problem importing .sqz

[ethamd 0]

My grandfather used TMG. He died in 2005. Recently I was able to get his data off of his backup disks. I downloaded the free trial of v.7 and tried to import his .sqz files just to get a glimpse inside and decide whether to purchase the full version. But I ran into trouble right there. When trying to import the .sqz file as "The Master Genealogist v4.x or earlier backup *.SQZ" I got the error: "File *.tmg not found". (I really don't know what version of TMG he was running, but I also hunted down and installed versions 6 and 5, hoping they'd be more compatible with his data, but I got the same error.) The only clear reference I see to this error is from a post in a forum from 2002. Can somebody put me on the right track? Thanks in advance!

[Virginia Blakelock 0]

If the .sqz file is version 5 or 6, you would use Restore with v7, not Import. That is on the menu File / Restore.

 

Virginia

[ethamd 0]

Thanks Virginia, but actually I tried both Import and Restore with v.7.

 

 

If the .sqz file is version 5 or 6, you would use Restore with v7, not Import. That is on the menu File / Restore.

 

Virginia

[John Cardinal 0]

A ".SQZ" file is just a ".ZIP" archive containing specific files that TMG expects. Open the .SQZ file and see what it contains. If it includes a ".TMG" file then it is a SQZ file created from TMG v4 (or previous). If it contains a ".PJC" file then the backup was created by TMG v5, v6, or v7, and given the SQZ file was written in 2005, that means it was not TMG v7, which was released in 2007.

 

PJC files are text files and you can look at them with NotePad. They include some information about the project, including a "PjcVersion" that can help narrow down what version of TMG wrote the project. If you have a PJC file, find the PjcVersion and let us know what it is.

[ethamd 0]

Thank you for your reply. I can't manage to decompress the SQZ file. I've tried a few utilities that claim to handle them, but no luck. Do you have any recommendations? Could the file itself be corrupt?

 

Ethan

 

 

A ".SQZ" file is just a ".ZIP" archive containing specific files that TMG expects. Open the .SQZ file and see what it contains. If it includes a ".TMG" file then it is a SQZ file created from TMG v4 (or previous). If it contains a ".PJC" file then the backup was created by TMG v5, v6, or v7, and given the SQZ file was written in 2005, that means it was not TMG v7, which was released in 2007.

 

PJC files are text files and you can look at them with NotePad. They include some information about the project, including a "PjcVersion" that can help narrow down what version of TMG wrote the project. If you have a PJC file, find the PjcVersion and let us know what it is.

[Michael Hannah 0]

... Recently I was able to get his data off of his backup disks... tried to import his .sqz files

Hi Ethan,

 

As John said, a ".sqz" file produced by TMG is exactly in the format of a ".zip" file. These types of files are binary files. How did you "get his data off his backup disks"? It is possible that this action might have modified the file.

 

The most fool-proof way I have found to "check" a ".sqz" file is as follows. Since the MS operating system is often trying to "help" you, first be sure you have made all file extensions visible. Then make a copy of the file for the test. Next, change the filetype extension on the copy to ".zip". Now the standard Microsoft tools should recognize the file as being of that filetype and try to handle it. Then simply double-click on that ".zip" file and see what MS does. If it cannot open it, then the file is probably corrupt.

[ethamd 0]

To get the file from the floppy I simply copied the file to the local drive. I'm beginning to suspect that the file is corrupt. I tried to give it the file extension .zip and got the error "cannot open file: it does not appear to be a valid archive...". On another PC I got the error "The Compressed (zipped) Folder ... name.zip ... is invalid". I even tried this on a Mac and got the error "Unable to unarchive ... name.zip ... Operation not permitted". And, to be exhaustive about this I used Terminal on the Mac to perform the unzip and got this message: End-of-central-directory signature not found. Either this file is not a zipfile, or it constitutes one disk of a multi-part archive. In the latter case the central directory and zipfile comment will be found on the last disk(s) of this archive. Note: name.zip may be a plain executable, not an archive. cannot find zipfile directory in one of name.zip or name.zip.zip, and cannot find name.zip.ZIP, period."

 

Have I reached the end of the line here? Is there any way to recover data from this file?

 

By the way, I also opened the file in a bare bones text editor and found at the very bottom this clue:

NAME__.VERTMG Version 1.2a

 

 

 

 

... Recently I was able to get his data off of his backup disks... tried to import his .sqz files

Hi Ethan,

 

As John said, a ".sqz" file produced by TMG is exactly in the format of a ".zip" file. These types of files are binary files. How did you "get his data off his backup disks"? It is possible that this action might have modified the file.

 

The most fool-proof way I have found to "check" a ".sqz" file is as follows. Since the MS operating system is often trying to "help" you, first be sure you have made all file extensions visible. Then make a copy of the file for the test. Next, change the filetype extension on the copy to ".zip". Now the standard Microsoft tools should recognize the file as being of that filetype and try to handle it. Then simply double-click on that ".zip" file and see what MS does. If it cannot open it, then the file is probably corrupt.

Edited August 26, 2009 by ethamd

[John Cardinal 0]

By the way, I also opened the file in a bare bones text editor and found at the very bottom this clue:

NAME__.VERTMG Version 1.2a

That could mean the SQZ file is from TMG v1.2a, and if so, that's before my time and I don't know if the file is a valid ZIP archive. I also think it's possible that the floppy is part of a multi-disc set.

 

I suggest you contact Wholly Genes support via Support@WhollyGenes.com.

[Virginia Blakelock 0]

If the file is version 1.2a, it came out in Nov 1995. What was your grandfather's name? Perhaps someone will remember him. Tech Support may be able to recover the file for you, though this week they are likely occupied with the land cruise in Virginia.

 

Virginia

[Jim Byram 0]

A TMG v1.2 .SQZ file is a FoxPro SQZ file and not a ZIP file. You'll need to ask Support to deal with that.

[ethamd 0]

Thanks, that sounds like good advice. So, how do I get in touch with support?

 

Ethan

 

 

A TMG v1.2 .SQZ file is a FoxPro SQZ file and not a ZIP file. You'll need to ask Support to deal with that.

[John Cardinal 0]

Send an email message to support@whollygenes.com.

[Jim Byram 0]

Also note that TMG v7 cannot import a TMG v1.2 database. Support will also need to update the database to a version that TMG v7 can import.