Moving Files from Mac to Windows

How do I move my company file from Macintosh to Windows?

Goldenseal files are "binary compatible". You can open the same file on a Macintosh or a Windows machine.

Goldenseal Program (Tree Icon)

To open a Goldenseal file on both Mac and Windows, you'll need a copy of the Goldenseal application for Windows, on the Windows machine, and a copy of the Goldenseal application for Macintosh, on the Mac computer.

NOTE-- The Goldenseal application (tree icon) is not binary compatible. You'll need to use separate copies of the Goldenseal application for each machine The only thing you can swap is your company data file.

Preparing the File

If you are using Macintosh OS X, the Goldenseal file will already have the correct file name, and will need no preparation.

If you are using Macintosh OS 9, you may need to rename your company file so it has .glds at the end of the file name. If the file name contains a period elsewhere in the name, remove it.

Moving the File

You can move your company file from the Macintosh to the Windows computer by any of several means:

• Put it on a USB Flash disk, move it to a USB port on the Windows machine, and then install it there.
• Burn a CD on the Macintosh, put it into the CD drive on the Windows computer, and move the file onto your hard drive.
• Attach the file to an email, and send it from the Macintosh (and then read it on the Windows device).
• Link the two computers via Ethernet cable or wireless, and move the file over the network.

NOTE-- If you use a CD to move your company file, Goldenseal may tell you that the file is locked and can't be opened. If that happens, follow these steps:

1. Click on the file icon for the company file.
2. Choose Properties from the File menu.
3. Turn off the Read Only checkbox.
4. Click OK.

Using the File on Windows

Once you have moved your company file to the Windows machine, double-click on the file icon to open it.

NOTE-- You'll need to install the Goldenseal program for Windows first, if you haven't already done so!

Using a Network

If you have the multi-user version of Goldenseal, you can also use a network to share the same file between a Windows and Macintosh computer. Follow these steps:

1. Connect both machines to a LAN (local area network) using Ethernet cable and a wired router, or wireless cards and a wireless router.
2. Put the Goldenseal file on any machine, and open it as a server.
3. Run the Goldenseal program on the other machine, and sign on as a client.

Technical Details

There may be a very slight delay in opening records, if you switch between a PPC Macintosh and a Windows computer. That is because the two platforms use a different byte ordering, and the data needs to be inverted. Newer Intel-based Macintosh computers use the same byte ordering as Windows, and will not show this delay.

Click here for instructions on moving files from Windows to Macintosh.

Click here for more about sharing files between Mac and Windows.

Click here to return to Macintosh software topics.
Click here to return to Windows topics.

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