CE - Link object properties to excel

Unknown said:

Does anyone care to help me find the best solution to link object properties into Excel cells?

You should clarify what you mean by 'object properties'. There's an iWare adapter that lets any ODBC client see EC Schema data.  You can use Excel as an ODBC client.

There's no equivalent, that I'm aware of, for importing data from Excel.  MicroStation has had a database interface for decades, but its purpose is to display DB data as text rather than participate in EC Schema data exchange.

Jon,

I'm not using EC Schema. Best to describe what I want is to present an example:

1 - Draw a rectangle in Microstaion
2 - In Excel input some command on a cell to "grab" the area of the rectangle.
3 - Whenever I change the rectangle dimension the cell is automatically update?

This is possible through VBA or any other means?

I mean object properties like length, area and volume. But the principal for this isn't the same for any other element information? Like level, line weight, coordinates, creation date, etc?

Thanks

Unknown said:

3 - Whenever I change the rectangle dimension the cell is automatically update?

AreaAnnotator™ is an object observer.  It observes the area (2D) or volumetric (3D) characteristics of an element.  When a characteristic changes, it updates attached tags automatically.  If you manually export tags (or use something like FlexiTable™) then you can update an Excel worksheet.  However, that Excel update doesn't happen automatically.

One issue is mapping element data to Excel.  For automatic updates, there must exist a formal definition of your Excel worksheet.  Most Excel worksheets are not formally defined, and most Excel users have no idea what is meant by the term 'formal definition'.  In database or XML terms that would be a schema, but to those who believe that Excel represents a database a term such as schema is computer­speak babble.

In fact, the releases of Excel in recent times (since Excel 2010, I believe) have been able to interpret an XML schema.  Perhaps we could create a tool to write element data in an XML file that conforms to that schema?  Then, whenever you open that file with Excel, you would see a worksheet that contains current data from MicroStation.

Why not re-post your question as a poll?  Ask people to vote for element data export to Excel.  Find how many people agree with you that it would be a good idea!

Unknown said:

3 - Whenever I change the rectangle dimension the cell is automatically update?

AreaAnnotator™ is an object observer.  It observes the area (2D) or volumetric (3D) characteristics of an element.  When a characteristic changes, it updates attached tags automatically.  If you manually export tags (or use something like FlexiTable™) then you can update an Excel worksheet.  However, that Excel update doesn't happen automatically.

One issue is mapping element data to Excel.  For automatic updates, there must exist a formal definition of your Excel worksheet.  Most Excel worksheets are not formally defined, and most Excel users have no idea what is meant by the term 'formal definition'.  In database or XML terms that would be a schema, but to those who believe that Excel represents a database a term such as schema is computer­speak babble.

In fact, the releases of Excel in recent times (since Excel 2010, I believe) have been able to interpret an XML schema.  Perhaps we could create a tool to write element data in an XML file that conforms to that schema?  Then, whenever you open that file with Excel, you would see a worksheet that contains current data from MicroStation.

Why not re-post your question as a poll?  Ask people to vote for element data export to Excel.  Find how many people agree with you that it would be a good idea!

If there's a way to achieve this without that refresh then it's even better. But even by XML we need to export again and again always that the elements change. And that is from some idea that first as to be well digested before is implemented on the program. In my experience that will take some years 1, 2 or more if and very important if it's well received by a large group of people.

I believe I've seen people using a macro to link data. If I remember correctly people indeed do a click in a button with a macro that as vba code inside (? - speaking from someone that does not know a thing about the theme) that reloads the information from Microstation. Not so automatically after all, but if this is doable with a macro placed in a button inside our worksheet its a lot better then to check all the values one by one. This is what i was asking for.

Regards