Manually Updating the Data Files

One of the huge advantages of a computer based shield nickel reference (as opposed to the traditional book) is that new shield nickel data files can be added "on the fly" as new varieties come to light. Also, errors in any previously distributed data file can be easily corrected by distributing an updated data file.

Most users should obtain updates by using the Online: D/L Updates feature available from the SNV File menu. This method will allow SNV to automatically handle downloading the updates and placing them in the correct directory.

Occasionally, some users may find it necessary to manually add updated files. For example, a user may have a slow internet connection and may request a CD filled with SNV updates. When data files are added manually, the following procedure is recommended:

  1. Create a directory on your computer to hold updated data files. If this is not the first time you have received an update, you may already have such a directory.
  2. Copy the updated data files into the update directory.
  3. Using the File: Preferences dialog, add the update directory to the "Data Directories" panel if it is not already present.

If you wish to create a separate directory for each set of updated data files in order to track them better, that is perfectly okay. Simply add multiple Data Directories in the File: Preferences dialog. Make sure that the Data Directories are listed in chronological order, with the newest directory listed first. If SNV encounters two data files for the same coin, it will always pick the first data file seen.

If SNV is already running when you copy the new data files to your disk, SNV will not see the new files until the program is exited and restarted (or you may use File: Reload Data)..