Can HandyTree import/export data into desktop genealogy software? HandyTree is a
SmartList To Go application, not a free-standing program. You must have SmartList To Go on your handheld device in order to use HandyTree. HandyTree is designed as a handy genealogy tool for people who already have SmartList To Go and are comfortable with using it.
Install SmartList To Go onto the handheld, then tap the SmartList icon. When the SmartList main menu appears, you should see your new Arkansoft software listed on the list of installed “SmartLists”. (You may have to set the SmartList category selector in the upper right corner of the SmartList screen to “All” to see the new Arkansoft software.)
Your best tool for importing data is the SmartList To Go desktop program. After you install HandyTree on your handheld computer you can HotSync again and the HandyTree file will move to your desktop. You can then start the SmartList To Go desktop program and open the HandyTree application from there. Then add data and click the SmartList To Go desktop's "save and install" button and the new data will move to HandyTree on the handheld at your next HotSync.
So the big question is how to get the data into the Desktop SmartList To Go/HandyTree program. There are two ways: one way would be to open both your existing desktop genealogy program and SmartList To Go Desktop version, then use cut and paste to paste data into the SmartList To Go/HandyTree desktop. The other way is harder to set up, but if you get right your data can be imported quickly. Your current desktop genealogy software must be able to EXPORT your data in a format that can be IMPORTED into SmartList To Go desktop.
The SmartList To Go desktop program can import data in the following formats: Microsoft Access, ODBC Data Sources, Comma delimited text file, Tab delimited text file, Semicolon delimited text file.
If your existing PC-based software can export data in one of these formats, you can import into HandyTree via the SmartList To Go desktop program. It's not a simple process, but with a little work most people succeed in doing it.
The data needs to be formatted (via "field mapping") to specify, for example, that "last name" data in your existing records goes into the HandyTree "Surname" field, "first name" data goes into the HandyTree "Given Name" field, etc. Once the data is imported into the SmartList To Go desktop program, just click the SmartList To Go Desktop's "save and install" button to save the updated HandyTree data and install it on your handheld computer at your next HotSync.
For help in working with the SmartList To Go Desktop, see the Desktop's built-in help, or contact DataViz technical support (makers of SmartList To Go).
