On Sun, 11 Dec 2005 12:05:05 -0700, Tinman wrote:
> Anthony, first, I hope those weren't actual phone numbers!

Please ignore the phone numbers listed. I'll just use names from here on
in. Without the phone numbers. If you delete the numbers, that would be
great. Thanks,

Tony Susa

Tony Susa wrote:

> On Sun, 11 Dec 2005 05:29:45 -0500, J. Clarke wrote:
>>> Is there any way to force Outlook to output contacts to a normal csv
>>> file?
>> Just tried this with 2K3 and it works as expected,
>> with text fields surrounded with quotation marks.
>
> Hi J. Clarke,
>
> I forgot to ask. Does it export just the VALUE of the fields or both the
> value and the FIELD IDENTIFIER?
>
> In my case, I get the Field Identifier (all with quotes that I'll omit),
> e.g.,
> LAST NAME = Susa
> FIRST NAME = Anthony
> etc.
>
> Instead of what I gave it:
> Susa,Anthony,etc.
>
> The question, which seems to be answered by a "No" is whether or not
> Outlook can input a one-line csv file of the format:
> last,first,cell,home,work,email
> and output the same one line csv file.
>
> If Outlook can output csv, I can't find how; hence, this quest.

What procedure are you following to get your csv files from Outlook?

If I do "File/Import and Export/Export to a file/comma separated
values/contacts" I get a row of headers, with each header enclosed in
quotation marks, then a row for each entry in the contact list.

If I just need a few fields, then further along there's a "custom mapping"
option that lets me specify which Outlook fields are to be matched to which
headers in the csv file.

There is no way to export a single contact list entry to a csv file directly
that I know of.

The difference between CSV(DOS) and CSV(Windows) is that different mappings
are used for characters above 128.

> Tony Susa

--
--John
to email, dial "usenet" and validate
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)

Tony Susa wrote:
>
> All I meant by that was that I create a one-line csv file of the
> format: "last","first","cell","home","work","email"
>
> When I read it into and out of Excel, the file structure remains
> exactly. By that, I'm assuming that is the "standard csv format".

Not really. But Excel will preserve the file's structure, as best it
can, since you are literally "opening" the file, not "importing" it. Two
very different things (the latter is what you are doing in Outlook).

>
> Now, trying the same input output (actually import export) test with
> Microsoft Outlook gets us a multiline file that bears no resemblence

It's not really a multi-line file. If you export CSV (DOS or Windows
format) there will be one record per line. It's possible that your
viewer is not able to display the (numerous) amount of fields per line
(when exporting using the default settings within Outlook).


> structurally to that of the input file. Many fields are added. Field
> names are added. The one-line file turns into a multi-line file. etc.
>

I went over this in my prior reply. When you import a CSV file into
Outlook's Contacts database, you are populating (hopefully by properly
mapping) only a small portion of the total number of fields in the
actual Contacts database.

So when you export, Outlook does not remember--nor care--how that data
got in there. By default it will export ALL fields, even if 98% of them
are empty. This is why you are seeing so many more fields. So before you
export you *must* click "Map Custom Fields." Then you need to "Clear
Map" on the right-hand side (the CSV file side). Then you drag fields
from the left pane (the Contacts database) to the right pane--in the
exact order you want them to be in the CSV file. The next time you
export (and choose "Map Custom Fields") Outlook should remember the last
mapping (usually).

What Outlook also does, and one could call this a "standard" if they
wished, is add the field names to the first row of the CSV database.
Some applications, such as MS Access, can read the first column's values
and use that information to create field names. But I don't know if this
behavior in Outlook can be turned off (I haven't really looked).

Further, Palm Desktop will also export all fields if you don't specify
an export map. But Palm Desktop *doesn't* add the field names to the
first row of the CSV file.

So you can either map the fields properly in Outlook, and manually
delete the first row in the CSV file, or use Palm Desktop to do the
export.


> My question was whether there was a way to make Microsoft Outlook
> export the same file it imported much like Microsoft Excel seems to
> write the same format file it read in.
>

See above.


--
Mike

Tony Susa wrote:
> On Sun, 11 Dec 2005 12:05:05 -0700, Tinman wrote:
>> But I am puzzled because in a prior post you seemed to indicate you
>> were
>> already doing this:
>> "In my working environment, I hotsync by cable every morning and
>> afternoon as I arrive and leave from work. During the work day, I
>> modify
>> the master.csv file (if necessary). The computer is actually a Linux
>> server tied to the desktop PC via Samba. At the end of the work day,
>> I
>> download those changes (if any) to the Palm PDA. When I'm away from
>> the
>> office, I modify the Palm pda contact list. Back at work, I upload
>> those
>> changes and the cycle resumes."
>>
>> How exactly were you accomplishing this?
>
> Hi Tinman,
>
> I do thank you for all your help and advice as do many others who lurk
> here.
>

I don't know what you mean by " lurk here," since I don't generally
lurk. But this message is cross-posted all over Usenet. You are probably
just seeing replies from people who do not normally post in your usual
NG.


--
Mike

Would have to echo John's question - what exact steps are you using to
export your file? If you are getting one field per line as per your example,
then that is certainly not a CSV format of any kind but have never seen that
layout from Outlook's import/export process from any version of Outlook.
Don't even see that format using any of the save functions.

You are attemping to export the Outlook data using Outlook's OWN
import/export function correct - not from any other addin/program?
(sorry if that sounds like an obvious question but it does have to be
asked in this case).

Out of curiousity, what results do you get if you export your data directly
to Excel from Outlook?

Karl

__________________________________________
Karl Timmermans - The Claxton Group
ContactGenie - Importer 1.3 / DataPorter 2.0
"Power contact importers for MS Outlook '2000/2003"
http://www.contactgenie.com


"Tony Susa" <Susa.J.Anth...@neosporum.com> wrote in message
news:1nik88294z7ks$.ltokwyk1xg1g.dlg@40tude.net...
> On Sun, 11 Dec 2005 05:29:45 -0500, J. Clarke wrote:
>>> Is there any way to force Outlook to output contacts to a normal csv
>>> file?
>> Just tried this with 2K3 and it works as expected,
>> with text fields surrounded with quotation marks.
>
> Hi J. Clarke,
>
> I forgot to ask. Does it export just the VALUE of the fields or both the
> value and the FIELD IDENTIFIER?
>
> In my case, I get the Field Identifier (all with quotes that I'll omit),
> e.g.,
> LAST NAME = Susa
> FIRST NAME = Anthony
> etc.
>
> Instead of what I gave it:
> Susa,Anthony,etc.
>
> The question, which seems to be answered by a "No" is whether or not
> Outlook can input a one-line csv file of the format:
> last,first,cell,home,work,email
> and output the same one line csv file.
>
> If Outlook can output csv, I can't find how; hence, this quest.
>
> Tony Susa