|
|
Inventory Control Software Manual
10. Import Text Data
This intuitive Wizard allows you to quickly transfer databases by importing data from any fixed-length/delimited text file.
Most database and spreadsheet programs can export their data as delimited text files. You can therefore use the Import Data Wizard to move data from any database program or spreadsheet into the Business Inventory Manager.
The following buttons are common on all pages of the wizard:
Previous
Use this button to go to the previous page of the wizard.
Next
This button allows you to go to the next page of the wizard.
Cancel
Press this button to cancel and close the wizard.
Page 1 - Choose Source File
On this page, you can enter the file name and choose the table to import to.
Specify the text file you want to import the data from
Enter the name of the text file containing the data that you want to import into the Business Inventory Manager. The selected input file can be a delimited text file. Each line in a delimited text file represents a record where the fields (columns) are separated by a single character such as a comma or a semi-colon.
A popular delimited text file format is the .CSV (Comma Separated Values) format. In this format, a comma delimits fields.
You can easily create .CSV files using MS Excel or other spreadsheet programs.
As soon as a file is selected, the number of records is displayed in the the Start and End Record Numbers.
A table must be selected from the dropdown to which the input file will be mapped.
Page 2 - Describe Source Fields
View the contents of the selected text file displayed in the Data Preview and enter the information required on this page.
The files can either be delimited or fixed-width.
TIP: Press Map 1-1 to create all the fields and then you can Add, Remove or Assign fields as required.
A delimited Text File
This is a file that contains values where each field is separated by a delimiter such as a comma, semi-colon or others.
A Fixed-width Text File
This is a file that contains values arranged in such a way that each field has a certain width.
Use the Data Preview text box to inspect the input file layout. For a fixed-length file, choose a record in the view. Next, select each field in the record with the cursor. Then while each field is selected, do one of the followings:
-
Press either (a) the Right-Button of the mouse and select Add Fixed Field from the popup menu, or (b) Ctrl+A to Add a Fixed Field. In either case, the Fixed-length radio button will be automatically selected and the size will be populated with the exact number of Chars selected (Fast).
-
Alternatively, after selecting the characters of each field, press the Add Field button, select the Fixed-length radio button and type in the Chars selected as displayed above the Data Preview.
Note: You must select the entire field up to the first character of the next field. For the last field, select all the characters to the end of the line.
Inspect the input file preview
The Import Data Wizard displays the contents of the selected file so that you can view and describe the contents of the file.
It is usually not necessary to display the entire contents of the file for this purpose. The wizard will only display up to 100 lines of data.
Choose the delimiter that separates your fields
For delimited text files, choose the delimiter that separates the fields (columns) in the data. You can only choose one
delimiter for the entire file.
The text qualifiers will be ignored.
First row contains field names
Check this option if the first row of the text file contains the names of the fields (column headings).
Analyze…
This command is particularly useful for variable (delimited) records, as it will display information such as the Field
Delimiter and the Number of Fields.
Add Field
For each field in the record, press the Add Field button.
Assign Inventory Table Fields To Source Fields
Assign the source fields to the Inventory table fields. The data from the source field will be imported into the assigned
Inventory field.
Map 1-1
Press this button to assign all the fields in a one-one relationship. You can then modify/remove the assignments appropriately.
Assign...
Select a Source Field in the list and click on the Assign... button to map to an Inventory table field. Pressing this button will display the Assign Fields popup. Alternatively, you can double-click a Source Field in the list to bring up the Assign Fields popup. To remove a mapping, open the Assign Fields popup and select the label.
Note: You can assign several Table Fields to the same Source Field. For example, assign a Price field to both Cost and
UnitPrice.
Date Format…
Use this command to specify the format of the Date Fields in the input file.
The Default is mm-dd-yy. The format may be changed as required by the input file. The following popup will appear when the button is pressed:
Date Separator
Enter the character that separates the day, month and year parts in the date value.
Format
Select the sequence in which day, month and year appear in the date value i.e. the date format.
Page 3 - Analyse Source Field Description
On this page the contents of the selected text file are separated into fields and displayed in a grid based on the information provided in the previous page. Use this page to analyze whether or not the source fields were described correctly.
Test Result Errors
The application reads the file based on the definition you have given. The result of testing the first 100 lines of data is
displayed here. If encountered with invalid or empty values for any field, the Wizard will display the error with the row
number. You can go to previous pages and make necessary changes or continue if satisfied with the result. By default, the
Wizard will import the empty or invalid values wherever possible (if the Inventory table field cannot accept empty values
then by default the Wizard will not import the row containing that value.
Page 4 - Start Import
Use this page to start and view the progress of the data import process.
Backup Data
You may want to take a backup of the current Inventory, before importing data. The imported data will be transferred to the
Inventory currently open.
Cancel
Press this button before starting the import process. This button is invisible when the import process is running.
Finish
Use this command to start the import process. This button is visible when the import process has not been started.
Close
Click on this button to close the Import Wizard. This button is visible only when the import process has finished.
Important: Before you import data from a delimited or a fixed-width text file, make sure that the file has the same type of data in each field and the same fields in every row.
Other useful links:
|
