Converting 1700+ RTF files from my old Lifecraft program to plain text so it can be imported into the Day One app sounds simple—until you hit a datestamp snag. My files were named with dates like 5-16-17.rtf, and I needed those dates inside the TXT files as May 16, 2017. What started as a straightforward script turned into a debugging odyssey, but with some Python tweaks and Terminal commands (plus a nudge from my AI buddy, Grok), I got it sorted. Here’s the tale—and how you can do it too.
The Goal: From RTF (Lifecraft) to TXT (DayOne) with Style
I had 1700+ RTF files in /Users/daviddaniels/RTF_Files, each named with a date (e.g., 5-16-17.rtf for May 16, 2017). I needed to:
- Strip the RTF formatting to plain text.
- Add the date from the filename inside each TXT file as Date: May 16, 2017.
- Save them as TXT files (e.g., 5-16-17.txt) in /Users/daviddaniels/TXT_Files.
- Eventually combine them into one file (but that’s another story).
The First Attempt: A Solid Start
I kicked off with a Python script using striprtf to handle the RTF-to-text conversion. Here’s the base:
This worked, producing 5-16-17.txt with Datestamp: 5-16-17 inside. But 5-16-17 wasn’t cutting it—I wanted May 16, 2017.
The Hiccup: Datestamp Drama
To fancy up the date, I added datetime to parse and reformat:
I ran it in Terminal:
bash
Boom—error: No such file or directory: ’05/16/2017.txt’. The slashes in 05/16/2017 made Python think I wanted directories (/Users/daviddaniels/TXT_Files/05/16/). Grok flagged this: filenames can’t have slashes. Back to the drawing board.
The Fix: Splitting the Datestamp
We needed two datestamps:
- Inside the file: A pretty format like May 16, 2017.
- Filename: Something slash-free like 5-16-17.
After some trial and error, I settled on keeping the filename raw (from the RTF) and reformatting only the content. Plus, I swapped “Datestamp” to “Date” because that is what DayOne was looking for. Here’s the winning script:
python
How to Implement This Fix
Want to try it yourself? Here’s the step-by-step:
- Install Python:
- Check if you’ve got it: python3 –version in Terminal.
- No dice? Grab it from python.org. On macOS, the installer’s a breeze—just follow the prompts.
- Install striprtf:
- In Terminal:bash
pip3 install striprtf - If that fails, try python3 -m pip install striprtf.
- In Terminal:bash
- Set Up Your Files:
- Dump your RTF files into a folder (e.g., /Users/yourname/RTF_Files).
- Create an output folder if it’s not there:bash
mkdir /Users/yourname/TXT_Files
- Save the Script:
- Open Terminal and launch TextEdit:bash
open -e /Users/yourname/convert_rtf.py - Paste the script above.
- In TextEdit, hit Format > Make Plain Text (or Shift+Command+T).
- Save and close. Replace yourname with your actual username (e.g., daviddaniels for me).
- Open Terminal and launch TextEdit:bash
- Run It:
- In Terminal:bash
cd /Users/yourname python3 convert_rtf.py - Watch it churn out lines like:
Converted: 5-16-17.rtf -> 5-16-17.txt Converted: 5-17-17.rtf -> 5-17-17.txt ...
- In Terminal:bash
- Check Your Work:
- Peek at a file:bash
head /Users/yourname/TXT_Files/5-16-17.txt - You should see Date: May 16, 2017 followed by the text.
- Peek at a file:bash
The Payoff
After running this, I had 1700+ TXT files, each with a nicely formatted Date: May 16, 2017-style header, all named safely like 5-16-17.txt. No more directory errors, no more ugly 5-16-17 inside the files—just clean, readable dates. Later, I even combined them into one file, but that’s a tale for another post.
Lessons Learned
- Filenames Hate Slashes: Stick to dashes or underscores for file naming.
- Datetime is Your Friend: strptime and strftime can morph any date format if you know the pattern.
- Terminal + Python = Power: A few commands and a script can tame a thousand files.
Big thanks to Grok for spotting the slash issue and nudging me toward %B %d, %Y. Got a similar file-wrangling puzzle? Drop a comment—I’d love to hear how you’d tackle it!
David Daniels has been writing at DavidDaniels.com since 2001. Download the free life planning workbook, Write Open Act, to start mapping the gap for yourself.