Содержание
- Convert Excel files into Web applications using DaDaBIK
- Excel Vs. Database Web application
- Ready to try DaDaBIK?
- From excel to web application
- How to Move From Excel to a Web Application
- APP DEVELOPMENT
- Step 1: Reverse engineer the schema
- Step 2: Settle on the scope
- Step 3: Leverage technology
- Step 4: Add custom features/integrations
- Step 5: Scale!
- Case study: Migrating a complex design system to a full stack application
- Turn Excel Spreadsheets Into Web Apps
- Build Cloud Apps From Spreadsheets in Minutes!
- Convert Your Spreadsheets Into Interactive Web Apps
- Migrate to a Cloud Database
- Build Excel Web Apps
- Publish Spreadsheets Online
- Excel Is Many Things, But Not a Database
- Convert Excel to a Web Application in 3 Easy Steps
- Step 1: Import Your Spreadsheet
- Step 2: Configure Your Tables
- Step 3: Build Powerful Excel Web Apps
- Why Move From Excel to Web Now
- UNLIMITED USERS
- MASSIVE SCALABILITY
- FAST PERFORMANCE
- PROFESSIONAL WEB APPS
- EASY DEPLOYMENT
- CLOUD INTEGRATIONS
- MAXIMUM SECURITY
- NO CODE
- From Limited Worksheets to Infinite Possibilities
- Build Your First Excel Database App Today!
Convert Excel files into Web applications using DaDaBIK
Microsoft Excel is a powerful and very popular software application. For certain tasks, it can be extremely useful. However, when you need to share your data with multiple users and provide a robust and secure solution for data management, a modern Web application is probably a much better solution respect to the classic Excel spreadsheet.
In a database Web application, all the data is stored in a database (for example a MySQL or a MS SQL Server database) and the users access the data through a Web interface, using a computer or a mobile device.
The database doesn’t necessary need to be «in the cloud», it could be on a local machine as well or on a computer accessible only from your local network, wherever you prefer.
DaDaBIK allows to turn an Excel file into a Web application in one click.
In this video tutorial, you will see how you can create a Web application starting from Excel, using DaDaBIK.
DaDaBIK will automatically create the forms and the data grids needed to build a data entry application and will provide all the tools you need to easily generate PDF reports, graph reports, Pivot table reports.
Excel Vs. Database Web application
There are many things you can do with a DaDaBIK Web app that you would miss using an Excel spreadsheet, let’s mention a few of them that you’ll probably notice right after the installation of DaDaBIK.
- You can easily build and configure user-friendly, responsive and good-looking Web forms, that make the whole data-entry process more enjoyable for your final users.
- You can easily embed your Web app into an existing Website, for example using the DaDaBIK WordPress plugin.
- You can set complex data validation rules that prevent human mistakes, for example you could ask DaDaBIK to check the similarity on a specific field to prevent duplicated insertion (even for similar entries).
- You can implement workflows that reflect your business process, e.g. do you want to send an email to the head of sales when someone changes a product’s information? You can do it in a few seconds, without coding.
- You can easily hide some of your data (rows or fields) to some of your users, e.g. you could ask DaDaBIK to show to each salesperson only the sales belonging to him/her.
- You can easily build relationships between tables (or, in Excel jargon, «sheets»), for example:
- create a relationship between «products» and «brands», so I can choose the brand a product belongs to from a listbox containing all the brands available in my db, maybe filtering with some custom rules;
- create a master/details form between invoices and invoice_items so I can see, under an invoice heading, the relevant items (even if the data is stored in another table).
Ready to try DaDaBIK?
All our licenses allow the installation starting from an Excel file. Download DaDaBIK now or Contact us to talk about your needs (we’ll get back to you within a few hours).
Want to know what users say about DaDaBIK? Check the reviews
Источник
From excel to web application
How to Move From Excel to a Web Application
APP DEVELOPMENT
By Yianni Stergou
One of the more common business problems that we come across is clients creating or validating a process using Excel and wanting to scale that into a web application. There are tools that will get you half way there but it’s more important to understand the entire process and how the custom features are translated into the application.
This article will discuss the step by step process we use to transform from an offline Excel document to a full stack web application.
Step 1: Reverse engineer the schema
Because we are working from an existing application, there is already a schema that the Excel spreadsheet follows. This means there are entities and those entities have relationships. For example you might have a spreadsheet that keeps track of your inventory. Let’s say lawnmowers have a one to one relationship with price. That means one lawnmower has one price. You already know all these rules and the spreadsheet has been created with these in mind. But reverse engineering it helps to create a more scalable solution and leverage existing technology (see step 3).
Step 2: Settle on the scope
This might seem obsolete. If you’re starting with an Excel application, isn’t the scope of work just replicating that as a web application? The short answer is, it can be, but never is. Once you open up new possibilities, for example integrating with third party apps, the scope begins to expand. Because the same limitations no longer exist, the possibilities grow. That’s why it’s important to see what new advantages can be leveraged from the web application during a scoping process.
