Link Data Table to OpenOffice Instead of Excell?

[greevedogg]

Just as the title says, is there a possible workaround for linking a data table with OpenOffice instead of MS Excell?

[pendean]

Open Office Org Calc files are not supported as far as I can tell: Is the file extension still XLS and you've tested it already?

[greevedogg]

No, not yet necessarily...

I tried to create a data link first by using the data link manager, but because I don't have Excell Installed, it doesn't get past that stage. I can saveas .xls or .xlsx in OpenOffice Calc, I do believe, but not sure how to link data if I had a table created in OO.

Ultimately, I am just trying to create a simple table across multiple page in my sheetset, and be able to update them as new info becomes known. Basically, just a LABEL MATERIAL DESCRIPTION table in our shop drawings.

The cut-and-dirty way I have been doing it, is just copying the table and data in the tool palette, and deleting the old incomplete table and re-inserting the updated table each time.  It's not too overly time consuming, but there's got to be a better way...

[pendean]

AFAIK you need MSExcel for the linking task with LT as an OOTB function unless you can test and confirm otherwise (we don't use OO here).

[steven-g · Accepted solution]

I can't speak for Open Office, but I just ran a test with WPS Spreadsheets. saved a file with the .xls extension. And Autocad created a link without problem to that file, I updated the contents in WPS saved it, and Autocad updated to the new values. So it looks as though it only needs a file with the .xls extension to work

[greevedogg]

Thanks @steven-g for testing. May I ask, how did do create the link within AutoCAD to the xls file?

Edit: I just D/L'ed WPS Office Free, and was able to create a spreadsheet in it and link it to AutoCAD. So, this will work for me! I don't mind ditching OpenOffice for WPS for this added functionality!

Awesome!

[ppako]

Reporting on WPS Office - it's current version (12.2.0.13359) doesn't work with acad MEP 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023. Just waisted an hour testing it.