This article explains how to import events to your timeline from a Comma Separated Value (CSV) file.
You should read this in its entirety before beginning. If you have Excel or some other spreadsheet program that can export to CSV, it will speed things up a lot (see the note at the end on Can I use Excel)?
In order to import events to Preceden, they have to be uploaded as a Comma Separated Value (CSV) file. A CSV file lists items and information about those items.
An example should make it a bit clearer.
This CSV file has 3 events: Florida, California, and Colorado. Each line has additional information about each of those events.
The format for a line is:
name,description,start,end,color
For example, Florida has a description of “Sunshine State”, a start date of “1988”, an end date of “2003”, and a color of 2A55D4 (more on that in the FAQs below).
Uploading points is similar to uploading events, but you have to use a slightly different format since the fields aren’t the same:
date, value, description
1) Below your timeline, click the Import link. That will take you to a page that looks like this:
2) Select the layer or chart you want to upload the events to. Note that if you’re uploading points, you must add them to a chart.
3) Click Browse and find the CSV file you want to upload.
4) Click Import
That’s it! If all went well, all of the events in your CSV file will have been added to your timeline. If Preceden can’t interpret the CSV file for whatever reason, it will tell you what went wrong so you can fix it.
What is the color format?
The color needs to be in six-digit HTML hexadecimal notation, without the leading #.
You can also use “Random” which tells Preceden to pick it for you.
What if a field has a comma in it?
Enclose it in quotes:
Florida,"This, dear user, has commas so I have to enclose it in quotes.","May 6, 2001", "Jan 14, 2004",Random
Which fields are required?
For events, the name, start date, and color are required (description and end date are optional). For points, the date and the value are required (description is optional). If you leave something out, you still have to include a blank field though.
Valid examples:
Florida,,2001,,Random
Florida,Good times,2001,2004,336699
Can the CSV file have a header row?
No, not yet.
Can I include spaces after each comma?
Yes, unless you’re enclosing the field in quotes.
This will work:
Florida, Good times, 2001, 2004, 336699
But this won’t:
Florida, "Good times, buddy", 2001, 2004, 336699
Are there any restrictions for a free account?
You can import events, but you are still limited to 5 events until you upgrade to a Preceden Pro account.
Points you add to a chart do not count toward that total.
Can I use Excel?
Yes! Actually it makes things much easier because it automatically formats everything correctly.
(The second column is empty because we left the descriptions for all of these events blank)
When you save it, make sure you save it as a Comma Separated (Comma delimited) (.csv)* file.
