Excel workbook SaveAs question

[Dave Farquharson]

I am using _Workbook::SaveAs to make a csv copy of an XLS file (using the
file format Excel::xlCSVWindows). The problem I've run into is, numeric
cells in the Excel file that are formatted to use thousands separators copy
that formatting to the CSV file (one of the few bits of formatting that DO
get copied).

So a number without thousands separators is 1000 in both the XLS and CSV
files.

A number with thousands separators is 1,000 in the XLS file, and "1,000" in
the CSV file.

This isn't so tragic, except for a few things: if you have a text field with
1,000 in it, it looks exactly the same in the CSV file as a numeric field
with thousands separators ("1,000"), making it impossible to distinguish
between them. Because of this, modifying our CSV parser to handle something
like "1,000" is somewhat less than ideal.

So my question is, is there a way to tell Excel NOT to format over the
thousands separator on SaveAs? I suspect there is not, but thought I'd ask
anyway.

Thanks,

Dave

 

[Joel]

I have given people the macro before because of ALLLLLL the unusual thing
excel does when writing CVS. It is just better to do it yourself.

Sub WriteCSV()

Const MyPath = "C:\temp\"
Const WriteFileName = "text.csv"

Const Delimiter = ","

Const ForReading = 1, ForWriting = 2, ForAppending = 3

Const TristateUseDefault = -2, TristateTrue = -1, TristateFalse = 0

Set fswrite = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")


'open files
WritePathName = MyPath + WriteFileName
fswrite.CreateTextFile WritePathName
Set fwrite = fswrite.GetFile(WritePathName)
Set tswrite = fwrite.OpenAsTextStream(ForWriting, TristateUseDefault)

LastRow = Cells(Rows.Count, "A").End(xlUp).Row

For RowCount = 1 To LastRow
LastCol = Cells(RowCount, Columns.Count).End(xlToLeft).Column
For ColCount = 1 To LastCol
If ColCount = 1 Then
OutputLine = Cells(RowCount, ColCount)
Else
OutputLine = OutputLine & Delimiter & Cells(RowCount, ColCount)
End If
Next ColCount
tswrite.writeline OutputLine
Next RowCount

tswrite.Close

End Sub

 

[Dave Farquharson]

Hi Joel,

Thanks for the response. I'm going to try this macro inside a test Excel
spreadsheet just to see, but I suspect this sort of solution may not help me
with my particular problem. I don't have control over the XLS files this
macro would run on and running a new macro on an arbitrary XLS file is a
tech problem I have not yet investigated how to do. Thanks again though! I
laughed out loud reading "... because of ALLLLL the unusual things excel
does..."

Incidentally, I tried xlCSVMSDOS as a file type just to give it a shot, with
the same comma-stained results.

Dave

 

[Joel]

I modified the code to open a remote workbook and save as CSV. the code
willopen a pop up to select the XLS file

Sub WriteCSV()

Const MyPath = "C:\temp\"
Const WriteFileName = "text.csv"

Const Delimiter = ","

Const ForReading = 1, ForWriting = 2, ForAppending = 3

Const TristateUseDefault = -2, TristateTrue = -1, TristateFalse = 0


filetoopen = Application _
.GetOpenFilename("Excel Files (*.xls), *.xls")
Workbooks.Open Filename:=filetoopen
Set newbk = ActiveWorkbook

Set fswrite = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")


'open files
WritePathName = MyPath + WriteFileName
fswrite.CreateTextFile WritePathName
Set fwrite = fswrite.GetFile(WritePathName)
Set tswrite = fwrite.OpenAsTextStream(ForWriting, TristateUseDefault)

With newbk.ActiveSheet
LastRow = .Cells(Rows.Count, "A").End(xlUp).Row

For RowCount = 1 To LastRow
LastCol = .Cells(RowCount, Columns.Count).End(xlToLeft).Column
For ColCount = 1 To LastCol
If ColCount = 1 Then
OutputLine = .Cells(RowCount, ColCount)
Else
OutputLine = OutputLine & Delimiter & .Cells(RowCount, ColCount)
End If
Next ColCount
tswrite.writeline OutputLine
Next RowCount

tswrite.Close
End With
newbk.Close
End Sub

 

[Dave Farquharson]

Hi there Joel,

Your macro works as advertised. The thing is, my code isn't running in a
macro, my application is a c++ program using a COM interface to talk to
Excel (using the _WorkbookPtr interface). Perhaps there's a way to give a
macro to a workbook and run it, or run one some other way; or maybe I'm in
the wrong news group, or, quite likely, I'm just being dense ;-)

Anyway, thanks for the macros. They do what I want in principal at least.

Dave

 

[Joel]

I'm not an expert on COM interfaces. But if you make the macro a worksheet
open macro then open the workbook from C++ it may work.