Diacritics, .csv, and UTF-8

Post #400,884 by gcareaga 4/14/15 5:55:47 PM Reply	Diacritics, .csv, and UTF-8 It is time for the swallows to return to my (employer) university. By that I mean that Alumni Weekend is coming and my institution is devoting itself to sucking off anyone who might have money that thy might be persuaded into giving. My part in this is to update the donor database for our Windows-based proprietary donor recognition system. Unfortunately, some of our donors have ƒüññ¥ names and they prefer it if those names are rendered properly. We have a procedure for this: 1. We export the spreadsheet as a .csv file in UTF-8. 2. We move the file to the server via MS remote desktop, browser, Google mail. 3. We open the file on the server in a plain text editor to verify that the diacritics have survived. 4. We backup the existing donor file 5. We give the new file the name that the server expects to see 6. We use the 'preview' function in the Content Manager application to check the diacritics 7. The diacritics are broken 8. We drink 9. We call tech support in Colorado and attempt to get assistance from the ninnies who made this system for us 10. We wait 11. We drink 12. We post on this forum Anybody in these precincts have a similar experience with diacritics in a spreadsheet? Any strategies for getting them to behave properly?
Post #400,885 by Another Scott 4/14/15 6:12:22 PM Reply	Sounds painful. Entertaining story, but only because I'm not living it. :-) I don't know much about this stuff. It sounds like a very painful exercise. Here's a thread that talks about similar issues, but since you're plugging it into a proprietary system you may not be able to do anything about it. Still, it might give them some ideas of how to fix it (if they're willing). http://forum.cmsmadesimple.org/viewtopic.php?t=15578 HTH a bit. Good luck! Cheers, Scott.
Post #400,886 by boxley 4/14/15 7:14:58 PM Reply	If the Diacritics are there via text viewer the preview function may be broken Any opinions expressed by me are mine alone, posted from my home computer, on my own time as a free American and do not reflect the opinions of any person or company that I have had professional relations with in the past 59 years. meep
Post #400,887 by drook 4/14/15 7:19:58 PM Reply	Why on Earth is Google mail in there? Have they never heard of FTP? -- Drew
Post #400,894 by static 4/15/15 12:57:41 AM Reply	RDP can send files, too. Just Add Story http://justaddstory.wordpress.com/
Post #400,900 by pwhysall 4/15/15 9:52:40 AM Reply	FTP? Woah! I'm back in 1998!
Post #400,901 by drook 4/15/15 9:55:33 AM Reply	Exactly. It's been there forever, and everything supports it. OMG! Sending electrical impulses over copper wires? We've been doing that since the 1800s! -- Drew
Post #400,905 by boxley 4/15/15 10:12:26 AM Reply	er no anyone who is not on a network could possibly support it but anyone with an external network connection would be hacked in 1.3 seconds. We used to have bets in 2000 on how long it would take to have a machined owned after exposing ftp to the intawebs. Any opinions expressed by me are mine alone, posted from my home computer, on my own time as a free American and do not reflect the opinions of any person or company that I have had professional relations with in the past 59 years. meep
Post #400,909 by drook 4/15/15 10:40:19 AM Reply	Doh! I've used SFTP for so long that I frequently drop the "S" when talking about it. -- Drew
Post #400,916 by gcareaga 4/15/15 3:14:40 PM Reply	Divine intervention The diacritics rendered properly in preview mode this morning. I made no changes since they failed to do so on Monday and Tuesday. I deployed the new data to the live servers and everything worked properly. I don't know why. I will sacrifice a basket of kittens to Moloch.
Post #400,919 by Another Scott 4/15/15 3:44:25 PM Reply	Mmmm. Kittens. :-)
Post #400,920 by boxley 4/15/15 4:30:27 PM Reply	that is classic hpfm Any opinions expressed by me are mine alone, posted from my home computer, on my own time as a free American and do not reflect the opinions of any person or company that I have had professional relations with in the past 59 years. meep

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