Getting Started

  


You will need a Text file or Excel Spreadsheet exported from the old system with the first line containing the Titles of the Fields in that Table.  There are currently 3 Tables that can be Imported into the RV Park Software database: Sites; Guests; and Point of Sale (POS) or Other Charges.  Excel Spreadsheets have the best rate of success importing, but may not be available.


If your old system stores it's information in a Database, and you have the expertise and tools to access the information directly, you can export from the database to an Excel or Text file.  Data Importer can help with this task if the older system used a MS Access database.  If your older system used MS SQL, MySQL, or some other database, you may need to use export tools from the older software or from the database itself.


A little about Text Files - Text files usually use a delimiter like a comma or semicolon to separate the fields.  You MUST use either a comma or semicolon to use the Data Importer to capture your old information when employing a Text File.  However, if the data also contains commas and semicolons within the fields, errors will occur.  An example could be the Guest Name field using a comma between the Last and First Name (assuming there is one field for the Name in the Old system).  In this case, you might want to use a semicolon when you export the data.  Or if you don't have any commas, but due to typing mistakes, there may be semicolons in the data when an "l" should have been typed and the semicolon was accidentally pressed.  In this case you may want to use a comma as a delimiter.  It is also imperative that all text fields are encapsulated with quote marks.  There is an error catcher that may allow one to pass over a badly formatted record during the import, but this may not always work.