Step 3: Leverage technology
As mentioned in step 1, one of the reasons for reverse engineering the schema is to leverage technology that can save development time. WorkingMouse utilises the Codebots technology to streamline migration projects. By giving the bots the database schema, they can create the framework for the application. Based on the scope from step 2, we may also be able to leverage the bots behaviours for more advanced functionality.
Step 4: Add custom features/integrations
This is where we can start to get creative. The application is no longer limited by the native functionality of Excel. We’ll discuss in more depth soon but one past example involved taking some pre-written python calculations and creating an API layer between the new web app and the python code. This cut an entire step out of the company’s previous process and meant decisions could be made instantly. This part carries the most value, as well as the most risk. That’s why step 2 is designed to settle on a defined scope and investigate the custom features/integrations that form part of the project.
Step 5: Scale!
Importantly, the migration to a new web application enables scalability. This means different things for different companies. In some cases it may mean being able to create a new user group to allow customers to interact with the application. In others, it might mean collaborating on an app that they previously couldn’t. One of the more common reasons we’ve heard is that it centralises the knowledge and doesn’t remain trapped in the mind of the creator.
With the ability to reach customers it also provides the potential for licensing the application. This might act as the primary or secondary revenue stream. It’s one of the key advantages of developing your own software rather than choosing an off the shelf system.
Case study: Migrating a complex design system to a full stack application
This sounds great in theory, but how has it been done in practice? My first experience managing an Excel to web app project was a complex design system that took 3 minutes to open due to the size and number of functions used. Not only that, there were 3 of these spreadsheets that formed the overall design system.
It was a complex system in a complex industry. Safe to say, the challenge was sizeable.
After a few deep breaths and several coffees, we began a three week scope to settle on the future state of the application and reverse engineer the schema. The three seperate spreadsheets were consolidated and some steps were able to be removed by moving away from Excel. We discovered a huge opportunity to optimise the system by setting up the scaffold of a design quickly and getting users to make edits on a table. In addition, we could create an API layer and integrate with existing code which would save the company days in back and forth communication.
Once the scope was settled, we created the scaffold of the application in the first week, with the codebots using the schema our web developer built. From there on, it was custom feature development using the process outlined in the Way of Working. With the efficiencies gained from the process above and the Codebots technology, we were 2 weeks ahead of schedule nearing the initial end date. As a result, we were able to include some of the original ‘nice to have’ functionality as part of the first build.
I won’t reiterate the benefits of moving from Excel to a web app. If you want an analysis on the business case for your organisation, book a free consultation with one of our consultants. The most important takeaway from this article is the need for a process that is fluid enough to accomodate each project’s requirements but defined enough to leverage previous learnings.
Источник
Turn Excel Spreadsheets
Into Web Apps
Build Cloud Apps From Spreadsheets in Minutes!
Convert Your Spreadsheets Into Interactive Web Apps
Level up your Excel spreadsheets with Caspio’s pioneering no-code app builder and integrated online database. Publish worksheets online, collaborate securely with multiple users and create powerful business apps — without writing code.
Migrate to a Cloud Database
The easiest way to turn Excel into a bona fide database is by importing your spreadsheets into Caspio. You gain instant access to data types, table relationships, record-level security and more. All it takes is a few clicks.
Build Excel Web Apps
Quickly build interfaces like forms, charts and reports on top of your data. With Caspio’s guided development workflow and point-and-click tools, you can create online Excel applications with ease.
Publish Spreadsheets Online
Embed your databases and apps on any website, intranet, portal or CMS. Alternatively, share a Caspio-hosted URL and give your users instant 24/7 access to their data from any connected device.
Excel Is Many Things, But Not a Database
Microsoft Excel is one of the most widely used business tools around the world. However, using it as a database in an era of teleworking and cloud computing can lead to data exposure, decreased productivity and more.
Excel users benefit from a vast collection of formulas, instantaneous calculations, easy charting and simple customization of fonts and colors. Anyone can input data and make quick reports, so it’s not a surprise that Excel can be seen on almost every computer around the world and continues to be a pillar of the Microsoft Office suite.
Limitations arise when multiple users need to edit files at the same time. Or when there’s sensitive information that other collaborators aren’t allowed to see. Often, it’s simply hard to find the latest version of the “final” file in your inbox.
If you’re trying to use spreadsheets as a business database and you find yourself limited by the lack of collaboration or security features, you’ve already outgrown Microsoft Excel.
Consider moving from Excel to a centralized online database. With Caspio, you can easily bring your existing spreadsheets into the cloud. Build secure, interactive web database apps and automate the way you collect and share data. Caspio is built on enterprise-grade SQL servers that can effortlessly handle databases of any size, with any number
of users.
Convert Excel to a Web Application in 3 Easy Steps
Build the Excel database you’ve always wanted. No installation of software or copy-pasting of records required. Just upload your Excel spreadsheets to our online database and start creating cloud applications without coding!
