LIstFOrmatCONverter Files

contact:
donchurch@cox.net / http://lifocon.sourceforge.net

This readme.txt file is also contained in the program package.

   WxGlade and Wing IDE were used as dev.tools to create LIFOCON.  Not

knowing what to call it, I used "LIst FOrmat CONverter" for this simple

tool.

   I suppose one could use a spreadsheet app to trudge through this

process but I created this to read exported patient information files

from a medical billing application called Lytec, then convert the data

into a different format, in order to be imported back into a newer version

of Lytec.  Or vice-versa, new to old.

   I believe that the format of the files are common to other text export

import files from other applications.

Here is a truncated sample:

"Chart Number","Last Name","First Name","Middle Initial","Home Phone"
"donchu001","Church","Donald","E","123-456-789"
"biljac002","Jack","Billy","R","456-789-123"

   The first line of the file is an index describing the contents of

each field of subsequent lines.

   So, what this program will do, for example is:

1: Reads line 1 (the index line) of two files, a source file, which could
	have thousands of subsequent lines of data, and a target format
	file, which only needs to have line 1 (subsequent data will be
	ignored), which controls the format of the output file to be
	created.

2: Compares each field in the source file with each field in the target
	format file then links the fields that have the same exact index
	description.  If the fields are the same but in a different order,
	they will still be linked.

3: All of the non-linked fields will be listed in two corresponding
	columns with "match" button between them which allows the
	selection of a field description from each file to be manually
	linked.  For example "Patient 1" and "Primary Patient" may be the
	same thing in both files but due to the different naming
	convention, not automatically linked.

4: If manual links are made and there is a need or desire to save a "key"
	file that would allow the conversion of additional files of the
	same format without having to manually link the fields again, then
	enter an appropriate name for this "key" file and click create
	under the "Reusable pattern file" window.

5: Finally, once all of the links are made that can be made, enter a name
	for the file to be created and click the create button under the
	converted file window.

Important notes:

1: All of the text files to be read and/or created will be located in the
	same folder as the application file (LIstFOrmatCONverter.py)

2: Text files MUST be in the format as the example above.  There can be
	many more fields in line 1 but all of the field index names must
	be in line 1 and line 1 must be terminated with "newline" char.

3: Any output file and key file names entered must be unique or any
	existing file of the same name in the same folder WILL be over-
	written WITHOUT warning.

4: All field objects from the source file that are not linked to the
	target file list will NOT have the corresponding data in the
	created file.

For those not familiar with Python:

One must install Python(2.7 works), WxPython(2.8.11 works).  Windows
users double-click the "LIstFOrmatCONverter.py" file and Linux users
from command line enter "python LIstFOrmatCONverter.py" (without quotes)