Transfer application date (profile and settings) from old computer to new

[operaflute]

Hi -
My old Dell (XP Pro) kicked the bucket and I'm now with a new HP (Vista Premium). I downloaded a new copy of Pidgin to my new machine, but is there a way I can copy my Pidgin settings/profile from the old machine rather than re-setting up everything on the new machine? I don't see any sort of "Pidgin Profile" anywhere in my Application Data on my old machine.
Thanks!

[frowning]

Yes, there is a way to copy gaim/pidgin data from one computer/install to another.

Like most other Linux software Pidgin uses unix-like hidden directories in the home directory to store flat configuration files. In Linux, one way to hide folders from short listing is by prefixing the folder using a period (.). This idea, for Pidgin, carries into the Windows port and configuration is kept in ".purple" folder.

In Windows the closest thing to a home directory is the "My Documents" folder. This is inside an "Application Data" directory/folder which contains many of the user specific configuration files for various programs.

Anyway, the .purple folder's location depends on which version of Windows you are using.

The Using Pidgin Section of the Pidgin FAQ lists

    * For Windows 2000/XP/Vista(?), entering %APPDATA% in your Windows Explorer address bar will take you to the right directory (probably something like C:\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data).
    * For Windows 98/ME it will be something like C:\Windows\Profiles\username.

Copying this folder to your new pidgin install should transfer your configuration (including stored passwords, usernames, away messages, etc) for Pidgin.

If you also customized your GTK installation you might need to also copy your gtkrc file which, according to the FAQ, might be located in a variety of places including a global, user-specific, and pidgin-user-specific.