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Importing Location Data

Locations and Location Images can be imported into Xtreme Locator saving you hours of manual data entry into the system.

Checkout our video tutorial on using the import process on our video tutorial page.

The Location Data can be imported into your Xtreme Locator Database using the following formats:

  • Excel (.xml) – Excel xml format is required for users with special international language characters in their location data. XML Support is available in Microsoft Excel 2002 and later. To use this format, create your import file and then when saving, select spreadsheet XML.
  • Comma Delimited (.csv) – This format is best for English language setups.  Many spreadsheet programs (MS Excel for example) will drop leading zeros in a number field. If you notice this, do not worry.  Our import process will add back the leading zeros where required to ensure that all zip codes have the proper number of digits.

You may also compact your import data into a .zip file before uploading. Note; If you are importing a .zip file, select the delimiter of the file type contained in the .zip.

A.  Creating your Import Flat File

  1. Create a few location records using the Location Editor in the Admin Control Panel and review them thoroughly to ensure they are in the format desired.
  2. Select Export from the Admin Menu and export your sample file.
  3. You can now use this file as a template for creating your bulk import flat file.

Make sure you retain the Active column with a value for each location record. 1 = Active, 0 or empty = Inactive.
Importing Location Data:

  1. Create your import flat file as described above in one of the acceptable formats (Comma Delimited or Excel) and save in a folder on your local computer. 
  2. Login to your Xtreme Locator Admin Control Panel and select Import.
  3. Select the proper format
  4. Click the Next button.
  5. Click the Browse button and select your Import Data File from your local computer.
  6. Click the Next button. You will then be shown a listing of the import fields and the status of each field (accepted or rejected). If all fields are accepted, continue to step 8.
  7. If any of the fields are rejected, you may continue on with the import process, however, it’s best to check your import file for errors first. If there are rejected fields, those fields will simply not be imported. If you have no data in the rejected fields, you can continue on with the import.(The primary reason for a field being rejected is that there is a field in your flat file that does not match any field in your Xtreme Locator database. For example your column name in file is address, but there is no field with name address.)To abandon the import and recheck your import file, click the cancel button and check your import file for errors.
  8. Select the Import Type radio button:  Append This selection will import the entire file while leaving your existing location records intact. User should take care not to duplicate records.  Replace This selection will replace all existing location records with the new location records in the import file.
  9. Click the Import button.

Once you have submitted your import, a confirmation page will display the status of your import. The import is a two-step process. Step 1 imports the records and Step 2 geo-codes the locations. The geo-coding can take some time and the confirmation page displays its progress. The geo-coding will continue until the process is completed whether you leave this page open or not. 

B.  Importing Location Images and/or Location Audio Files with Location Data

You can import location images and/or location audio files along with your location data. You can assign these files to multiple locations by providing the same name in the location image field and/or location audio field of the import file. Xtreme Locator will cleverly manage the multiple assignments of the files. If a location is deleted, then the image and/or audio file associated with this location is deleted unless the file is used by another location. The procedure is outlined below.

  1. Create your import data flat file as described. Make sure you have entered the image name in the Location Image field and/or the audio file in the Location Audio field. (i.e. location1.jpg, location1.wav).
  2. Save your prepared data file you created in step 1 to an empty folder on your local computer (i.e. mydocuments/myimport).
  3. Add all image files and/or audio files entered in the Location Image fields and/or Location Audio Fields into this same folder. Do not put the files in subfolders.
  4. Once you have ensured that the import file and all location images and/or location audio files are contained in the folder on your local computer (i.e. mydocuments/myimport) and that there are no erroneous files within this folder, compress the contents into a .zip file as follows:

Make sure that all files are in the root of the zip file.

  1. Open the folder in Widows Explorer
  2. Hold down the ctrl key and click on each item in that folder (csv file and all image files).
  3. Right click when all are highlighted.
  4. Select WinZip>>Add to Zip File.
  5. Click New Button.
  6. Enter a file name (importzip or something like that).
  7. Click OK.

Your zip file should now be ready to import.

  1. Login to your Xtreme Locator Admin Control Panel and select Import.
  2. Click the Browse button and select your zipped data file from your local computer.
  3. Select the Delimiter Type for the import file you have created and included in the zip file.
  4. Select the Import Type radio button:Append This selection will import the entire file while leaving your existing location records intact. User should take care not to duplicate records.Replace This selection will replace all existing location records with the new import file.
  5. Click the Import button.

Once you have submitted your import, a confirmation page will display the status of your import. The import is a two-step process. Step 1 imports the records and Step 2 geo-codes the locations. The geo-coding can take some time and the confirmation page displays its progress. The geo-coding will continue until the process is completed whether you leave this page open or not. 

Note: When importing new or edited location data to and existing live locator account, it is highly recommended that you keep a backup of your current location data prior to creating a new location data file and importing it.

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