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CSV text to Excel

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    #1

    CSV text to Excel

    I have an issue when creating a text csv file that is then opened in Excel. One such character field when seen by Excel is displayed as exponent whenever there are only numbers in the string--if even just one letter it will display correctly.

    I can format the cells then in Excel 2003 as numeric with 0 decimals and the string will display but here is where the larger issue manifests itself...the last 3 characters become 0's irrespective of what they originally were--not good !! I have tried double-quoting them prior to opening in Excel but it makes no difference.

    I am hoping someone else has experienced this...but even if not any suggestions as to possible ways to open this file with Excel and maintain the string would be great.

    A small example of a string would be:

    Code:
    D,999999999,"8000062E1244050917",Displays Correctly
D,999999999,"800007644264008809",Exponent_last 3 characters should be 809
D,999999999,"10C00001132078339",Displays Correctly
D,999999999,"22A00001141678279",Displays Correctly
D,999999999,"800005241207937686",Exponent_last 3 characters should be 686
    When saved as a .CSV file and then opened in Excel 2003, you will see that 2 have been converted to exponent (the ones without any letter, only digits). Formatting the cell to numeric without decimal changes the last 3 characters to 0s so this is not a remedy.

    This particular field happens to be a linking field that will be used even after exporting as a csv file so I cannot add a letter---I will have to actually ask about that as that may be an alternative. I will have to find out exactly how it is to be used after the fact--the specs say it cannot be....but hey, never say never right! But would rather oblige them than have them make an exception if possible.

    Anything to try would be great! :)
    Mike
    __________________________________________
    It is only when we forget all our learning that we begin to know.
    It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.
    Henry David Thoreau
    __________________________________________



    Tags: None
    #2
    Re: CSV text to Excel

    Mike

    Not sure if this will work for you.

    But, I have had good luck making a table that has the field names named as my desired column names and then just export the entire table to Excel.

    Anyway, I just tested this using quick export from a dummy table and your problem numbers appeared in their entirety in Excel.

    Might not be exactly what you were looking for...but it seems to work.

    As an aside, the other thing I like about doing it this way is that I make my field names "read easy" and they end up as the column names in Excel instead of my normal naming convention.... which would not mean anything to users I might send the spreadsheet to.

    Regards,

    Jeff

    Later: I guess I overlooked whether you actually needed the CSV file. My suggestion above obviously takes you straight to an Excel file with no CSV file.
    Last edited by jkletrovets; 03-30-2010, 12:32 AM. Reason: Another thought:

    Comment

      #3
      Re: CSV text to Excel

      Thanks Jeff.

      The CSV is what is required overall but the excel is used to show and verify data to the submitter of the file.....and the ID numbers are most times necessary to show them....

      No headers are used whatsoever in this.....and I have other lines to add to the beginning, the middle, and the end of the records which do not have the same fields.

      I still may have to utilize a similar method to what you suggested as I have done it before but is piecework sort of....export table data to file, add lines to file, export more table data to file, add more lines, etc. A "Pain" but it may end up being what is necessary to maintain the data integrity for the agency that needs this.

      Thanks for the looksee though Jeff!
      Mike
      __________________________________________
      It is only when we forget all our learning that we begin to know.
      It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.
      Henry David Thoreau
      __________________________________________



      Comment

        #4
        Re: CSV text to Excel

        A related, but not similar question, was answered recently:
        Keith Hubert wanted to know how to export to Excel while maintaining certain titles etc... in Excel.

        In your case, when you export to Excel, Excel plays smart and takes those digits to mean numbers not characters and hence the exponent. So the question, which would in a way correlates to Keith's, is how to force those fields (columns) to remain as character not numeric. See my answer to Keith and you could apply it here in this case, or:

        You could add a single quotation to the left of the field that has these digits forcing Excel to accept it as character (haven't tried it but easy to implement), or:

        You could write an Excel macro that converts that column to "Accounting".

        That said, I am not sure who is dealing with septillions, unless of course if you intern for the Congress.

        Comment

          #5
          Re: CSV text to Excel

          Hi G,
          I will take another look at Keith's thread.

          Changing the format after opening the CSV in Excel does not work as the end 3 characters are changed to zeros when done---whether changing to Numeric or Accounting with no decimals.

          You could add a single quotation to the left of the field
          Yeah--almost the same as what I indicated I will have to find out about in regard to adding a letter to it--for sure though a single quote....or any other special character is forbidden--I already had to Remspecial() it to get rid of a dash that was originally in the field's string to meet the CSV's required format--which still enables the submitter to see the ID values and myself to still be able to use it as an ID link.....

          I am still hoping to be able to perhaps just add a single letter to each and every one such as a "Z" maybe. I will have to wait to find out I guess.

          Still odd that Excel will take one cell and regard it as character and a different row, same column to be exponent---but guess this is perhaps part of Excel's power also to be able to do this......

          I was hoping against hope as it were----thinking that maybe there was just a default setting a user could set in Excel to make it always take the data as just character---then would not have to work - around this as it were.... :)

          Thanks again G. Least I now know it was not just a simply matter of doing something wrong--- but then it would have been easier to just be wrong and then correct it than to have to figure out a different way altogether!!


          EDIT::
          who is dealing with septillions
          QuickBooks does I guess---in fact this ID field allows up to 36 characters... :)
          Mike
          __________________________________________
          It is only when we forget all our learning that we begin to know.
          It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.
          Henry David Thoreau
          __________________________________________



          Comment

            #6
            Re: CSV text to Excel

            Originally posted by MikeC View Post

            I was hoping against hope as it were----thinking that maybe there was just a default setting a user could set in Excel to make it always take the data as just character
            Read Keith's thread..

            Comment

              #7
              Re: CSV text to Excel

              Or:
              Break the field into 2 fields by using a coma at say the 11th (anything <16) character position so when it is exported to Excel it will be read as two columns, then concatenate them in Excel.
              i.e.
              800007644264008809
              will become:
              8000076442,64008809

              Comment

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