Updating fields from excel sheet

[customgt]

I have lots of info in indesign that I want updated from a big excel sheet.

I tried to import it in, but that wont work, too hard to find each field that way.

Is their not a way I can tell a text box in indesign to pull info from a cell in an xls document?

 

[jmgalvin]

If yu're going to be importing excel that will be updated, you should go to Indesign Preferences.Text and check"Create Links when placing text and spreadsheet files" Then you can update the linked spreadsheets like images by selecting it in the Links window, selecting Edit Original, and the update that link. That makes changes a breeze.

When you import the spreadsheet, do you select show import options in the Place window. After you select the excel file, it will give you a number of options.

If necessary you can make a table directly in Indesign, Put the text cursor in the cell you want and the go to Place - checking Show import options - and select just the excel cell, in the Cell Range part of the Excel Import options, you want to place in the table you drew in Indesign. If you do this, you're usually better off selecting Unformatted in the Format part of Excel Import options. and use the Indesign table/cell formatting.

Using OSX 10.3.9 on a G4

 

[customgt]

I go to 'File'
Import XML....

then i choose the one i want, i dont see a number of options or anything tho.

I cant figure out how to put a table in either, i feel like an idiot lol

 

[jmgalvin]

Go to File menu/PLACE. When you get the Place window click show import options on bottom left of that window. Select the excel doc and pick the cells range you want.

To make a table directly in ID, make a text frame, or more than one if desired. Go to Table menu/Insert table. Select what you need from the table and hit OK. Once you have the table, you can use the options on the Table menu to make changes.

Using OSX 10.3.9 on a G4

 

[customgt]

ok got all that to work cool!

the problem now is, say i choose one field for b34

and in that xls sheet I add a row at 30, so it would push my field to b35, and when I update the sheet it would make it wrong.....

any fix to this?

(i have item number in column A, i usually do vlookup(ITEMNUMBERHERE, column b....i do this in excel to keep values when rows are added)

 

[customgt]

any answer to this yet???

 

[jmgalvin]

Depending on how much you've chosen to import - meaning the number of rows & columns, it can be a problems or not. You can simply click on the container for the cells in ID and again hit Place. Then select the NEW range and hit Ok. the new will repalce the old.

If this would be an ongoing thing, you would probably be best to INITIALLY choose to import more rows and columns than you'll be initially showing. If you use the Rectangle frame tool first and place the excel cells in that, you can simply resize the frame and crop out the unused ones - as long as they're at any edge.

Then, as long as the excel doc is linked, if you update the excel doc, adding cells, you go to your Links window, select the excel doc and choose Update link. Then, resize the frame to fit the bigger insert.

Please remember that ID is a tool for setting up static print documents. It's not all that great using a lot of data and constantly altering it - at least automatically. If yo go to Adobe's site, you'll find various scripts/plufins for ID - some free and some paid. You might find one that will helps you with this particular situation.

Using OSX 10.3.9 on a G4