These instructions will explain how to add or remove an export format in Bodhi5.

Information for all users:
With Bodhi5 you can use as many formats as you require. However, the more formats your choose the longer the software will take to export the days data.

Information for previous Bodhi5 users:
If you have used the Ascii/Csv format in previous versions of Bodhi5 you will need to ensure that you configure it identically in this version. If you make any changes (i.e. you add or delete a field) you will need to purchase new as Bodhi5 will have Access Violation errors when trying to update the different formatted history.

Information about adding or removing formats:
When you add a new format, Bodhi5 will start updating from your next Catchup. If you have historical data in other formats that Bodhi5 updates and you have the option: Copy history from another database if missing ticked in the Edit>Options>General tab, then the history from those formats will be added to the new format. If you don't have any other history or don't have this option turned on (default setting), you can still using Bodhi5.

When you de-select (remove the tick from) a format in the Bodhi5 Data Distribution menu, the data will cease updating that format from this time on. Bodhi5 will not delete this data from your computer hard-drive. You will need to do this manually.

In this tutorial I'm going to show you how to select or de-select formats from the Configuration screen in Bodhi5. I'm also going to show you the hidden menu that has more advanced settings for the individual formats.

Adding/Removing export formats in Bodhi5

1. Open Bodhi5 and click on the Configure button.

   

2. The Configuration screen will appear.

   

   In the Data Distribution section of the screen you will see two tabs.
   The Native tab contains a list of formats that Bodhi5 updates automatically. This means that Bodhi5 writes directly to the format so can automatically adjust historical data for share splits and consolidations. If you have software that reads one of these formats then you only need to select it then click the Catchup button and Bodhi5 will do the rest.

   

   The formats that are greyed out are older formats that have not been added to BodhiGold 5. If you use software that reads one of these formats contact our Help Desk to get them added.

   The Import tab contains a list of formats that Bodhi5 creates an import text file for. Bodhi5 does not update the format directly but creates a daily file that can be imported into the software.

   

   If you run your mouse over a format a tag will appear displaying the field order of the file. For example, in the image above the mouse is over the EzyChart format. It shows that the text file created will have the format:
   Time,Date(20171017),Open,High,Low,Close,Volume,Open_Interest
3. Now that you know the difference between the Native and the Import tab you can make your selections. Either tick the box next to the formats you wish to export data to or remove the tick from the formats you don't wish to export data to.

Setting advanced format options in Bodhi5

Once you've turned on a format you can now set some advanced options. The Import formats only have one advanced feature. This is modifying the symbol by adding a Prefix or a Suffix. The Native formats have more options available.

To find the advanced options:
1. Open Bodhi5 and click on the Configure button.

   

2. The Configuration screen will appear.

   

3. Right-click over the format that you want to configure. This will display the options box for this format.
   Note: Make sure you have a tick in the box next to this format or BodhiGold won't update it.

   

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   The UltraEzy; EzyStation; EzyChart & Market Analyst formats all have the same two options:

   Modify Symbol with - Prefix or Suffix
   This feature lets you add a prefix and/or suffix to all the symbols that trade on a particular exchange. This has been made available for two reasons:
   
   1. Some import file formats require it (i.e. OptionVue).
   2. It's an easy way to recognise stocks when loading multiple Exchange data into one database.

   You activate this option by ticking Prefix or Suffix (or both) then clicking the Edit button. This will open your Word Processor and display a Prefix and Suffix heading. Enter the 3-letter Exchange code then an equals sign then the Prefix or Suffix you want added to the symbols in that Exchange.

   

   Once you've added the prefix/suffix you require, exit [x] the Word Processer and click the Save button. The document will be automatically saved into the default directory (c:\Software\Infosoft\Bodhi5\Main\Text). You can make changes to this file by clicking the Edit button.

   Groups
   If you tick this feature any sets you choose from the Groups screen will be downloaded. To read more information on this, refer to this tutorial:  Updating a set group of securities .

   

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   The BodhiOne format has the Modify Symbol with and the Groups option and also another option called Sector:

    Sector
   The Sector options lets you choose which sector classification you want to use in your format. You have the choice of either MSCI or GICS.

