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Re: Excel to Access/Finding Aids



This process is something I have had to do on a number of occasions and I
have some specific details, especially about how date values can be screwed
up when importing into Access. Ask me if you are having this problem and
I'll give you my whole spiel.

Data cleanup tends to be a little easier in XL so try to "clean up" as much
as possible before importing.

Copy everything in your XL spreadsheet into another sheet, using PASTE
SPECIAL | VALUES. This eliminates the hassles caused by any formulas you
may have.

Close your excel source file(s), move to access, and import the spreadsheet
as a new table. Use and append query to move your data from the imported
data into the main table where you want it to live. It might help you to
make it known which files are from which spreadsheets, by putting the
collection id in each row of the XL file.

For fields that are "funny" in any way (eg, they have spaces at the start
and end, or they have characters that should be removed) there  are a host
of functions you can perform in XL before moving the data (eg, use the trim
() function to remove spaces that you don't need (if not, your queries and
filters in Access might misbehave later for no discernable reason).

Good luck! I'd love to hear about any tips and tricks you might pick up
along the way.

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