MicrosoftВ® Office Project 2007 Step by Step (Step By Step (Microsoft))
Information that you need to incorporate into a Project document can come from a variety of sources. A task list from a spreadsheet or resource costs from a database are two examples. You might want to use the unique features of Project to analyze data from another program. For example, many people keep task lists and simple project schedules in Excel, but accounting for basic scheduling issues, such as working and nonworking time, is impractical in Excel.
When saving data to or opening data from other formats, Project uses maps (also called import/export maps or data maps) that specify the exact data to import or export and how to structure it. You use import/export maps to specify how you want individual fields in the source program’s file to correspond to individual fields in the destination program’s file. After you set up an import/export map, you can use it over and over again.
| Tip | If you have Excel installed on your computer, open the workbook named Sample Task List in the Chapter 12 Sharing folder. The important things to note about the workbook are the names and order of the columns, the presence of a header row (the labels at the top of the columns), and that the data is in a worksheet named Tasks. When you’re done viewing the workbook, close it without saving changes. |
In this exercise, a colleague has sent you an Excel workbook that contains her recommended tasks, durations, and sequence of activities for some work that Southridge Video will do in the future. You open the Excel workbook in Project and set up an import/export map to control how the Excel data is imported into Project.
| Important | Project has a security setting that may prevent you from opening legacy or non-default file formats. Before you complete this section, you may need to change this setting. On the Tools menu, click Options. Click the Security tab, and under Legacy Formats, click Prompt When Loading Files With Legacy Or Non Default File Format. |
1. In Project, on the File menu, click Open. The Open dialog box appears.
2. Locate the Chapter 12 Sharing folder in the Project 2007 Step by Step folder on your hard disk.
3. In the Files of type box, select Microsoft Excel Workbooks.
| Tip | While scrolling through the Files Of Type box, you can see the several file formats that Project can import. If you work with programs that can save data in any of these file formats, you can import their data into Project. For more information, type File formats supported by Project into the Search box, located in the upper right corner of the Project window. |
4. Select the Sample Task List file, and then click Open.
The Import Wizard appears. This wizard helps you import structured data from a different format to Project.
5. Click the Next button.
The second page of the Import Wizard appears.
The Import Wizard uses maps to organize the way that structured data from another file format is imported into Project. For this exercise, you will create a new map.
6. Make sure that New map is selected, and then click Next.
The Import Mode page of the Import Wizard appears.
7. Make sure that As a new project is selected, and then click Next.
The Map Options page of the Import Wizard appears.
8. Select the Tasks check box, and make sure that Import includes headers is selected as well.
Headers here refer to column headings.
9. Click Next.
The Task Mapping page of the Import Wizard appears. Here you identify the source worksheet within the Excel workbook and specify how you want to map the data from the source worksheet to Project fields.
10. On the Source worksheet name list, select Tasks.
Project analyzes the header row names from the worksheet and suggests the Project field names that are probable matches.
11. Click Next.
The final page of the Import Wizard appears. Here you have the option of saving the settings for the new import map, which is useful when you anticipate importing similar data into Project in the future. This time, you’ll skip this step.
12. Click the Finish button.
Project imports the Excel data into a new Project plan. (The dates you see on the timescale will differ from those shown because Project uses the current date as the project start date in the new file.)
This task list will become a more fully developed schedule that you’ll use in a later chapter.
13. Close the new file without saving changes.
| Tip | If you find that others need to give you task lists for creating a plan in Project and you must reorganize or clean up the lists you receive, try using the Microsoft Project Task List Import Template. Project installs this Excel template. In Excel 2003, this template appears on the Spreadsheet Solutions tab of the Templates dialog box. In Excel 2007, this template appears in the Installed Templates list of the New Workbook dialog box. The Excel template is set up with the proper field headings and column order to make importing a clean task list in Project easy. For more complex importing, see the Microsoft Project Plan Import Export Template (also an Excel template). This template contains not only task but also resource and assignment field headings and column orders for importing more complex information into Project. |
| Important | When saving an Excel file you intend to import into Project, save it in the Excel 97–2003 Workbook (xls) format. Project 2007 cannot open the Excel 2007 workbook (the XML-based xlsx) format. |
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