When you download a list of species from AlgaeBase, the data is supplied in CSV format with a ".txt" file extension, which will usually open in Notepad on Windows PCs and laptops.
Due to a persistent Microsoft bug, opening this file directly in Excel will cause problems with diacritical marks, e.g. "Kützing" becomes "Kützing".
To use this file in Excel, you should use the Import feature:
- Create a new blank workbook
- Click the "Data" tab
- Click "From Text/CSV"
- Select the downloaded file, which should be in your "Downloads" folder and will be called "species_download.txt"
- Click "Import"
- In the resulting dialog, make sure that "File Origin" is set to "65001: Unicode (UTF-8)" and "Delimiter" is set to "Comma"
- Click "Load"
