Import from Excel

[Lanny Tonning]

I'm trying to import data from Excel. Everything works as advertised but in the spread sheet I have a first name field and a last name field - which import just fine. However, in Alpha I have a fullname field which Alpha creates from the fname + lname fields during data entry. The imported data doesn't seem to trigger the creation of the fullname and that field stays blank. I'm lost as to where to begin looking at where to do something to trigger the routine...

Any ideas?

thanks,

Lanny

[Stan Mathews]

If the full name field is a calculated field you can use..

A5_RECALC_CALC_FIELDS("tablename")

Or

When Calculated Fields are Calculated

Merely adding a field to a table and giving it a calculation expression does not fill the field with values. A table level field calculation rule does not calculate until one of three events occurs.

A record is added to the table

One of the fields in the calculation is changed or edited in a record

Run the Re-Evaluate rules function.

To re-evaluate field rules for a table:

Select the table in the Table/Sets tab of the Control Panel.

Select Table > Utilities > Recalculate Calc Fields (Field Rules).

When running an operation that updates records in a table, Alpha Five updates only the calculated fields directly affected by changing table field values. Alpha Five does not update calculated fields that depends on the contents of other calculated fields. Adding the following piece of code in your operation will solve the problem.

dim tbl as P



tbl = table.open(tablename)

tbl.Recalc_CalcFields()

tbl.close()

[Lanny Tonning]

Thanks, Stan -
I'll try the utility first. I am not sure where - since I don't write or understand or use code - to put those instructions. I'll see if I can locate where these codes reside - but it is uncharted territory for me since I am entirely reliant on the genies that walk me through the process.

lt

[Stan Mathews]

You can use the first suggestion in the interactive editor just by filling in the table name.

[davej]

Calculating Last Name

Larry,

Here's a way to calculate the last name without writing code.

From the control panel, right click on the table that contains the First Name, Last Name and Name fields. Select Edit Field Rules... and on the Field Types tab, if Name is already set as calculated, change it to User entered and click Save (the disk icon on the tool bar. Right the table again and select Create Operation... and select Update records and click the Create Using Genie button and then click the General tab.

Now select Assign a Calculated Value to a Field, then Next. From the first dropdown, select Name. Click x-y on the next dialog and the Expression Builder opens. Enter (without the first and last quotes) "First_Name+" "+Last_Name" (if your fields are named something else, use those field names). Also, note that there is a space between the +" and "+ - what this does is enter Joe Smith rather than JoeSmith. Follow the prompts and you will see the number of records that will be updated.

When you are done, go back into Field Rules and reset the Field Types to calculated. Now, any additional records will calculate the Name from the component parts.

Dave

[Scott Emerick]

You can also right click on the table in the control panel and select Utilities->Recalculate Calc Fields(Field Rules)

:)

[Lanny Tonning]

Eureka! Thanks...got to where I wanted to go. Mystery is that it worked the way I had it at all.

lt