Step 1: Import Your Spreadsheet
Upload your Excel files and quickly import multiple worksheets using Caspio’s point-and-click wizards.
Step 2: Configure Your Tables
Caspio elevates your records in a structured database environment with custom data types and relationships.
Step 3: Build Powerful Excel Web Apps
Create multi-user web interfaces with Caspio’s visual application builder.
No coding required!
Why Move From Excel to Web Now
Simplify how you share data with others while doing it safely, securely and professionally. Be competitive in today’s digital landscape by leaving behind legacy systems in favor of a powerful online database platform.
UNLIMITED USERS
Unlike Excel spreadsheets, Caspio allows unlimited users to manage data and work simultaneously on the same table.
MASSIVE SCALABILITY
Grow your database according to your needs. Caspio automatically scales to accommodate increasing demands.
FAST PERFORMANCE
Experience optimal response times even with millions of records stored in your Caspio-powered Excel database.
PROFESSIONAL WEB APPS
More than an online Excel spreadsheet, Caspio lets you build feature-rich web apps using intuitive point-and-click tools.
EASY DEPLOYMENT
Publish your custom Excel database and apps on any website, intranet, portal or CMS —
including SharePoint.
CLOUD INTEGRATIONS
Select from thousands of third-party services, plugins and apps that also include Microsoft’s product suite.
MAXIMUM SECURITY
Leverage enterprise-grade compliance to adhere to regulations and protect business data
and users.
NO CODE
Add automations and workflows without using macros or Excel expressions. Just point, click
and publish!
From Limited Worksheets to Infinite Possibilities
With Caspio, the range of Excel database apps you can create is limited only by your imagination. Here are some popular use cases built by business professionals across all industries and departments.
Build Your First Excel Database App Today!
Want to create an online Excel app with powerful database features and web interfaces? Watch our 5-part video tutorial on how to convert Excel to a web application without writing code.
In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to:
Import Data From Excel to a Database: Natively upload data into Caspio in various formats, including Excel Workbooks, comma-separated values (CSV), delimited text and fixed-width text. We also support MS Access and XML files.
Manage User Access and Permissions: Caspio provides a powerful and flexible authentication system that enables you to password-protect your data. Set up role-based access for every application, down to every record.
Generate Interactive Web-Based Reports: Once you import your data into Caspio, our point-and-click wizards guide you through the process of creating real-time reports, including tabular charts and pivot tables.
Design Dashboards for Tracking and Insights: Create business intelligence dashboards by combining relevant charts and reports on one page. Enable decision-makers to make the right calls with easy access to updated information.
Create Forms for Data Submissions: With Caspio, you can build web forms for inserting new data or updating existing information. This allows you to operate on a self-service system, eliminating the need to manually update spreadsheets.
Deploy Excel Web Apps Anywhere: Embed your Caspio applications on any intranet, website or mobile site for 24/7 access to your application from any computer or device, anywhere
in the world.
Источник
Excel to Web Application
Are any of these applicable to you? You are at the right site. You have a Web Application in mind and have been implementing it on Excel. Unable to share with your customers with the fear that you will lose your IP. Office web apps are web based excel application that allow you to view and edit Microsoft Office documents. Your concept of Web Application works but limited in generating revenue due to limitation in Excel. If you want to create excel web application, then you should go with excel to web application development.
Trunao pioneering no-code app builder and the integrated online database will take your Excel spreadsheets to the next level. Convert your excel spreadsheet to web application free in minutes using a feature-rich no-code app builder. You can publish worksheets online, collaborate securely with numerous users, and construct powerful business apps without writing code. On top of your data, quickly create interfaces like forms, charts, and reports. You may easily create online Excel applications with our guided development workflow and point-and-click capabilities. Let’s convert excel sheet to web application!
Convert Excel Spreadsheet to Web Application Today
Trunao is offering free trial of 30 days. Try for free now and Explore the benefits of Trunao.
Customization of your Web Based Excel Application
There are multiple customization available as Admin for you.
Listing
The List view is the ideal choice if you usually work with to-do lists and require a simple overview of your chores and provide a summary of all tasks.
Form
You can design custom forms in the Form view, share them outside of Infinity, or embed them on your website to collect data directly into Infinity.
Columns
A Trunao board is a terrific option for anyone who wants to keep track of their activities, projects, and progress in a more visual manner, with all data readily available.
Additional Features to your Users like Charts, Pivots etc.
Trunao allows the construction of powerful Reports that allow you to see your data in various forms to meet your individual business requirements. The Report Builder is a drag-and-drop interface that allows you to drill down into your Trunao app’s existing Reports and view them as Pivot Tables and Pivot Charts.
Embedding Forms & Listing to your site
The Application owner can utilize the Embed Form to embed the Form on web pages and blogs, among other places. You can also enhance the aspect of the embedded Forms to match the style and feel of your website.
Custom Login
You can log in to websites with only one click with our Trunao Vault. You will never have to fill in another password, and you can automatically custom login without leaving the site.
