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GIS / spatial 🌐 Excel 2007 and ESRI

dandy_warhol

dandy_warhol

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Apparently in Excel 2007 you can no longer save a spreadsheet in/as dBase. We had to save it as text (tab delimited) then add it to ArcMap. Then export it as dBase and then add it back again.

I think.
 
I don't understand why MS decided that Excel 2007 didn't have to save DBF files anymore. Now I guess I'll have to switch over to OpenOffice.

As for workflow issues, the best way that I have found is to use ArcCatalog to open the Excel 2007 file, choose the spreadsheet that I want to make into a DBF, and then export that sheet as a DBF. One extra step that I didn't need to do before.

Thanks MS.

One good thing is that I'm finally getting used to using Access, a program that I hate, but one that will still save DBF files.

EDIT: Our Excel 2007 is set to default to saving files as Excel 2003 compatible (xls files) for compatibility purposes. I don't think ArcCatalog can read .xlsx files.
 
I thought that ESRI said we would be able to export into an excel file with 9.0 but that has not worked for me. I always have to export as a dBase and then open it and save it as an excel file. It would be so much nice to be able to export to excel format and the just mail merge for landowner notices.
 
I got hosed by that a couple of months back. I am just glad I still have the old excel on my computer because the State and feds put this integrated reporting tool together that is so loaded down with macros it won't work in 2007 without blowing up! Thanks Microsoft for really caring about the needs of your users.
 
XLSX2DBF is an Excel 2007 add-in that helps convert and/or save a
native DBF file that was edited with Excel 2007.

Two common scenarios are supported:

A) Open a native DBF file in Excel 2007 – Make changes – Save as a
native DBF file with the changes.

B) Open/create an Excel file that looks like a database (headers/
columns/rows) – Save as a native DBF file.

http://thexlwiz.blogspot.com/

Gyula
 
Save DBF files in Excel 2007 NEW VERSION!

Hi there,

just wanted to let you know that I released a new version of the add-in that enables saving a DBF file in Excel 2007.

New features:

1. Now you can add/insert new fields, create calculated fields in addition to adding new records or editing existing records in your native DBF file!

2. If you start with an Excel file the software now have enhanced capabilities to determine the field types (better than Microsoft's own in earlier Excel versions).

3. The add-in checks DBase field naming conventions and also identifies duplicate fields. All problem field names are visually identified with a cell comment!

4. If you start out with a brand new file and forget to save it, the add-in will ask before the conversion.

5. Large files are supported. I edited files over 500,000 records with no problem.

See the post at http://thexlwiz.blogspot.com/.

Gyula

Moderator note:

(Dan) Okay, two posts for the add-in are enough.
 
I was just dealing with this today.

The good news is, you can import an Excel (97-2003) spreadsheet quite painlessly as a table to a geodatabase in ArcCatalog. I was initially playing around with trying to use a DBF, like I've always done, and when that gave me trouble, the XLS table came in fine and joined right up with my parcel layer (I was completing a BS&A data update). I didn't try it using XLSX format yet.

Pretty vague description on my part... if anyone needs further detail, let me know.
 
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