   

   MSCI stands for 'Morgan Stanley Capital International' - this is the company that maintains this sector classification. It is a simple structure that classifies equities into 38 industry sectors. This classification has now been superceded by the GICS.

   GICS stands for 'Global Industry Classification Standard'. It is a newer classification method that was created by Standard & Poors (S&P) and Morgan Stanley. It reflects a more global industry group and sector structure and is made up of four levels. The first level classifies equities into 10 sectors, these 10 sectors comprise 24 industry groups. The industry groups break down further into 64 industries then 139 sub-industries. Bodhi5 only filters down to the 2nd level industry group.

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   The MetaStock format has the Modify Symbol with and the Groups option as mentioned above. It also has another two options that are applicable to the MetaStock format only, these are called DirLimit and DopFiles:
    DirLimit - Directory Limit

   

   Earlier versions of MetaStock used the Computrac format which was created in 1984 and could only update 255 symbols per directory. This format is open source and as such has been used by a variety of charting software companies (i.e. SuperCharts; TradeStation; Gannalyst etc.). Later versions of MetaStock were upgraded to include 2000 files per directory and the latest release can handle 6000.

   Version	Symbols	Software
   6.52 or lower	255	MetaStock V6.52; SuperCharts; TradeStation 2000 & Gannalyst Lite
   6.52 to v8	2000	Advanced GET; Amibroker; BullCharts; Gannalyst Pro; GTE Charting; GTE Toolbox; MetaStock V7 and OmniTrader
   v8 to v11	6000	MetaStock v8; 9; 10 & 11 and TradeStation v8+
   v12 to v14	Not Compatible	MetaStock v12; 13 & 14
   v15	6000	MetaStock V8; 9; 10; 11 & 15

   If you chose the correct MetaStock version when you installed Bodhi5 this field will be set correctly. If you didn't then you'll need to change this before creating the database because if you use an older version of MetaStock but have set the DirLimit to 6000 you will not be able to read the data in the directories.
   Please Note: when your directories reach the number you've entered in the DirLimit box, Bodhi5 automatically creates a new directory with a sequential number (i.e. c:\data\asx1 or asx2) so you don't lose any of your information.
    DopFiles
   These files were used with the early Computrac format and allowed the user to customise the data fields and scale factors for any security. These files are no longer used in MetaStock. If you require them, simply tick this option.

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   The Ascii/Csv format also has the 'Modify Symbol with' and the 'Groups' option as mentioned above (EzyStation) and the 'Sector' option mentioned in the BodhiOne format. However it is a completely customisable format that also has the following options:
   Trade tab
   The Trade tab contains the price fields that are updated daily. You simply need to tick the fields that you want added to your Ascii/Csv files. The Ascii/Csv format will create one file for each symbol you download and append daily data to each file.

   

   Common tab
   The Common tab contains extra information that may be available on each symbol. This information is written into a Catalog file that holds details on every symbol in the current folder.

   

   Market tabs
   The Market tabs only appear if you tick the Market box in the Common tab. Once ticked, tabs will appear for every market in Bodhi5 (i.e. Equities; Indexes etc.). From these tabs you can then select more fundamental information (EPS; DPS, Assets, Beta etc.) to add to the Catalog file.

   

   Date Format
   You can choose between two date formats for your data files: YYYYMMDD or Microsoft.

   

   YYYYMMDD is self-explanatory. Y stands for Year; M stands for Month & D stands for Date. Therefore the date 29/09/17 will be entered as 20170929.
   The Microsoft date format is the number of days since January 1, 1900. Therefore, the date 01/01/1900 would display as 1 and the 29/09/2017 would display as 43007. This format is handy if you plan to import these files into other MicroSoft ® software (i.e. Excel or Access) for further analysis.
   Include Headers
   Headers are simply the names given for the fields in the Ascii/Csv files. The header names will be exactly as they are written in the tabs (i.e. Open, High, Low, Close etc.). If you want these headings in each file tick the appropriate box.

   

   No catalog entry when no trade
   If you tick this option, symbols that don't trade will not be included in your Ascii/Csv file.

   

   Delineator
   You have the choice of COMMA or TAB. If you choose Comma the fields will be separated by a comma (,) if you choose tab the fields will be separated by a tab space.

   

   Now that you know what options are available for each format, make your selections. These will be applied for every directory you make using that format.