Trunao is a Great Way to Convert Spreadsheet to Web Application
Nowadays, there is a huge number of excel to web app free. Upload your file using our Import functionality. The Import process is simple to use and highly intelligent. The process can read your file understand the type of data you are importing. Set up the column/field type. Builds a Form that is easy to use, ready to share or email your customers. Add all the required field validation. All the above process is completed as part of the Import in minutes. Let’s import and convert excel into web application today!
Why Trunao?
Here are a few reasons why our customers choose Sandbox.
-
Easy Usage
Our excel to the web application is simple and easy to use
-
Fast Transactions
Trunao offers you to create a fast transaction
-
Secure Payments
We take care of your security and can safely make payments
Easy Usage
A solid foundation is essential for faultless organisation and the finest potential outcomes. Furthermore, putting things up can waste even more of your already limited time. Customizing our web applications is easier, and this makes it easier to change the app’s look and feel and customize the way information is presented to different user groups.
- As a result, the Trunao web application is very easy to use
- Our advisors give you advice on how to use.
- So that you may work efficiently
- We can even do everything for you if necessary.
- Trunao environment will be good and easy for you
- Easy and fast to run from anywhere
Fast Transactions
Trunao — Web Based Excel Spreadsheet Application handles your money, keeps you from compliance, automates business procedures, and lets you work together across departments. We handle all of your accounting activities, from contract negotiations to sales orders, so that you can focus on your business. So our transactions will be faster and help manage all your business transactions in one place.
- Trunao payments will be simple and fast
- You can give fast payments option and get paid fast
- Create fast invoices for your clients
- Handle returns and refunds
- Verify transactions before sending
- Easily set up credit cards and pay securely
Secure Payments
Trunao was created with your needs in mind. You can create a bespoke payment page in just a few minutes and begin receiving payments securely. Without writing a particular line of code, you can create a secure payment website. You don’t have to worry about coding or hosting because we do it for you.
- Make your payment page your own
- We offer a seamless, secure payment experience
- The recurring transaction with hassle-free of payment
- We provide a secure way to pay
- Your payment is therefore secure from inside access
- All data is backed up on various servers in multiple locations daily
Frequently Asked Questions
If you don’t see an answer to your question, you can send us an email from our contact form.
You can establish online databases and store, manage, transform, and connect your data with our online database software. Trunao online database technologies allow you to construct no-code or low-code business applications to manage your business data better. Convert Excel into Web applications free using Trunao. Microsoft Excel is a powerful and very popular software application.
You do not have to build up your database from scratch because Trunao web based excel spreadsheet software comes with pre-made layouts you may use and customize. You can then import data into your online database once you have set the proper database outlook.
Yes. Trunao presently provides lifetime membership plans, which allow you to access for the rest of your life for a single price.
With lots of configurable attributes, project views, an endless number of folders and subfolders, and advanced customization options, we give you a lot of flexibility and freedom when it comes to project management. This assists you in creating and managing an online database quickly.
Nope. Without needing to be a developer, we make it simple to transfer data between programs. We may need you to locate Information for some accounts, but we will walk you through any further steps you should take, and our support champions are available via email to assist you if you need it.
Yes, when you sign up for a Trunao, you will get a trial of our Professional plan.
Every form of business revolves around data. Using our top-of-the-line applications and software to make the most of all aspects of data is essential. Trunao will assist you in saving, editing, and tracking all of your work data. Your firm can be more effective and productive with the right database management software.
If you are looking for web based excel spreadsheet here is web app which can help you to convert excel into web application. We can assist you in organizing, and also Information about your product inventory can be stored in a database. An excel database can be used to keep track of sales, expenses, and other financial data.
Happy Customers
Don’t take our word for it. See what customers are saying about us.
My organization maintains several large databases. Trunao has helped us to organize and display them in a way that is conducive to easy searching, and has helped us make sense of an organizational nightmare. We are continuously impressed by its functionality…
Jeremy Berry-Cahn
São Jorge Genealogy
Trunao has been an excellent partner in helping us organize and distribute information about training opportunities to our audience. Their customer support has been responsive and very helpful throughout the process of developing and hosting our training database.
Adam Howell
The Cornell Local Roads Program
Trunao has delivered exactly what I was looking for: An easy way to make large amounts of spreadsheet data manageable and searchable. Uploading my data was simple and I was up and running in minutes. The support team at Trunao was super responsive and even offers customizations…
Having used Trunao for a while, I might say the service it gives to render an excel spreadsheet into an online database is awesome!Price competitive and an excellent customer service always ready to help!
Alessandro Galati
Tieffe Group
We have found Trunao.com to be exactly what we needed for a large data entry project. Seven data entry people have been able to share the input form with no collisions. Amazing! The import process is excellent. The flexibility with filtering and sorting is superb…
Frederick D.
President/CEO, Silver Lake Development
Trunao has been an excellent partner in helping us in developing and hosting our company database.
