contain up to 160 characters. However, these 160 characters need to bepart of the 7-bit default alphabet as specified by GSM.

When an SMS contains Unicode characters the calculation is different (see below).Please note that you can use the Allow long messages option to concatenate SMS messages.

Unicode

Unicode is fully supported. Keep in mind though that an SMS message containing Unicode can only contain 70 characters.You can use the preference Allow long messages to send more than 70 Unicode characters.

Count of characters

Some characters in the GSM 7-bit default alphabet actually count as two characters.These characters are: {}[]^~\ and the Euro character (€).A message containing only the characters from the GSM 7-bit default alphabet can contain 160 characters.

Secondly, a message that contains Unicode can only contain 70 characters.

Signature

At the moment, caller ID (or sender ID) is not supported in the USA. Please use the Add signature preference to add your name or mobile number at the end of the SMS to identify you to the recipient. For example, we suggest you set your signature to:

reply to:132143214321

Delivery

Enable the preference Email delivery reports when you want to receive a receipt of delivery of the SMS.

The delivery reports will be sent to the email address specified in your account ID.

You should look at delivery reports as follows: when you receive a delivery report you can be sure the SMS has been delivered. However, when you do not receive a delivery report, it means you just don't know (yet). The mobile could be turned off or be out of coverage. In that case, it is still possible the SMS will be delivered, but later. It is also possible the SMS has been delivered, but we did not get a delivery report, because the mobile operator did not support the feature.In most cases, when an SMS fails, we will also send you an email about that failure.We will add other countries to this list regularly, so please check this page often.

SMS Mac supports delivery reports in the following countries: list.

Cost of an SMS

The cost of sending an SMS is €0.10. Sending an international SMS has the same price. There are no roaming costs.

You can buy a 100 SMS bundle for €10 via PayPal when you have subscribed. The initial purchase price includes 50 SMS.

Cost of the program

The cost and use of the set of SMS utilities (Address Book plug-in, Tiger widget) is €10 per year. Why do we ask an annual price for these programs? We will continue to enhance the programs each year and you are entitled to free upgrades. We will maintain and enhance the programs and adapt them for Tiger.We also plan to add even more programs to the set of SMS utilities during the year.

Secondly, the backend of the program which does the actual sending of the SMS, requires constant tuning and updating to keep up with the fastchanging world of mobile network technology. The backend runs on a separate server and requires maintenance, control and support all year.

Currently, the set of SMS utilities consists of an Address Book Plug-In and a widget for Tiger.

Carbon copy ('copy to me') does not seem to work

Please make sure that the phone number of the 'me' person in the Address Book has the correct format (see the first paragraph above).

Widget Manual

On the 'front side' of the Send SMS widget there are three buttons below the mobile's screen.

  • 'Send' - Send the SMS, this is the large button
  • 'i' - Preferences, this is the smaller left button
  • 'Clear' - Erase the error text*, this is the smaller right button

When you have modified the data in your Address Book, like adding a contact, you can 'reload' thewidget with this new data by pressing Cmd-R (Apple key-R (efresh)).

*Note: clicking the 'eraser' deletes an error message and brings back your original SMS text.Clicking the 'eraser' again at this point will delete your SMS text and clear the mobile's screen totally.

Please proceed to read the next paragraph 'Widget Preferences'.

Widget Preferences

To set the preferences of the widget (like caller ID and signature), click the 'i' button.

Can I also receive an SMS on my Mac?

Not at the moment, but we will support two-way SMS messaging in a future version.

What is Flash SMS?

A Flash SMS appears directly on the phone's screen, instead of the 'Inbox'.

Support of Flash SMS?

US mobile networks do not support the Flash SMS option.

Error 1025

Error 1025 means our SMS gateway is temporarily unavailable. Please just try again later.

Why did my SMS not arrive?

It could be the mobile number you sent the SMS to, is a so-called 'ported number'. (In the US, 'ported numbers' are supported.)A 'ported number' is a mobile number that is not anymore in the mobile network where it was issued,and was moved to another (possible cheaper) mobile network. Please let us know the number so we can see if we can do something about it.

A reason could be your caller ID is not set. Please enable the Add caller ID option andset your caller ID to your own mobile number in international format.

Another reason your SMS does not arrive can be that you enabled the Add caller ID option, butused an alphanumeric caller ID. Some networks have problems supporting alphanumeric caller ID.

Please remove the alphanumeric caller ID and set the caller ID to your own mobile number in international format.

USA: we currently do not support mobile numbers that are at T-Mobile pre-paid. T-Mobile contract subscribers are supported.

USA: we currently do not support mobile numbers that are at Virgin Mobile USA.

USA: please refrain from Unicode and concatenated SMS until you are sure they arive.

How do I buy extra SMS?

To buy extra SMS click the "Buy SMS" button in the Account tab on the back of the Send SMS Widget. In the Address Book plug-in the "Buy SMS"button is in the SMS Mac window.You can buy extra SMS at any time and you don't have to wait for your credit to run out.

How do I cancel my subscription?

You can cancel your subscription to SMS Mac from your PayPal transactionhistory. A subscription can be cancelled up until the day of the nextscheduled payment.