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Exporting Data to Microsoft Access

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IIHE  |  Education  |  Getting Started With Epi Info  |  Exporting Data to Microsoft Access

Exporting data from Epi Info to Microsoft Access is pretty easy. Just follow these steps:

From the main menu in Epi Info, Choose Export files:

ExportEpi1.jpg (175383 bytes)

To choose the Epi Info database that you want to export, press Enter to show a list of the databases in the current directory:

ExportEpi2.jpg (178283 bytes)

Now you can either type the name of the file you want to convert or use the mouse or arrow arrow keys to select the file. Once you choose a valid file, you see:

ExportEpi3.jpg (179244 bytes)

The best format to use with Microsoft Access is dBase 4. So check the box next to it. Notice that the output file name is automatically set to the name of the input file and that the extension is set to DBF when you click on the dBase 4 button. Once you click on the OK button or press Enter, you see:

ExportEpi4.jpg (205717 bytes)

This dialog box shows how many records were converted and the name of the files.

Importing Data into Access

Now you need to run Microsoft Access. Access uses different terms then talking about databases. An Epi Info database is called a table in Access. A database is Access is a collection of tables, queries, and forms.

The first thing you need to do is either open an existing database or create a new database. Now, choose the Import... option from Get External Data in the File menu:

ExportAccess1.jpg (84672 bytes)

An open file dialog asks you to locate the file you want to import. Navigate to the Epi Info folder or to whatever folder you saved the dBase file to. If you are using one of our computers, the file will be in C:\EPI6. Now, you need to change the type of files displayed. In the pop-up next to Files of type, change it to dBase IV (*.dbf):

ExportAccess2.jpg (70567 bytes)

Now, select the file you want to import by clicking on file name and pressing Enter. A window should be displayed (once the file is imported) telling you that the data was successfully imported:

ExportAccess3.jpg (11222 bytes)

Close the window and you should see the table added to the database:

ExportAccess4.jpg (30738 bytes)

You're all set to start using the data.

Analyzing Data, Part 2  |  Getting Started With Epi Info  |  Exporting Data to Microsoft Excel


Copyright 1999-2004 by Henry Ford Health System
Last modified: 07/28/04