Excel Data Link Behavior

[Anonymous]

Having an issue with data links, I've seen others online complain about it but haven't found any solution.

When updating the data link (downloading changes), the table resizes. It does this whether I choose to keep excel formatting in updates or lose excel formatting. The resizing means, for us engineers, every time the table is updated, we need to delete and reinsert the table.

Anyone have an idea why this might be happening?

Thanks,

Alex

[zalant]

We have had previous reports of this behavior, but reproducing it from scratch has been problematic.  Can you reproduce the behavior with a new Excel spreadsheet and a new DWG file? Feel free to attach any files necessary to this forum thread.  This behavior goes back a ways, so it would be good to finally pin it down and clear things up, once and for all.

[Anonymous]

sure, my guess is it involves scaling the table. When we keep table updated to excel formatting (the data link cell formatting option), scale the table, and then update, the table style goes bananas and compresses horizontally. As for only using excel formatting on insert (the other cell formatting option), those malfunctions are fewer, and i haven't found an example yet to show you (they pop up once in a while, but we have so many drawings, it's hard to know where). One I can describe is, adding a row in excel will scrunch one row of tables, instead of extending the overall height of the table

Thanks a bunch for looking at this,

Alex

[Anonymous]

How can I lock down the table format in AutoCAD?

We are a precast concrete company. After a Job Template is created we use a Save As to make the following Mark Numbers. We would like to use Datalink to create a connection to Excel.

The template dwg. in CAD and Excel is called G1. The save as dwg. in CAD and Excel will be G2. Once I go in and rename CAD/excel to G2 I will then edit the links thru the datalink dialog box in "modify excel link" to the correct path of the rename Excel file G2. While in the "Modify Excel link" dialog box I make sure the "Use Excel Formatting:" is not checked.

Below you will find the results to the Datalink issue. The blue and yellow lines are layers in CAD. The gray box outlines are from Excel. This is an issue everytime we create a new dwg. from our template. Please, if you have any suggestions, they will be very helpful.

[Anonymous]

This is what it should look like.

[zalant]

It would help if you could post sample DWG and XLSX files to this forum thread. They should be in the "before" state, and include instructions on the steps/commands you're executing, so that we'll be sure to do exactly as you're doing.

[Anonymous]

Attached you will find G2.dwg and G2.xlsx. We would like to do a save as on both files to G3.dwg and G3.xlsx. Once the files are renamed I go in thru DataLinks and re-path the file names on all three links. Once that is done I use the Table command to update the links. Once that happens all the tables get distorted.

[Anonymous]

I have posted step by step of the actions we are taking above. Below you will find the linked files you requested.