Capturing old data fromMac book 180

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My sister dropped off an old Mac Book 180 with our family genealogy that she started developing on a program called Reunion 3.0. She started 15 years ago and then dropped the project a decade ago, leaving the data on 3" disks. Is there a way to off-load this information into a current compatible genealogy program so that I won't have to start from all the paper records again?
 

RavingMac

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My sister dropped off an old Mac Book 180 with our family genealogy that she started developing on a program called Reunion 3.0. She started 15 years ago and then dropped the project a decade ago, leaving the data on 3" disks. Is there a way to off-load this information into a current compatible genealogy program so that I won't have to start from all the paper records again?
I'm not that into genealogy, but I did look into it a few years back. There are a couple of what looked to me to be fairly good Mac programs, and at least one of those (I think it may have been Family Tree--on my iPad so no way to check right now) had a fairly active forum.
That would probably be an excellent place to get answer because they should know details on the record standards the programs use and read.
 

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There are two issues here:

1. Trying to import data from 15 year-old files into a more modern program (compatible or not...who knows).

2. Trying to import data from 3.5" floppies into a more modern computer. Trust me...unless you have the proper equipment...this isn't as easy as it may sound.;)

- Nick
 

RavingMac

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There are two issues here:

1. Trying to import data from 15 year-old files into a more modern program (compatible or not...who knows).

2. Trying to import data from 3.5" floppies into a more modern computer. Trust me...unless you have the proper equipment...this isn't as easy as it may sound.;)

- Nick
Nick,
If anyone knows how to handle old Macs it's you. But, I think most genealogy programs now read and write a common interchange data file, like the CVS tables used today.
If the same was true in the past (don't know when it started) he may be able to export it from the old Mac and mail it to himself to read into a new genealogy program.
 

pigoo3

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Nick,
If anyone knows how to handle old Macs it's you. But, I think most genealogy programs now read and write a common interchange data file, like the CVS tables used today.
If the same was true in the past (don't know when it started) he may be able to export it from the old Mac and mail it to himself to read into a new genealogy program.

Hey that's great if 15 year-old genealogy files can be read/imported by more modern applications...certainly not something that can be done with many 15 year-old files!:) That would then leave only one hurdle...how to import the info from 3.5" floppies (if they're still readable after 15 years, since degradation can happen)...into a more modern computer.

The ideal setup is to have about a 12 year-old Macintosh computer that still has a floppy drive...and has USB capabilities (via a USB expansion card). Then a USB "thumb drive" can be used to transfer the data.

Networking via ethernet is also a good way to transfer the files...unfortunately...a Powerbook 180 does not have ethernet. And there can sometimes be some complications "ethernetting" an old Mac running OS9 & a more modern Mac running OS X (10.4, 10.5, 10.6...I haven't tried to do it in a while).

Like I mentioned earlier...getting data from 3.5" floppies into a more modern computer is more difficult than you would think.;)

- Nick
 

RavingMac

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. . .Networking via ethernet is also a good way to transfer the files...unfortunately...a Powerbook 180 does not have ethernet. And there can sometimes be some complications "ethernetting" an old Mac running OS9 & a more modern Mac running OS X (10.4, 10.5, 10.6...I haven't tried to do it in a while).

Like I mentioned earlier...getting data from 3.5" floppies into a more modern computer is more difficult than you would think.;)

- Nick

Aaaaah! That's a problem. I hadn't considered the old Mac not being able to do email.
Mike
 
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Thanks...

Thanks for the input, but alas, it sounds like this would be about as successful as pushing a wet noodle around.

Another thought came to me as I read these replies: Is there a feature that would allow me to print to a file? I can't find anything in the manual and the dialogs only list a group of extinct printers. My thought was that if I could do a Screen Print of the pages of data and save it to a file, I would at least have these data collated in a referable form.
 

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