We now can manage crucial information with our employees. We now have a complete view an can easily see who the customer is…
M. Schenk
CEO, Cool-Air Netherlands
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Migrate to Trunao Creator and simplify your business
Не секрет, что Excel довольно мощный инструмент для работы с числовыми табличными данными. Однако средства, которые предоставляет Microsoft для интеграции с ним, далеки от идеала. В частности, сложно интегрировать в Excel современные пользовательские интерфейсы. Нам нужно было дать пользователям Excel возможность работать с довольно насыщенным и функциональным интерфейсом. Мы пошли несколько другим путем, который в итоге показал хороший результат. В этой статье я расскажу, как можно организовать интерактивное взаимодействие Excel c веб-приложением на Angular и расшить Excel практически любым функционалом, который реализуем в современном веб-приложении.
Итак, меня зовут Михаил и я CTO в Exerica. Одна из проблем которые мы решаем — облегчение работы финансовых аналитиков с числовыми данными. Обычно они работают как с исходными документами финансовой и статистической отчетности, так и каким-либо инструментом для создания и поддержания аналитических моделей. Так сложилось, что 99% аналитиков работают в Microsoft Excel и делают там довольно сложные вещи. Поэтому перевести их с Excel на другие решения не эффективно и практически невозможно. Объективно, «облачные» сервисы электронных таблиц до функционала Excel пока не дотягивают. Но в современном мире инструменты должны быть удобны и соответствовать ожиданиям пользователей: открываться по клику мышки, иметь удобный поиск. А реализация в виде разных несвязанных приложений будет довольно далека от ожиданий пользователя.
То с чем работает аналитик выглядит примерно так:
Основные данные тут — это числовые «финансовые показатели», например, доход за 1 квартал 2020 года. Для простоты буду называть их дальше просто «числами». Как видно, почти никакой связи между числами в документе и в аналитической модели нет, все только в голове у аналитика. И работа с заполнением и поддержанием модели занимает часы поиска и перебивания чисел из документа в таблицы, а потом поиск ошибок ввода. Вместе этого мы хотели бы предложить пользователю привычные инструменты: «перетаскивание», вставка через клипборд и так далее, а также быстрый просмотр исходных данных.
Что у нас уже было
К моменту, когда мы начали реализацию интерактивного взаимодействия с Excel в виде, изложенном в этой статье, у нас уже была база данных на MongoDB, бэкэнд в виде REST API на .NET Core, фронтовое SPA на Angular и некоторые другие сервисы. Мы к этому моменту уже пробовали разные варианты интеграции в приложения электронных таблиц, в том числе и в Excel, и все они не пошли дальше MVP, но это тема отдельной статьи.
Связываем данные
В Excel существует два распространенных инструмента, с помощью которых можно решить задачу связывания данных в таблице с данными в системе: RTD (RealTimeData) и UDF (User-Defined Functions). Чистый RTD менее удобен для пользователя в плане синтаксиса и ограничивает гибкость решения. С помощью UDF можно создать кастомную функцию, которая будет работать привычным для Excel-пользователя образом. Ее можно использовать в других функциях, она понимает ссылки типа A1 или R1C1 и вообще ведет себя как надо. При этом никто не мешает использовать механизм RTD для обновления значения функции (что мы и сделали). UDF мы разрабатывали в виде Excel addin с использованием привычного нам C# и .NET Framework. Для ускорения разработки мы использовали библиотеку Excel DNA.
Кроме UDF наш addin реализует ribbon (панель инструментов) с настройками и некоторыми полезными функциями по работе с данными.
Добавляем интерактивность
Для передачи данных в Excel и налаживания интерактива мы разработали отдельный сервис, который предоставляет подключение по Websocket при помощи библиотеки SignalR и фактически является брокером для сообщений о событиях, которыми должны обмениваться «фронтовые» части системы в реальном времени. Он у нас называется Notification Service.
Вставляем данные в Excel
В нашем SPA мы подсвечиваем все числа, которые обнаружила система. Пользователь может выделять их, навигировать по ним и т.п. Для вставки данных мы реализовали 3 механизма, чтобы закрыть различные варианты использования:
- Перетаскивание (drag-and-drop)
- Автоматическая вставка по клику в SPA
- Копирование и вставка через клипборд
Когда пользователь инициирует drag’n’drop некоторого числа из SPA, для перетаскивания формируется ссылка с идентификатором этого числа из нашей системы (.../unifiedId/005F5549CDD04F8000010405FF06009EB57C0D985CD001). При вставке в Excel наш addin перехватывает событие вставки и парсит регэкспом вставляемый текст. При обнаружении валидной ссылки на лету подменяет ее на соответствующую формулу =ExrcP(...).
При клике на числе в SPA через Notification Service отправляется сообщение в addin, содержащее все необходимые данные для вставки формулы. Далее формула просто вставляется в текущую выделенную ячейку.
