[FAQ] How Do I Import Recipes from MasterCook®?

[MikeM]

Importing files from MasterCook is very similar to importing files from your previous version of Computer Cuisine Deluxe.

First, make a backup of everything before attempting your import. Just copy/duplicate your current version of the Computer Cuisine Deluxe folder to a new spot on your hard drive, flash drive, or burn to a CD, etc.

DO NOT delete your original version of Computer Cuisine Deluxe until you have upgraded smoothly.


The basic process will work like this:
1. Backup your current version of Computer Cuisine Deluxe.
2. Export all of your recipe data from your old version of MasterCook.
3. Download the latest version of Computer Cuisine Deluxe.
4. Register the new version online.
5. Import your older recipe data into the new version of Computer Cuisine.


Detailed Instructions:

STEP A: After you have backed up your current version of Computer Cuisine Deluxe, you’ll need to start by EXPORTING the recipe data from MasterCook.

In MasterCook, export a recipe file which contains all of your recipe data.This can be for a single recipe or for an entire recipe book. This exported file from MasterCook should be a “.MXP” file.

This file is simply a text file, but it’s very specific to the MasterCook format.


STEP B: Download and install the latest version of Computer Cuisine Deluxe. You can always find the latest version of Computer Cuisine Deluxe at www.inakasoftware.com

Follow the install instructions and copy the new Computer Cuisine Deluxe folder to your Applications folder (Mac) or run the installer (windows).


STEP C: Purchase and then register your new version of Computer Cuisine Deluxe, launch this new version and enter the ACCOUNT NAME and PASSWORD you were sent via email. (Please be sure these match EXACTLY to the email provided.)


STEP D: In your new version of Computer Cuisine Deluxe, choose Import Recipes from MasterCook... from the Tools menu. A new window will pop up where you can select the ".MXP" (no quotes) which was created on your hard drive by MasterCook.

In case this is file dimmed and you can’t select it, be sure that "Tab-separated Text Files” is listed at the bottom next to the "Show" option.
(This is the file type of the MXP file.)

NOTE: On the rare occasion you are still running into issues and Computer Cuisine Deluxe cannot “see” the MXP file you have created, you may want to open this MXP file in a Word processing program and save the file out in a text format.

Please be patient as this import can take a LONG time. Computer Cuisine Deluxe is parsing quite a bit of data, so do not force quit the import at any stage. Also, be sure that there are no quotation marks or special characters in the Recipe Name as they may cause issues during the import. To protect against this, again, you may want to open this MXP file in aWord processing program and clean it by doing a find/replace for any quotation marks, degree symbols, or other specialized characters. When completed, save the file out in a text format.

DUPLICATE RECIPES NOTE: In case there are any recipes in your collection that are duplicates after the import, simply select Find and List Duplicate Recipes... from the Tools menu. You will be given the option to delete all duplicates with one click.