| All that talk about how the world has become a | | | | to another. In most cases, data conversion |
| global village does not really give light to the | | | | includes recording and transformation of data, |
| massive requirements that goes to maintaining | | | | especially if you're moving data from one |
| and expanding that global village. | | | | application to another. Out on the Internet there |
| So what is the world's global village consisted of? | | | | are around 700 data conversion tools and |
| In one word: data. Lots and lots of data. Data in | | | | between them, there are versions for MS |
| this case can be in different formats. If you've | | | | Windows, Unix, Linux, Novell and other operating |
| ever used the computer as much as the | | | | systems. |
| computer programmers have, you will know that | | | | Majority of data conversion software aim at |
| there are many, many types of data files. You | | | | converting data form old operating systems and |
| can identify them by their different file extensions. | | | | transferring them to new operating systems with |
| The most common file extensions are for those | | | | nary, if at all, loss of data. |
| data created in MS office: .doc, .xls, .ppt, .dbs. | | | | Good Conversion: A Good Software |
| But there are certainly other types of data. | | | | A good data conversion software allows you to |
| Companies all over the world store their most | | | | convert data and migrate that data from an old |
| important data safely on their computers as to | | | | machine to a new machine without taking up too |
| run their businesses. However, each year | | | | much of your technological resources. If the |
| technology changes and upgrades and more | | | | statement sounds a tad convoluted, here a few |
| types of data are created. (The depth of an | | | | questions to help you spot a data conversion |
| organization actually rests in keeping software and | | | | software. |
| hardware updated.) | | | | - Will you be able to deploy new applications at a |
| What this means is that from old computers, a | | | | fast rate whilst dedicating few of your resources |
| company's data has to be transferred to new | | | | to converting data and migrating that data to a |
| computers and, more often than not, to new | | | | new machine? |
| systems. | | | | - Does your data conversion software combine |
| Data Transfer | | | | user-friendly data conversion tools with over a |
| Transferring data from old to new machines is | | | | hundred data and application connectors, flat files, |
| not as easy as it sounds. More often, in the | | | | relational databases, web data, XML, legacy data, |
| process of moving data, especially if it was stored | | | | among others? |
| in an obsolete machine, the extracted information | | | | - What are my company's needs? Do we need to |
| are often not accurate. Some loss of data might | | | | transfer data one-time only or is it going to be a |
| happen, that is, specifically if the data on the old | | | | daily and continuous effort of transferring |
| machine did not go through a data conversion | | | | database records? |
| software. | | | | Answer these questions and it will be easier for |
| Data conversion is defined as the process of | | | | you to find the data conversion that's right for |
| importing and exporting data from one computer | | | | you. |