Эти способы хороши, когда пользователю нужно вставлять в свою модель по одному числу, но если надо перенести целую таблицу или ее часть, необходим другой механизм. Наиболее привычным для пользователей представляется копирование через клипборд. Однако этот способ оказался сложнее первых двух. Дело в том, что для удобства вставляемые данные должны быть представлены в нативном для Excel формате — OpenXML Spreadsheet. Наиболее просто это реализуется используя объектную модель Excel, то есть из addin’а. Поэтому процесс формирования клипборда у нас выглядит так:
- Пользователь выделяет область с числами в SPA
- Массив выделенных чисел передается на Notification Service
- Notification Service передает его в addin
- Addin формирует OpenXML и вставляет его в клипборд
- Пользователь может вставить данные из клипборда в любое место любой Excel-таблицы.
Несмотря на то, что данные проделывают довольно долгий путь, благодаря SignalR и RTD происходит это довольно быстро и абстрагированно от пользователя.
Распространяем данные
После того, как пользователь выбрал начальные данные для своей модели, их надо «распространить» все периоды (года, полугодия и кварталы), которые представляют интерес. Для этих целей одним из параметров нашей UDF является дата (период) данного числа (вспоминаем: «доход за 1 квартал 2020 года»). В Excel существует нативный механизм «распространения» формул, который позволяет заполнить ячейки той же формулой с учетом ссылок, заданных в параметрах. То есть вместо конкретной даты в формулу вставлена ссылка на нее, а далее пользователь «распространяет» ее на другие периоды, при этом в таблицу автоматически загружаются «те же» числа из других периодов.
А что это там за число?
Теперь у пользователя есть модель на несколько сотен строк и несколько десятков столбцов. И у него может возникнуть вопрос, что же там за число в ячейке L123? Чтобы получить ответ, у нас ему достаточно кликнуть на эту ячейку и в нашем SPA откроется тот самый отчет, на той самой странице, где записано кликнутое число, а число в отчете будет выделено. Вот так:
А если это не просто одно число из отчета, а результат некоторых вычислений на числах, взятых из отчета, то мы подсветим все числа, входящие в вычисляемое в Excel выражение. При этом не происходит загрузки всего приложения и подгрузки всех необходимых данных, как в случае перехода по ссылке.
В качестве заключения
Вот такая, на мой взгляд, нестандартная реализация взаимодействия между Excel и веб-приложением получилась довольно удобной для пользователя. Благодаря использованию Excel порог входа для пользователей из целевой аудитории довольно низкий. При этом мы получаем также всю мощь Excel по работе с числовыми данными. Сами данные всегда остаются связанными с источником, а также связанными во времени. Для целевых клиентов нет необходимости встраивать в бизнес-процесс работы с данными абсолютно новые внешние системы. Наше решение встраивается как дополнительный «инструмент» внутри Excel, что является стандартом де-факто для провайдеров финансовых данных.
Подобный архитектурный подход к интеграции веб-приложений с Microsoft Excel может быть применим и для решения других задач, требующих интерактива и сложных пользовательских интерфейсов при работе с числовыми и табличными данными.
It only takes 3 steps to convert your Excel spreadsheet to an app! We´ll tell you how!
Microsoft Excel remains the go-to software solution for millions of businesses across the globe. It is favored for its versatility and flexibility and for the depth of data manipulation and analysis that it allows. And thanks to the Open as App platform that turns Excel spreadsheets into apps within minutes, some of the challenges in using Excel have been overcome.
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Excel to app: How to convert spreadsheets
Whether you need Excel to collect data, plan projects and analyze risks, report metrics, generate quotes, predict financial outcomes, or something as big as production planning or order management, you know it will be there for you.
But when it comes to using Excel collaboratively or protecting the data efficiently, that’s when things can get really messy. Suddenly, your Excel sheet is crashing, data is corrupt, and you have no idea whether you’re looking at the latest version or not. While this is quite characteristic of unmanaged Excel files, it can frequently occur with managed ones as well.
In this case, you may want to consider turning your Excel spreadsheet into a native or web application. This will allow you to reduce some of the common errors related to data management, distribution, and protection. Another benefit is that your Excel will look like an app – this offers greater usability and variety in terms of design.
Here are some reasons you should turn your Excel spreadsheet into an app and how to go about that.
Why should you turn your Excel into an app?
For all their usefulness, spreadsheets can quickly turn into what’s known as “Excel Hell” due to one or two simple mistakes. Such as when JP Morgan lost about $6.5 billion during the so-called “London Whale” incident because of several faulty equations and copy-pasted cells.
So, when do spreadsheets fail, and how can turning them into an app help you avoid their pitfalls?
Spreadsheet version control is hard
With spreadsheets constantly circulating around, chances are the latest version will get lost sooner or later. Moreover, updates by different people can end up damaging the core data and make the file unusable.
When you move your data to an app, you can limit user’s access to the “master version” of your spreadsheet and only allow admins to access it. Under this setup, users are only given access to specific data and fields, with everything else remaining hidden. This allows them to conduct the necessary operations without inadvertently corrupting the native spreadsheet.
