HiFinance
5
SECTION
2.5.5.3 - COMMUNITY CARDS ASCII INPUT
USAGE: To import a file containing,
all or a subset, of new Community Cards master-file. The input file is
required to be in a very strictly stylised format so that HiFinance can
allocate data to the correct fields on the correct records. This program is
only relevant to sites using the Cards system.
DISCUSSION: Make sure that you have a good backup of your data
and that no-one is using HiFinance during the update. HiFinance may not update
the files as you expected and the only completely safe way to correct the
mistake is to restore your data from backup.
The import file required must be called comcards.csv, although case is not important in Windows. This
file must reside in your data directory, eg \HF5DATA\COMP1. Also, the file must not be in use. This is important
because if you have created the file from a spreadsheet and have saved it but
not closed it, the file will still be locked by the spreadsheet program and
HiFinance will not be able to open it.
The input file must be in CSV format. This is a comma-delimited
file (without quotes) with one record per line. Exporting from
Excel, choosing the CVS format, will produce the correct format automatically.
Each alphanumeric field must be left justified. HiFinance will make no attempt
to remove leading spaces (for names, etc.). Numeric fields should not have any
dollar signs or commas. Do not use commas in any alpha fields.
These will be treated as a field break and HiFinance will not import the row
correctly. A blank cell will be treated as a valid entry, thus a blank alpha
cell will clear the corresponding field in the master-file and a blank numeric
cell will reset the corresponding field in the master-file to zero. Thus if you
do not wish to change a field, either delete the row, delete the column or make
sure that the cell contains the same information as the field in the
master-file currently has.
The first line of the input file must contain only
field names. These fields are mostly identical to those exported using COMMUNITY
CARDS ASCII EXPORT (see SECTION 2.5.4.3). In
fact the easiest way to create the initial file is to export it first using
this program with the headings option turned on. This also has the advantage of
accurately exporting the current information. There are some fields available
in the Import program that are not created in the Export program. The full list
is detailed below. Note the use of the underscore character instead of spaces.
This format must be copied exactly. Unlike other import programs, this program
expects the exact number of columns and they must be the correct order.
The Fields are:
CARD_CODE
CREDITOR_CODE
FIRST_NAME
LAST_NAME
SALUTATION
GENDER
TRADING_NAME
ADDRESS_LINE_1
ADDRESS_LINE_2
ADDRESS_LINE_3
POSTCODE
WORK_PHONE
HOME_PHONE
FAX_PHONE
MOBILE_PHONE
EMAIL
When the program starts, it will firstly check
whether the import file exists and is accessible. Having established this,
HiFinance will read the first line of the file and check for its correctness.
If no obvious errors are found, the file will be imported.
HiFinance will continue processing until it reaches
the end of the import program. Finally the import file will be renamed to comcards.old (to stop you from
accidentally rerunning the program with used data) before returning you the MAIN
MENU. This is not recommended as the file will have been partially imported
and it will be difficult to establish which cards still need to be updated.
