Opening .xls files with OO mac

[Malcolm Fitzgerald]

I'm receiving files from a web site that are supposed to be in excel  
97-2000 format. When I'm on a windows platform OO calc opens the file  
as a spreadsheet. When I try to open the same files on my Mac they  
open in OO Write, even though I've specified that I want to open an MS  
excel .xls file.

I've opened the files in a text editor and inspected them. They  
contain nothing but an HTML table so I'm a little annoyed that anyone  
even pretends that they are excel files. However, MS excel opens them  
and utilises the HTML code to format the cells. OO Calc on windows  
opens them and I need the same functionality on the mac. Can anyone  
suggest anything?

Malcolm

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[Brian McKee]

On Fri, Nov 6, 2009 at 3:09 AM, Malcolm Fitzgerald
<mfitzgerald@...> wrote:

> I'm receiving files from a web site that are supposed to be in excel 97-2000
> format. When I'm on a windows platform OO calc opens the file as a
> spreadsheet. When I try to open the same files on my Mac they open in OO
> Write, even though I've specified that I want to open an MS excel .xls file.
>
> I've opened the files in a text editor and inspected them. They contain
> nothing but an HTML table so I'm a little annoyed that anyone even pretends
> that they are excel files. However, MS excel opens them and utilises the
> HTML code to format the cells. OO Calc on windows opens them and I need the
> same functionality on the mac. Can anyone suggest anything?

You probably need the Developer Tools installed to have this command available
SetFile -c XCEL -t XLS8 filenameToOpenInExcel
assuming here that you don't actually have Excel on that Mac.

Or, what happens when you change the filename to .ods?

Oddly, GetFileInfo on an .ods file shows no creator or type info -
does anyone know why they that is?

Brian

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[Gallomimia]

I'm going to suggest creating a new blank calc document and using the
import function. Could you possibly provide an example file attached
to this thread?

iPhone of Gallo

On 2009-11-06, at 13:40, Brian McKee <brian.mckee@...> wrote:

> On Fri, Nov 6, 2009 at 3:09 AM, Malcolm Fitzgerald
> <mfitzgerald@...> wrote:
>> I'm receiving files from a web site that are supposed to be in
>> excel 97-2000
>> format. When I'm on a windows platform OO calc opens the file as a
>> spreadsheet. When I try to open the same files on my Mac they open
>> in OO
>> Write, even though I've specified that I want to open an MS
>> excel .xls file.
>>
>> I've opened the files in a text editor and inspected them. They
>> contain
>> nothing but an HTML table so I'm a little annoyed that anyone even
>> pretends
>> that they are excel files. However, MS excel opens them and
>> utilises the
>> HTML code to format the cells. OO Calc on windows opens them and I
>> need the
>> same functionality on the mac. Can anyone suggest anything?
>
> You probably need the Developer Tools installed to have this command
> available
> SetFile -c XCEL -t XLS8 filenameToOpenInExcel
> assuming here that you don't actually have Excel on that Mac.
>
> Or, what happens when you change the filename to .ods?
>
> Oddly, GetFileInfo on an .ods file shows no creator or type info -
> does anyone know why they that is?
>
> Brian
>
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[Malcolm Fitzgerald]

> On Fri, Nov 6, 2009 at 3:09 AM, Malcolm Fitzgerald

> <mfitzgerald@...> wrote:
>> I'm receiving files from a web site that are supposed to be in excel
>> 97-2000
>> format. When I'm on a windows platform OO calc opens the file as a
>> spreadsheet. When I try to open the same files on my Mac they open in OO
>> Write, even though I've specified that I want to open an MS excel .xls
>> file.
>>
>> I've opened the files in a text editor and inspected them. They contain
>> nothing but an HTML table so I'm a little annoyed that anyone even
>> pretends
>> that they are excel files. However, MS excel opens them and utilises the
>> HTML code to format the cells. OO Calc on windows opens them and I need
>> the
>> same functionality on the mac. Can anyone suggest anything?
>
> You probably need the Developer Tools installed to have this command
> available
> SetFile -c XCEL -t XLS8 filenameToOpenInExcel
> assuming here that you don't actually have Excel on that Mac.
>
> Or, what happens when you change the filename to .ods?
>
> Oddly, GetFileInfo on an .ods file shows no creator or type info -
> does anyone know why they that is?

SetFile works, that is, it changes creator code and file type attributes
and the icon looks like an excel spreadsheet. It doesn't change the fact
that it opens in web/writer

Same result when I change the file name extension to .ods

I'll attach the file so you can see what I'm dealing with

thanks

Malcolm


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[Russell Butler]

mfitzgerald@... wrote:

>> On Fri, Nov 6, 2009 at 3:09 AM, Malcolm Fitzgerald
>> <mfitzgerald@...> wrote:
>>> I'm receiving files from a web site that are supposed to be in excel
>>> 97-2000
>>> format. When I'm on a windows platform OO calc opens the file as a
>>> spreadsheet. When I try to open the same files on my Mac they open in OO
>>> Write, even though I've specified that I want to open an MS excel .xls
>>> file.
>>>
>>> I've opened the files in a text editor and inspected them. They contain
>>> nothing but an HTML table so I'm a little annoyed that anyone even
>>> pretends
>>> that they are excel files. However, MS excel opens them and utilises the
>>> HTML code to format the cells. OO Calc on windows opens them and I need
>>> the
>>> same functionality on the mac. Can anyone suggest anything?
>> You probably need the Developer Tools installed to have this command
>> available
>> SetFile -c XCEL -t XLS8 filenameToOpenInExcel
>> assuming here that you don't actually have Excel on that Mac.
>>
>> Or, what happens when you change the filename to .ods?
>>
>> Oddly, GetFileInfo on an .ods file shows no creator or type info -
>> does anyone know why they that is?
>
>
> SetFile works, that is, it changes creator code and file type attributes
> and the icon looks like an excel spreadsheet. It doesn't change the fact
> that it opens in web/writer
>
> Same result when I change the file name extension to .ods
>
> I'll attach the file so you can see what I'm dealing with
>
> thanks
>
> Malcolm
>
>

Hi Malcolm

Just out of interest  I tried opening your file on my Linux installation
(OOo 3.1.1 build 9420)

It also tried to open in Writer. By "Inserting file from sheet" as an
Excel file into a calc file , it would import, though with all very
narrow columns. Massaging the display, cell C2 appears to have a lot of
html, and some subsequent cells seem to have links to images not
included in the file.