Excel does not work like a database and is difficult to scale
While Excel is a good place to store and manipulate data, it does not offer the functionalities of a database or a data management system. Excel does not support complex data types, relations between files and records, or different data sets. This limits the types of operations you can perform.
Moreover, spreadsheets don’t allow for real-time multi-user input when used on a desktop and not online. Your spreadsheet then soon becomes a hindrance to scaling operations and improving efficiency. This is further compounded by the fact that as files grow in size, operations become slower and more cumbersome.
Reversely, by making an app out of your spreadsheet, you can offer your users the advantage of flexible and easy access to data and data collection from various sources, not just Excel. Plus, you can give multiple users access to your know-how without the risk of them overwriting your work or exposing your data.
Apps offer greater security
Even though a certain level of security, such as password protection, is available in Excel, this can fairly easily be bypassed. If you want to keep your data safe, then retaining it in a spreadsheet that is widely accessible is not a good idea.
By turning your Excel spreadsheet into an app, you are effectively removing user access to the source file, encrypting the data, and hosting it securely in your own environment. There, it will be accessible only to users at the admin level. This guarantees the safety and integrity of the data. It also allows you to specifically determine who can see your data and entirely limit third parties from gaining access. You can even set an expiry date for your app, after which it will simply stop being accessible to users.
For even greater security, you can initially create your app with dummy data and populate it with your original data later on.
Present your data more user-friendly
An Excel sheet is not the perfect asset to share with your customers or the management team or embed into your website. With an app, you provide an easy-to-use tool that shows you all relevant data in a user-friendly way, which can be used on mobile, desktop, and tablets.
How can no-code apps help to improve your business?
No-code app creation has benefits that go beyond spreadsheet trouble and will affect your business even more. That’s because with no-code apps, innovation and optimization are no longer only dedicated to the IT department or an external service provider – now, everyone who knows Excel can jump in and start creating, deploying, and managing an app.
No programming skills needed – everyone can contribute
Unlike with a custom software solution that is coded by hand, you don’t need any programming skills to turn your Excel sheet into an app. This is the case regardless of which of the myriad functions of Excel you’re using.
Innovation at low cost
Turning your spreadsheet into an app is not as costly as a custom solution either. Say you want to develop a web or native app that allows users to perform various types of calculations. This can be very time-consuming and expensive to code.
Instead, creating these calculations in Excel and then converting them into an app is highly cost and time-efficient and allows you to mobilize your data without switching your already existing system or files stored online.
People who know the business create apps
The people who will be working with the app know best what they want. A no-code app is created by business experts who previously created the Excel solution. They know the processes, the needs of their users, and how the app should be used. Briefing a developer and explaining what is vital for your business takes a long time and is an iterative process.
When the app is directly created based on the previously used Excel solution, creation, roll-out, and updating are amazingly fast. Once the business experts know what’s possible, they usually devise many innovative ideas that can be realized in almost no time.
Great service improvements – easily done
For your customers, partners, and your team, an app is always easier to use than an Excel spreadsheet. An app can typically be accessed anytime and anywhere, whereas an Excel spreadsheet can be quite cumbersome to work with on your mobile.
Keep operating costs down
An additional benefit of having an app is that you can automatically roll out updates to your entire network of users. That helps you to reduce the cost around the life cycle of an app. With in-built email and push notifications, you can easily notify users of changes and updates, improving your brand’s communication.
If you’re curious about the kinds of apps you can create by turning a spreadsheet into an app, see the next section for a list and overview of various use cases!
What kind of apps can you create from a spreadsheet?
The possibilities for creating an app from a spreadsheet are mostly limited by what you can imagine creating in Excel. The range within which you can create apps varies from data-heavy industries like finance, insurance, healthcare, and real estate to simple directory and personal budget apps.
Some of the possible applications of native app and web app development platforms include:
Excel-based app examples
- Business apps that include checklists, calculators, manuals, an address book, or simple CRM
- Embedded web calculators for finance, mortgages, insurance, interest, personal finances, and more
- Medical practice apps for patient experience, operations and administration, and more
- Reporting apps with forecasts, break-even, profit and loss, and high-level economics
- Dashboards for sales and marketing, such as ROI for B2B sales or advertising campaigns
- Production and logistics dashboards and stock inventory lists
- …and many more
These are only some of the possible applications of app development platforms. So, what platforms and tools are available to turn a spreadsheet into an app, and how do they work? Here is Open as App in more detail.
How to prepare your Excel sheet before you turn it into an app?
Before you submit your spreadsheet to the Open as App platform, you have to make sure that it’s formatted right. This will ease the process of converting it into an app and eliminate possible errors. There are several simple rules to follow when doing this.
The 5 Basic rules:
- Your lists must have headings at the top of the column. This guarantees that the list will be recognized as one by the app wizard and assigned the proper values.
- Your data must be clear. Any highlights, crossed-out data, comments or anything else will not be considered when your spreadsheet is processed.
