Convert Table to Articles
Note:
Articles are currently in feature preview. Contact us to get on the waitlist
Documentation for this feature is still work in progress
Overview
The "Convert table to articles" feature allows you to convert a table of data into a set of articles for creating itemised budgeting and forecasting records.
The Convert table to articles action button will be visible in the xpna task pane when the selected cell is in an Excel table.
Prerequisites
In order to create articles from list in Excel the following requirements must be met:
- the selected cell must be in an Excel table. You can convert a range to a table by pressing Ctrl+T
- there must be a column in the table which contains a unique identifier for each item. (the name and position of this column is not important)
- there must be a column in the table which contains the name of each item
Usage
- Select a cell anywhere inside the table you want to convert to articles.
- Click on the
Convert table to articlesaction button in the xpna task pane. - Select the data source you want to use to store the articles. If you don't have any applicable data sources, you can create one by selecting "Add new" in the "Data source" drop down. a. If you are creating a new article type, enter a name, unique code, and select an icon for the data source and click "OK".
- Select the scenario you want to use to store the articles. If you don't have any applicable scenarios, you can create one using the Members and hierarchies tab of the task pane.
- Click "Create new definition". a. Before you upload articles, you must specify which are the unique code and name columns. b. Select the column which contains the unique code for each article. c. Select the column which contains the name for each article. d. Click "Save".
Once a table of articles has been created, you can use the ARTICLE function or the "Insert article table" function to retrieve the article and its attributes, or use the ARTICLESEND function to create planning records and send them to the xpna database.
Common Problems
- The selected cell must be in an Excel table to use this feature. To convert a range of data to an Excel table, select the range, then use the shortcut Ctrl+T or use the "Table" button on the Insert ribbon.
- Every row in the code column must be unique. If there are duplicate codes, the conversion will fail.