Import Meet Entries

This is a great feature when you want to merge two or more meet entry files that have been exported from TM Databases that have been installed on different computers. Coach 1 may set up entries on his computer for 12 and Unders and Coach 2 may set up entries for the 13 and Overs. Coach 1 would export Meet Entries normally and then Coach 2 would Import those entries into his/her TM Databases. The result would be both set of entries included under one meet so that relays could be set up and one export file provided to the meet host.

From the TEAM MANAGER Main Menu Bar, click on File then Import then Entries. TM will first ask you to select the Drive, Directory, and File Name of the file you wish to Import. If the athlete file is on a diskette, put the diskette into your Drive A and select A from the Windows Open dialog box. TM will select all the files with the following file extensions - HY3 from a TM Database and ZIP. Pick the one you wish to import and click on OK.

If you selected a ZIP file, TM will unzip that file into a temporary directory named TM6Temp and then ask you to choose from the list of files that were extracted.

After you have selected the file you wish to Import, TM will read the file and make various integrity checks. These checks are important because you do not want to import "bad data". At the conclusion of the data integrity checks, TM will display information about the file that was selected including who created the file and when it was created.

At this point in the process, TM is ready to import meet entries and integrate them into your TM Database. But first, TM will check various parameters in the import file for reasonability.

If the meet/date that is being imported does not exist in your TM Database, TM will setup that meet for you including the dates and course, setup the events that have been included in the Import file, and then import the entries.

If the meet/date that is being imported matches a meet/date that already has been setup in your TM Database, TM will first check the course of the meet in your Database with the course of the meet in the Import file. If they are NOT the same, TM will display the two courses and ask if you wish to continue. If you say No, TM will discontinue the import process. If you say yes, TM will continue but ignore the course in the import file.

If the meet/date that is being imported matches a meet/date that already has been setup in your TM Database and some meet entries have been declared in your TM Database for that meet/date, TM will first check to see that the event numbers and descriptions in the Import file match the event numbers and event descriptions in the TM Database. For example, if event #5 in the Import file is the Boys 11-12 50 FREE and event #5 in the TM Database for this meet is the Girls 13-14 100 Fly, TM will not import any of the entries for event #5 and will include the entries not imported on the Exception report.

TM will check to make sure the Team in the Import file exists in your TM Database. if not, TM will let you know that if it adds this new team, all the entries will be set up for this team and all the swimmers will be added as "New Swimmers".

TM will also indicate if there are swimmers that exist in the Import file that do not exist in the TM Database. If there are any "new" swimmers, TM will give you the choice to Add those new swimmers and import their meet entries or not. TM will then give you the option to "merge" the new meet entries or "replace" them. If you select "merge", TM will add the entries from the Import file to the meet entries declared for that meet/date. If you select "replace", TM will delete all the meet entries currently setup for that meet/date and then import the ones contained in the Import file.

NOTE: Entries for "new" swimmers will be set up as "Custom Times" since there would be no "Best Time" in the TM Database for a meet entry for a new swimmer. Otherwise, the time used for the meet entry will be the standard "Best Time" in the TM Database at the time a Meet Entry report is printed or a Meet Entry Export is executed. For example, Coach 1 exported a meet entry file and Billy's best time in his TM Database was a 34.11 for the 50 FREE. Coach 2 imported that file and in his TM Database, Billy's best time for the 50 FREE was 34.18. When Coach 2 exports the meet entries to the meet host, the 34.18 time will be exported.

NOTE: Custom Time entry declarations that are imported for existing swimmers will be stored as Custom Times, unless the entry declaration already exists in the current TM Database.

NOTE: Entry declarations for Heat/Lane or for Relay Only Swimmers will NOT be imported.

The TM Meet Entry Import does import relay entries but ONLY if relay entries (declarations) do not exist for that event. For example, if a relay entry already exists in the TM database for the Girls 400 Free Relay and there is a Girls 400 Free Relay in the import file, TM will NOT import that relay entry since by doing so, there could be multiple "A Relays" for the same event. TM will report all relay entries that it did not import due to the existence of a relay entry for the same event.

When you import entries, TM goes through the following process to find a correct match for each swimmer being imported into your Database.

TM first looks for a match of the Registration ID being imported with a Registration ID in the Database. If an exact match is found, TM makes two further checks - both the gender of the swimmers and the swimmer's last name must match. If they do, TM has found a match and imports the data for that swimmer. If not, then TM continues to check for a match. Even if the Team Abbreviation does not match, TM still assumes it's the right swimmer since the ID, last Name, and gender do match.

If TM cannot find a Registration ID match, then it looks for a match of Last Name, First name, Gender, and Team. If all of these match, then TM imports the data for that swimmer. If not, then TM checks the "Add New Athlete Box". If it is checked, then a new athlete is added. If it is not checked, this record is not imported and is put on the Exception Report list.

You will be notified if TM was not able to import all of the data in the selected file and then be given the option to review a list of the information that was not imported and the reason why it was not imported.