Import files

Linas Vepstas linas@linas.org
Tue, 30 Oct 2001 15:36:12 -0600


On Tue, Oct 30, 2001 at 01:41:18PM -0500, Neil B. Cohen was heard to remark:
> Hi,
> 
> Are QIF files the only way to import data into gnucash? 
currently, yes.

> My bank will
> give me either OFX files (which gnucash doesn't support yet) or tab
> separated ascii files - suitable for importing into a spreadsheet. Can
> gnucash deal with something like that?

the hard part of tab/comma separated is you don't know what is in which
column. so you have to manually specify it somehow.  Ick.

----
I think people are excessively scared of OFX.  I don't think its that
hard.  It would be fairly straightforward to ad-hoc parse the basic 
ofx that a bank returns.  There's not really a lot to it.  (the ofx 
spec is thick, but 90% or 95% doesn't apply to the basic query of 
bank balances and list of recent transactions.  Most of the gorp in 
there is for other stuff.)

Mostly we need someone to 'just do it', as they say in the nike
commercials.


--linas


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