Import Options String

Since the Import Options dialog is not displayed when the program is driven from an automation script, an options string can be specified in the script. The string consists of a series of semicolon-separated keywords that specify the behavior of the import. See the Worksheet FilterID topic for links to file-type specific import options.

The options string can only be specified for file types that display import options in the program. For example, a CSV file will not accept the import options string in automation, since it has no import options in the UI.

Examples:

Text file:

"Delimiter=comma;TextQualifier=singlequote;SkipExtraDelimiters=0"

This would set the delimiter character to a comma and the text qualifier character to the single-quote mark ( ‘ ).

"FilterID=txt;DecimalSymbol=comma;Delimiter=semicolon"

This would set the file type to .TXT file with comma decimal symbols and semicolon delimiters:

Database:

“SQLSTR=;Table=table1”

This uses Table1 from the database.

Excel File:

"Sheet=Sheet1"

This uses Sheet1 from the XLS, XLSX, or XLSM file.

Option	Action	Default	Description
ColumnBreaks	N,N,N...	no option string	ColumnBreaks is used when UsedFixedWidth is set to 1. The field separators are a series separated by commas or spaces, for example: 6 12 20 25.
DecimalSymbol	period = period comma = comma	period	DecimalSymbol specifies the character that separates the integer and fractional components of the data values.
Delimiter	tab = tab comma = comma semicolon = semicolon space = space equals = equals other = enter the delimiter character		The Delimeter is the character that separates data cell values. You can use more than one delimiter in the string. For example, "Delimiter=comma,%,tab
EatWhiteSpace	0 = Do not skip extra space and tab in the data 1= Skip extra space and tab in the data	0	EatWhiteSpace removes extra space and tab characters preceding and following data. A 0 means not to skip the extra space. For example, " 1 2" would leave the column A blank and import data into the columns B and C. A 1 means to skip the extra space. For example, " 1 2" would import data into the columns A and B.
FilterID	String		FilterID specifies the file format extension if the extension entered for File Name is unknown. If the command calling the import options string has a FilterID property, you do not need to use this FilterID.
ImportCodePage	String	""	The name of the ANSI code page to use when importing Unicode data
Sheet	sheet name		Sheet opens the specified sheet in an Excel workbook.
SkipExtraDelimiters	0 = Do not skip extra delimiters in the data 1= Skip extra delimiters in the data	1	SkipExtraDelimiters specifies whether multiple delimiters are treated as one delimiter. "SkipExtraDelimiters=0" means "don't skip the extra delimiters" For example, 1,,2,,,3 would import into columns A,C, and F. "SkipExtraDelimiters=1" means "do skip extra delimiters". For example, 1,,2,,,3 would import into columns A, B and C.
SQLSTR	SQL string	No	Structured Query Language access string.
StartRow	N	1	StartRow is the row number at which to begin importing.
Table	table or query name		Table opens the specified table in an Access database.
TextQualifier	doublequote = doublequote(") singlequote = singlequote(') none = none other = enter the text qualifier		The TextQualifier specifies the character that surrounds cells containing text. You can use more than one text qualifier in the string. For example, "TextQualifier=doublequote,%
UseFixedWidth	0 = No 1 = Yes	0	UseFixedWidth uses a fixed width for columns during import.
Locale	String	System Locale	Locale is the locale ID in decimal values. The default locale is determined by the locale setting in the Windows Control Panel.
DateOrder	0 = Auto 1 = MDY (Month, Day, Year) 2 = DMY 3 = YMD 4 = MYD 5 = DYM 6 = YDM	0	The DateOrder specifies the order in which dates are written in the data file. When DateOrder is set to 0, the standard date order from the Locale is used.

Import Options String

See Also