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General => Technical Help => Topic started by: plums on Wednesday 27 August 08 11:08 BST (UK)

Title: Excel to Gedcom
Post by: plums on Wednesday 27 August 08 11:08 BST (UK)

I was recently sent an excel tree, which is far too cumbersome for me to navigate. Is there a programme that converts excel to gedcom on Macintosh. I need to point out here that I am fairly technochallenged.

Also, What's the best family tree software for Macintosh??

Thanks

Title: Re: Excel to Gedcom
Post by: downside on Wednesday 27 August 08 16:38 BST (UK)

No, you can only get GEDCOM to Excel software and even then it doesn't translate all the values, just the main ones.  In other words it ignores the Notes, Groups,  and the Sources sections.

Because each Excel spreadsheet is homemade and therefore unique to whoever created it, then no one can write some software to manipulate the data because it is not predictable, unlike a GEDCOM file.

Title: Re: Excel to Gedcom
Post by: RJ_Paton on Wednesday 27 August 08 17:03 BST (UK)

Quote

No, you can only get GEDCOM to Excel software and even then it doesn't translate all the values, just the main ones.

Sorry to contradict, but there are several programs available to convert csv files exported from excel to gedcom files.

Unfortunately there don't appear to be any written for the Mac.

Title: Re: Excel to Gedcom
Post by: Sherwood on Wednesday 27 August 08 19:50 BST (UK)

A csv to GEDCOM programme is likely to need the data in some sort of pre-defined order in Excel to start with.  If the source workbook is not set up to comform, the data would first need to be organised before exporting to csv, so downside has a valid point in regard of spreadsheets being unique.  Of course this doesn't help plums with the apple.
 
Sherwood.

Title: Re: Excel to Gedcom
Post by: plums on Wednesday 27 August 08 22:43 BST (UK)

Thanks everyone. I think my best bet is to send it to work and have one of the techies work out how to print it so it firstly doesn't use a whole tree and secondly prints in chronological order!

I have also asked the original supplier to send me a gedcom if she has one.

Any ideas on best Mac genealogy software?

Thanks

Title: Re: Excel to Gedcom
Post by: PrueM on Wednesday 27 August 08 22:50 BST (UK)

I use Reunion for the Mac - it's great, easy to use, does everything I want.
http://www.leisterpro.com/

There are others such as Heredis
http://www.myheredis.com/
which I've also used, but went back to Reunion (I think just because I was more used to it)

Cheers
Prue

Title: Re: Excel to Gedcom
Post by: downside on Wednesday 27 August 08 22:51 BST (UK)

Here is a link about genealogy software for MAC.

http://genealogy.about.com/od/software_mac/Genealogy_Software_Macintosh.htm

I think certain rootschatters favour Heredis.