import Facebook event calendar .csv / .ics

[SenseMaker2011]

Hi, Folks !

... its my 1st visit here. So 1st a thank you for all the Excel geeks as I am just a simple user and hopefully get answered my questions here.

I have searched through the forum, but didnt find the specific case, so I hope I am in the right place to get help by posting it here...

Following situation... I like to export from Facebook Event Calendar all those events which are offered to me from my friends (same private and public events), and import these datas into an excel sheet. I need this excel sheet to transfer all event datas into a specific web based MySQL database...

The Export from Facebook worked, after I tried different ways...

1st I want export the datas to a Google Calendar, as you can use a Widget in Google Desktop and herewith you can see daily the new events from Facebook on your computer screen without visiting it. It worked.... not too difficult as you just need to add a new calendar and pick up the address offered by facebook ( webcal://www.facebook.com/ical/u.php?uid=... )


Google Calendar automates the update from Facebook Event calendar so there is no more a manual exporting....

So how to get now the Goole Calendar datas into an excel sheet ?

By export function in Google Calendar you get an *.ics file. Is it possible to import into excel ? I tried... The export worked, but not the import. I only get a very chaotic data sheet, no nice table form im Excel. The wrong path...

So I went the 2nd way... and now it looks much better, but still not perfect. How ? - I imported the *.ics file into the desktop version of Mozilla Sunbird, which is a kind of offline backup having all calendar datas available on the screen, practical, if you are on travelling with the laptop. All the data fields had been correctly imported into Mozilla Sunbird. Looks excellent...

But yet, this does not give me the solution directly to create an excel sheet for the web based mysql database.

So again, export from Mozilla Sunbird into a *.csv file. And: yes, Excel takes this in a good way... the table form mostly mirrors the datas correctly. Those fields/columns are filled in the right way...

- Subject
- start date
- end date
- start time
- end time
- street address

Still one data field/column makes headache, it looks like this, e.g. H2:
---------------------
Host: (text)
Location: (text)
Venue: (text)
Tagline: (text)
Type: (text)
Type: (text)
Description: (text)

(text), (text), (text)
(text), (text),

(text), (text), (text)

More Details: (text)

(text), (text), (text)

(URL Address beginning with http://)
---------------------

All is written in one single coordinate ! -Very bad, Facebook did a bad, bad job, I suppose...

For the correct data transfer into the MySQL dbase I need such a single text field splitted into 9 single columnes:
-------------------
Host = H2
Location = I2
.
.
.
URL = P2
-------------------

As I have too many events, round about 2000, I cannot do this splitting manually, it would cost me 3-4 fully days work.

Is there a chance to split one single coordinate into a 9 column table with a script using the ID-Words "Host", "Location", "Venue".... "http://" ?

I dont know the solution.... so I'd thank you if you can help me out. Tks in advance. Warm regards/SM2011

 

[SenseMaker2011]

For a better understanding, I made two screenshots (its in Excel 2000)... This Line2 is the regular data line of one event...

Here is the field H10, where regular only should be listed the "host", and in following I10 = Location, J10 = Venue etc. etc. etc. ...

 

[Im_a_PC]

Just use a app called WinCalendar ...it converts Google Calendar to Excel nicely...
http://www.wincalendar.com/Google-Calendar-Excel.htm

 

[SenseMaker2011]

@Im_a_PC: I know that programme Win Calendar. Is there an alternative as "freeware" ?

I suppose such a tool like WinCalendar will not help. You see in the follwoing screenshot, that Facebook does not have such text fields so it has to be done by a different way of splitting I think...
-------------------------------------------
Host: (text)
Location: (text)
Venue: (text)
Tagline: (text)
Type: (text)
Type: (text)
Description: (text)

(text), (text), (text)
(text), (text),

(text), (text), (text)

More Details: (text)

(text), (text), (text)

(URL Address beginning with http://)
---------------------