From: Drew Sullivan
Sent: 12 March 2003
To: Tim Wisseman
Cc: Ricki Rohr; Paul Honigman


    How to convert Base.csv to an Excel Worksheet


    Base.csv contains more columns than Excel can handle (Excel can only
handle 255 columns).

    To open Base.csv you first need to rename the file "Base.txt". That is
because Excel will automatically parse a file with the *.csv extention. But
if the file has a *.txt extention Excel will ask you how you want the file
parsed. Furthermore, Excel won't let you open the same file twice so you
need to make a copy with a different name.  "Base.txt" and "Copy of
Base.txt" will do.

    Open "Base.txt". When you open the file you first get "Text Import
Wizard -Step 1 of 3". Select "Delimited" (as opposed to "Fixed Width") and
then "Next>".

    On page 2 of 3 select "Comma" and deselect "Tab". Then click "Next"

    On Page 3 of 3 select "Do not import column (skip)". Then go about half
way down the slider to "Engine 1". You can find it about half way to the
end, and it is easy to find because all the other ship components are
together there. Engines follows Small Weapons. Left Click on "Engine 1",
hold down the shift key, run the slider to the end of the columns and (still
holding down the shift key) Left Click again on the rightmost Column (It has
no header. It is the column following "Set Race Structure 4". Then click
"Finish"

    You will have opened a set of columns that fits into the 255 limit for
Excel. You will have all the columns _except_ "Engines 1" to the end of the
list

    Now to get the rest of the columns, open "Copy of Base.txt". This time,
on page 3 of 3 left click on the Seventh Column ("Native 1"). That is
because the first 6 columns hold data you likely want again - Base name,
Base ID Number etc. Hold down the shift key, slide down to "Small Weapon 10"
(Just before "Engine 1") and, still holding down the shift key, Left Click
on Small Weapon 10. Now Click "Finish".

    You will have opened another Excel file that will still have the first 6
columns (Index, Owner, Name, ID # and other useful things like that), NOT
have the other columns in your first file (that is what you eliminated) but
have the last columns from Engine 1 on.

    You can put these two spreadsheets together by copying the datat from
the second set file to the ROWS below the data from the first file. In other
words all the data will fit on one sheet if you use two sets of rows to
display the data .

    Obviously you can split the data differently if you wish. You may find
it more convenient to put all the ship parts on one set of rows, put the
Structures on a second, the metal and supplies on a third, and the Cols,
prisoners etc on yet a fourth. You can achieve that using the same stunt
with the Text Import Wizard. I think you will find that easier to do from
Excel, though (Just copy the data you want to another sheet).

    That will give you a workaround for the Bases having more discrete data
entries than Excel has columns.