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Sometimes when i am downloading a cvs file and try to open in Numbers, all the fields (there are about 10) are being dumped into 1 field. What can i do to prevent this?
iMac, OS X El Capitan (10.11.4), null
can you post an sample of the data?
The best way to address this is to look at the data to see what is causing the trouble
What's the best way to send the file?
here is a screen shot
<Image Edited by Host to Remove Personal Information>
That's probably the result of some complication in the CFS file. CVS (character separated values) is not a precisely defined standard, but tends to come in various "flavors." Numbers is pretty good at importing most CVS but can't handle every variation encountered out there "in the wild."
I tend to have the best luck with CSV using this CSV to Tabs on Clipboard Automator Service (Dropbox download). It incorporates an amazing handler (subroutine) posted by Nigel Garvey at macscript.net, together with some overall scripting enhancements by ASC member Badunit. It does very well with most CSV data, almost as well as Excel (which can handle just about anything).
To install, just double-click the downloaded .workflow package and if necessary give permission at System Preferences > Security & Privacy.
To use, just option-click a csv file in Finder (i.e., not Numbers) and choose 'CSV to Tabs on Clipboard' from the Finder > Services contextual menu. Answer the prompt, click once in a destination cell in an existing Numbers table, and type command-v or choose Edit > Paste and Match Style.
SG
I suggest you can email the file to me (I do not recommend posting I link since it appears the file has personal information). Typically, when data has person information, you should change the data to be made up yet still shows the problem.
my email is in the bio of my profile.
I forgot to mention in my post above above that installing and trying out theCSV to Tabs on Clipboard Automator Service takes less time than posting here or sending an email. You'll know in less than a minute if it does the job for you, without having to doctor and give out your data.
And if for some reason it doesn't do the job on the files you are working with, you can easily remove it in Finder by holding down <option> key and in the menu Go > Library > Services and delete it like any other Finder item. I think you'll find it useful, though.
SG
thank you very much. worked great. any issues i'll let you know. thanks again.
Sam Esposito wrote:
thank you very much. worked great. any issues i'll let you know.
Glad it worked on your file. If you do encounter problems, please do let me know. Always looking to improve the script within the Automator Service. So far it's way outperformed expectations. Nigel Garvey did a super job on the really tough part of the script to handle messy, real world CSV. Thanks for the feedback!
SG
issue with cvs fields & Numbers