- Any cells outside a list area will not be taken into account by the wizard. Neither can merged cells be analyzed properly. One cell should always have only one input and be within the space of the list it belongs to.
- Format your cells accordingly to have their values displayed. The Open as App platform will consider any values you ascribed to your cells and add them to your app. Examples of values include the date, currency, phone number, drop-down menu, etc.
- Avoid pivot tables (when using Google Sheets) and macros. Macros cannot be included, as that would make apps impossible to use on iOS.
Rules for more complex Excel sheets:
- Use explicit cell references rather than structured references; i.e., do not use table or column names but simply direct cell number references.
- References to external files cannot be accessed: Any references you make in your Excel file must be part of that file, even if not on the same sheet.
- Ensure you’re using supported formulas: Over 90% of common formulas are supported by Open as App. However, if you find an error in your app, see if the formulas you have used are supported. Array formulas and certain formulas specific to Google Sheets are not currently supported by the platform.
- Always specify all the arguments in a formula: Optional arguments with a default value given to them by Excel cannot be evaluated.
Keeping these rules in mind, you can create your own app within minutes without any difficulties.
How to design your app?
Once you have prepared your spreadsheet and uploaded it to the Open as App platform, you will get a recommendation for your app. Then, you can pick a design theme you like and manually design your app as you imagine it.
With the Open as App platform, you can customize the design of your app to your brand identity and, more specifically, configure how cells function. You can also add additional functionalities.
Once you are in the App Designer, you are given several options.
- Preview – this option allows you to preview how your app will look, but you can also edit or delete individual items, such as the app header and name.
- Add elements – these options permit you to add new types of content such as cells – if you have additional data to incorporate into your app, charts – if you’d like to make your app more interactive and engaging, or lists – if you want to add sub-lists to your calculations. You can also add headers, spacers, images, info buttons, image upload or signature fields, a map, or action buttons
- Rearrange elements – with this, you can rearrange the elements in your app, group them together as you wish, and even add new pages to fill with extra elements.
- Design – change theme – with this function, you can change the whole theme of your app using a predefined layout provided by Open as App.
- Add print functionality – allows you to generate a PDF file through your app and send it via email.
Using the App Designer, you can stylize your app visually and functionally to match your desired result. You can fine-tune to what extent users can interact with the different contents and enrich the presentation of data thanks to different visual elements such as charts and graphs. All of this takes a minimal amount of time, and the simplicity or complexity of your final app depends entirely on what you want.
So what happens once you design and publish your app? Thanks to the way Open as App functions, there is a two-way connection between the sheet and the app. This means that both the sheet and the app are always updated in both ways. At the same time, access to your app and its functionalities is easy for all users while all the data remains protected to the extent you want it to.
Don’t forget to download your checklist
Just enter your contact data, and we´ll send you our checklist. This list will help you take everything into account when choosing a platform to build your app. Check it out for free!
Ready to turn your Excel sheet into an app?
Are you ready to give it a try? Simply open our App Creation Wizard, watch a short tutorial video (2 minutes), and follow the instructions to create your first app!
Многие компании работают с Excel в течение десятилетий. Он мощный, но простой в использовании, однако одна из самых больших проблем с Excel заключается в том, что трудно интегрировать файл Excel с другими системами и службами, особенно с базой данных. Если вы загружаете файл Excel как вложение в систему, и вам необходимо загрузить его и открыть в Excel всякий раз, когда вам нужно отредактировать файл, вы просто используете Excel в автономном режиме. Это не комплексное решение.
В этой статье я покажу вам, как сделать так, чтобы ваш файл Excel работал без проблем в веб-приложении на основе базы данных.
Предположим, у вас есть таблица, содержащая торговые записи в базе данных, и вам нужно показать эти торговые записи в виде пользовательского интерфейса, подобного электронной таблице, чтобы пользователи могли редактировать, фильтровать и вычислять данные с помощью формул Excel. Кроме того, ваши пользователи капризны — цвет, формат и стиль пользовательского интерфейса могут время от времени меняться, поэтому его будет легко обновлять в будущем.
Чтобы выполнить вышеуказанные требования, я хотел бы познакомить вас с подходом на основе шаблонов: использовать файл Excel в качестве шаблона и заполнить данные из базы данных в шаблон.
В архитектурном представлении я делю приложение на 3 части: модель, вид, контроллер .
Keikai Spreadsheet (Просмотреть) — DatabaseComposer (Контроллер) — MyDataService (Модель)
Сочетая шаблон и данные, полученное в результате веб-приложение будет выглядеть так:
В этом приложении я использую компонент веб-таблиц с открытым исходным кодом Keikai . Keikai основан на инфраструктуре пользовательского интерфейса ZK , поэтому я могу построить пользовательский интерфейс в ZUL, используя также другие компоненты ZK. ZUL — это язык формата XML, где каждый тег представляет компонент, поэтому я могу создать такой интерфейс: