Extract text from analysis codebooks (QDC)
To convert QDC codebooks to another format, you need ATLAS.ti or other Data software.
To convert other file formats to the "Qualitative Research Data" file type, you need software like ATLAS.ti or a similar tool.
.QDC files generally serve one of two entirely different purposes: a Qualitative Data Analysis Codebook (QDA-XML) or a Garmin Quickdraw Contours map data file.
In the academic and research world, .QDC files exchange coding schemes between qualitative analysis software like ATLAS.ti and NVivo. These files rely on standard XML structure. The main disadvantage of this format is software lock-in. While the format attempts to create an exchange standard, reading the relational code links properly often requires expensive academic software licenses.
Alternatively, boaters and outdoor enthusiasts encounter .QDC files on Garmin GPS devices. These store user-generated bathymetric maps (water depth contours). The major limitation of Garmin's .QDC format is that it is strictly closed and proprietary. You cannot easily view these files outside the Garmin ecosystem, and they lack native support in standard GIS applications.
If you have a research codebook, the best conversion targets are CSV or standard XML, which allow you to parse the data in spreadsheet tools like Microsoft Excel. For Garmin map data, users typically want to convert to GPX or KML for use in Google Earth, though direct conversion is heavily restricted by the manufacturer.
Because these formats are either tightly bound to specialized academic applications or locked behind proprietary hardware ecosystems, they are notoriously difficult to process. Often, only the original software can properly read or export the data. Our analyzer will inspect the file, extract raw XML text if present, and determine if an underlying conversion is possible.
Convert.Guru analyzes your QDC file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted XLSX, CSV, SVY, XML, DOCX, PDF, TXT, LEF, ABX and XBEL files.
If you want to convert QDC file to CSV, JSON, XML, YAML, YML, TOML, INI, CFG, CONF, DAT, DB or SQL, you can use ATLAS.ti or similar software from the "Data Analysis Codebook Exchange" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert DBF, XML, SQLITE, XLSX, SQL, TSV, ACCDB, YAML, MDB, CSV, ODS or JSON files to QDC, try ATLAS.ti or another comparable tool in the "Data Analysis Codebook Exchange" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our QDC converter.