1 Introduction. 2 Converting an ACT! database to an Access database. MX-Contact Instruction Sheet: Importing Data

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1 1 Introduction The purpose of this document is to describe how data can be imported from an ACT! database into MX-Contact. This process involves 4 steps. Firstly, the ACT! database needs to be converted to a Microsoft Access database using PowerConverter. Secondly, the newly created Access database needs to be restructured into a format that can be imported into MX-Contact. This is done using a number of scripts in the provided MXImportACT.mdb database. Thirdly a number of the MX- Contact forms need to be manually updated. The final step in this process is to import the restructured Access tables into MX-Contact. 2 Converting an ACT! database to an Access database Before you are able to import data from an ACT! database into MX-Contact, you need to convert the ACT! database into an Access database. The quickest, and most efficient way to do this is to use an ACT! to Access conversion application such as PowerConverter. Please note that you will need to have a registered copy of PowerConverter in order to fully convert your ACT! database. To convert an ACT! database to a Microsoft Access Database do the following: 1. Make sure that both ACT! and Microsoft Access are not running. 2. Open PowerConverter 3. Click Open ACT! Database 4. Navigate to the location of you ACT! database 5. Click Open 6. Click Create Access Database 7. Navigate to a folder where you want to save the Access database. 8. Click Save 9. Close PowerConverter ExchangeWise (Pty) Ltd Page 1 of 7

2 3 Reconstructing the Access Database After you have successfully converted your ACT! database to a Microsoft Access database you need to reconstruct that Access database into a format that can be imported into MX-Contact. To achieve this do the following: 1. Extract the MXImportACT.zip to you hard drive 2. Open Microsoft Access and open the MXImportACT.mdb database 3. Select the Tables tab 4. Right-click in the tables list region and select the Import option 5. Navigate to the folder where you saved the Access database that you created from the ACT! database. 6. Click Import 7. On the Import Objects window, click Select All 8. Click OK 9. Select the Macros tab 10. Highlight Import ACT Macro and click Run ExchangeWise (Pty) Ltd Page 2 of 7

3 11. Click the Yes option to all the prompts that follow 4 Updating the MX-Contact Forms After you have successfully converted your ACT! database to a Microsoft Access database you need to reconstruct that Access database into a format that can be imported into MX-Contact. 4.1 Copying the New Forms to the System Folder To update the Groups forms in MX-Contact do the following: 1. Extract the MXContact_Forms.zip, located in the MXImportACT.zip file, to a folder of your choice on your hard drive, e.g. \Program Files\MXContact. 2. From within Outlook\MX-Contact, using the Folder List, navigate to the System folder and select Forms. 3. Delete the following forms: Groups Associations Groups to Contacts Contacts Journals Opportunities 4. Select the 5 new.oft forms from the MXContact_Forms folder and copy them to the Clipboard. 5. Paste them into the System\Forms Folder using Edit, Paste on the Outlook Menu. ExchangeWise (Pty) Ltd Page 3 of 7

4 4.2 Publishing the Forms To publish the forms to your existing set of folders do the following: 1. Highlight and select the following forms (in the System\Forms folder) using the Ctrl key: Associations Groups to Contacts Groups Contacts Journals Opportunities 2. On the main Outlook Menu Bar, click the MX-Contact menu, and select Publish MX-Contact Forms and Publish Forms to Outlook Folders. 3. You will be prompted to Publish 5 Forms. Click Yes. 4.3 Creating the Custom Fields The Verify Custom Fields utility must be run once you have published the new forms. This utility checks for items on both the form and folder that may be one-offed. If these are found they are logged and MX-Contact will fix it for you by publishing the standard MX-Contact form (found in the System, Forms folder) specific to that folder. You can choose to publish this form yourself if you wish. 4. On the main Outlook Menu Bar, click the MX-Contact menu, and select Verify Custom Fields. 5. Uncheck the Check Only box. ExchangeWise (Pty) Ltd Page 4 of 7

5 6. Check the Add fields to Folder box. The screen should look as follows: 7. Click OK 8. Once finished the following screen will display showing how many issues were logged to the System Log folder: 9. Click OK. If, however, issues were logged then the following message will display: 10. Click Yes. MX-Contact will now indicate that there are no issues logged. Click OK. ExchangeWise (Pty) Ltd Page 5 of 7

6 5 Importing Data from an Access Database into MX-Contact A facility exists in MX-Contact under MX-Contact->Import Data to import data from any Access database, provided it has been properly structured. (See the previous sections). In order to import data from an Access database into MX-Contact do the following: 1. In MX-Contact select MX-Contact->Import Data from the toolbar 2. The next screen will display a list of tables from the default database mxcontact.mdb which is provided with MX-Contact and installed into the MX-Contact Program Files directory. 3. Click the button to Select the MDB. Once the MDB is selected it will show a list of tables that are available in the Access database. Note that only tables in the Access database with names that are equivalent to a Folder Alias in MX-Contact will be displayed. (The Folder Alias is displayed in the MX-Contact Property Page). So if you want to import data into the Products sub-folder under Companies, you will have to create a table in MXContact.mdb called Companies Products. ExchangeWise (Pty) Ltd Page 6 of 7

7 4. Mark the check-box(es) next to the individual tables that you wish to import, or click Select All to import all tables. 5. Click on OK to start the import. A status screen will be displayed: 6. MX-Contact will check that all the fields that are required to import data into each folder exist on both the table and on the form of the folder into which data will be imported. If this is not the case an error message will be displayed to this effect and the import will not be allowed to proceed until the errors are rectified. If all selected tables are OK then the following prompt will be displayed. 7. Click Yes to continue, No to cancel. 8. A form showing the status of the import will be displayed while the import is in progress: ExchangeWise (Pty) Ltd Page 7 of 7