I don't know if this is helpful at all. I am in no way an expert or
"power user"

Regards

Russell


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[Russell Butler]

Russell Butler wrote:

> mfitzgerald@... wrote:
>>> On Fri, Nov 6, 2009 at 3:09 AM, Malcolm Fitzgerald
>>> <mfitzgerald@...> wrote:
>>>> I'm receiving files from a web site that are supposed to be in excel
>>>> 97-2000
>>>> format. When I'm on a windows platform OO calc opens the file as a
>>>> spreadsheet. When I try to open the same files on my Mac they open
>>>> in OO
>>>> Write, even though I've specified that I want to open an MS excel .xls
>>>> file.
>>>>
>>>> I've opened the files in a text editor and inspected them. They contain
>>>> nothing but an HTML table so I'm a little annoyed that anyone even
>>>> pretends
>>>> that they are excel files. However, MS excel opens them and utilises
>>>> the
>>>> HTML code to format the cells. OO Calc on windows opens them and I need
>>>> the
>>>> same functionality on the mac. Can anyone suggest anything?
>>> You probably need the Developer Tools installed to have this command
>>> available
>>> SetFile -c XCEL -t XLS8 filenameToOpenInExcel
>>> assuming here that you don't actually have Excel on that Mac.
>>>
>>> Or, what happens when you change the filename to .ods?
>>>
>>> Oddly, GetFileInfo on an .ods file shows no creator or type info -
>>> does anyone know why they that is?
>>
>>
>> SetFile works, that is, it changes creator code and file type attributes
>> and the icon looks like an excel spreadsheet. It doesn't change the fact
>> that it opens in web/writer
>>
>> Same result when I change the file name extension to .ods
>>
>> I'll attach the file so you can see what I'm dealing with
>>
>> thanks
>>
>> Malcolm
>>
>>
> Hi Malcolm
>
> Just out of interest  I tried opening your file on my Linux installation
> (OOo 3.1.1 build 9420)
>
> It also tried to open in Writer. By "Inserting file from sheet" as an
> Excel file into a calc file , it would import, though with all very
> narrow columns. Massaging the display, cell C2 appears to have a lot of
> html, and some subsequent cells seem to have links to images not
> included in the file.
>
> I don't know if this is helpful at all. I am in no way an expert or
> "power user"
>
> Regards
>
> Russell

Sorry to reply to myself, but after saving the result above as an .ods
file and reopening it, I could see that the whole of column 2 was
descriptions of books. Took a bit of formatting, but came out readable
in the end, apart from formatting information which is not handled by calc:

eg: <strong>by Diana Gabaldon<br></strong><br><strong>Book
Description</strong><br>

HTH

Russell


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[Malcolm Fitzgerald]

> mfitzgerald@... wrote:
>>> On Fri, Nov 6, 2009 at 3:09 AM, Malcolm Fitzgerald
>>> <mfitzgerald@...> wrote:
>>>> I'm receiving files from a web site that are supposed to be in excel
>>>> 97-2000
>>>> format. When I'm on a windows platform OO calc opens the file as a
>>>> spreadsheet. When I try to open the same files on my Mac they open in
>>>> OO
>>>> Write, even though I've specified that I want to open an MS excel .xls
>>>> file.
>>>>
>>>> I've opened the files in a text editor and inspected them. They
>>>> contain
>>>> nothing but an HTML table so I'm a little annoyed that anyone even
>>>> pretends
>>>> that they are excel files. However, MS excel opens them and utilises
>>>> the
>>>> HTML code to format the cells. OO Calc on windows opens them and I
>>>> need
>>>> the
>>>> same functionality on the mac. Can anyone suggest anything?
>>> You probably need the Developer Tools installed to have this command
>>> available
>>> SetFile -c XCEL -t XLS8 filenameToOpenInExcel
>>> assuming here that you don't actually have Excel on that Mac.
>>>
>>> Or, what happens when you change the filename to .ods?
>>>
>>> Oddly, GetFileInfo on an .ods file shows no creator or type info -
>>> does anyone know why they that is?
>>
>>
>> SetFile works, that is, it changes creator code and file type attributes
>> and the icon looks like an excel spreadsheet. It doesn't change the fact
>> that it opens in web/writer
>>
>> Same result when I change the file name extension to .ods
>>
>> I'll attach the file so you can see what I'm dealing with
>>
>> thanks
>>
>> Malcolm
>>
>>
> Hi Malcolm
>
> Just out of interest  I tried opening your file on my Linux installation
> (OOo 3.1.1 build 9420)
>
> It also tried to open in Writer. By "Inserting file from sheet" as an
> Excel file into a calc file , it would import, though with all very
> narrow columns. Massaging the display, cell C2 appears to have a lot of
> html, and some subsequent cells seem to have links to images not
> included in the file.
>

Hi Russell,

That works for me!

thanks for your help.


malcolm


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