Extract text from DNA sequence files (SQD)
To convert SQD sequence files to another format, you need Sequencher or other Data software.
To convert other file formats to the "Sequence & Note Archive" file type, you need software like Sequencher or a similar tool.
The .SQD file format generally serves one of two distinct purposes: it is either a bioinformatics DNA sequence analysis project or a digital handwritten note.
In scientific environments, these files are generated by Sequencher (developed by Gene Codes Corporation) or Vector NTI to store DNA assemblies and chromatogram data. For consumers, the mobile app Squid uses .SQD to save vector-based handwritten notes and digital documents.
Users frequently need to convert .SQD files because both formats suffer from strict vendor lock-in. Sequencher requires an expensive enterprise license, meaning colleagues without a license cannot view the raw project data. Squid files are tied to the Android and ChromeOS ecosystem, making them difficult to view on standard Windows or macOS desktop computers. Furthermore, neither file type is supported by standard web browsers or operating systems.
For DNA projects, the best conversion targets are FASTA, GBK (GenBank), or standard TXT. Exporting to these formats ensures broad compatibility, though proprietary alignment visuals and interface settings will be lost. For Squid notes, converting to PDF, PNG, or JPG is recommended to preserve the visual layout of your handwritten text, even though you will lose the ability to edit the vector strokes.
Because .SQD is a closed, proprietary format in both primary use cases, standard online converters often fail to process it. Usually, only the original software can reliably decode the proprietary sequence algorithms or vector rendering data. Since Squid notes are standard ZIP containers under the hood, our analysis engine can detect the embedded format and may allow you to extract the internal image assets directly.
Convert.Guru analyzes your SQD file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted ZIP, SDX, STAT and G1M files.
If you want to convert SQD file to CSV, JSON, XML, YAML, YML, TOML, INI, CFG, CONF, DAT, DB or SQL, you can use Sequencher or similar software from the "DNA Sequence & Digital Notes" 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 SQD, try Sequencher or another comparable tool in the "DNA Sequence & Digital Notes" 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 SQD converter.