Export generated results in excel format

lizards · September 06, 2008, 09:58:35 AM

Hi! Volker Dirr,

I have tried FET and it is really a good scheduling program!
Is it possible to export generated result in excel format from FET?. E.g.

Cycle_DAY | Period | Class | Room | Subject | teacher name|

1 1 1A 101 ENG JANE
1 2 1A LAB BIO CHRIS

so I can use it to make MS word file via macro and fit our school's printing format. I think many who use FET may want to have the export function! Thank you!

Greetings
Lizards

Liviu Lalescu · September 06, 2008, 01:07:48 PM

Hello!

We would prefer not to export to excel, because it is not an open software.

Maybe you could use the xml output timetables with some macros. Did you see the structure of these xml files?

A text output like you suggest might be possible, here Volker should know better than me.

Also, maybe you can obtain the timetable in Excel by Copy in web browser (open the html timetable with a web browser) and Paste in Excel, maybe it works automatically for the tables.

Volker Dirr · September 07, 2008, 01:16:16 PM

Import of such an file will be difficult.

Export of such an file is possible, but you must know/answer this:
1. it can not be "class", it must be "students set" (because it can be years, groups, subgroups)
2. What should be exported if there are groups? i think best is, if i separate them with "+" like in csv?
3. same problem with teachers. (compare point 2)
4. what should be exported. i guess you just mean an unordered list of the activities (like in csv files) and not all ordered tables like in the html files.
5. what about the names of day and period. just a number or the name you added into fet? (i think the last one is better. if you just want a number, then you can rename in fet)
6. what about an activity with duration 2? Example: Activity with teacher T1, stundet S1, subject math and it start at period 1 on tuesday with duration 2.
is it:
2|1|S1||math|T1
2|2|S1||math|T1
or:
2|1+2|S1||math|T1
export of both files is possible.
but if i maybe write a import filter of this file, then the second variant is much easier.

by thinking about this, the same "problem" happen with teachers and students. if there are more then 2 of them, then it is possible to:
1. split them with separator + (like in csv)
2. write 2 lines
both is possible to export. the first variant is a little bit easier to code if i export and very much easier if i import.

hmmm...
i am not sure if it is profitable if i code this.
a) why do you use excel for this? just for printing the timetable? what is better if you print it with excel? why can you print the html files?
b) or do you need it for you school administration software (which maybe use excel). maybe it is better if you sent me the description of the import file format of your school administration software, so i can code the export filter for that software.

addendum:
or the 3th variant is to add a column with the duration

lizards · September 08, 2008, 10:10:20 AM

Volker Dirr · September 08, 2008, 01:23:58 PM

Hi

a)
ok. i can split activities with duration X into X lines.
of course this mean that some information will be lost (because if i import that file, then i get not one activity with duration X, i will get X activities with duration 1.) But i think that doesn't really matter, because there is also lost a lot of other information (like min n day constraint, number of split activities, ...) such an outputfile is only a less-then-ideal solution.

b)
but some question are still open:
how to export activities with several teachers?
how to export activities with several students?
how to export dummy activities?

splitting them into several lines is not a fine solution. especially because the import of that lines is not clear.

so in my opinion all that activities must be done like in the export->activities.cvs (separated with "+")

c)
also you request with "groups|subgroups" is not good enough.
it must be "students" (easiest to code (like in export->activities.cvs)
or maybe
"years|groups|subgroups"
(more difficult to code, but i think it is possible)
i am not sure if it is good to separate students into years,groups and subgroups. i think there are advantages and disadvantages for both variants.

d)
any idea how to name that csv file? maybe timetable.csv or schedule.cvs.

e)
just to be sure once again. you just mean an unordered activities list (like export->activities.cvs)

Volker

lizards · September 08, 2008, 02:53:57 PM

Volker Dirr · September 08, 2008, 05:55:28 PM

Quote
the 1st column's number similar to Date (1 =Mon,2=Tue,3 =Wed...)
the 2nd column's number signifies 1st lesson, 2nd lesson and so on

like i already wrote in my first mail, i think i will print the names of days and periods that you entered into fet. if you need numbers, then you just need to rename days and hours in fet.

Quote
Each line contains information of "1" lesson only (surely, some information lost)

yes. (and also the other way around: every activity (with duration 1) has only a single line!

Quote
so these 4 lines mean: ... the subgroup1 of group1 ...

like i already wrote: "group|subgroup" is not good. i think i will do it with "students". please export your samplefile and view the activities.csv to understand what i am talking about! i guess that is good enough, because most users add only one student set to an activity.
only if you have problem with that, then i will try to do "years|groups|subgroups" , but that mean this:
example:
you have year "8" with group "8a" and subgroup "8a_girls".

if you have an activity with students "8a", then i will print students "8a" (or in emergency years|groups|subgroup which mean "|8a|"

if you have an activity with students "8a_girls", then i will print students "8a_girls" (or in emergency years|groups|subgroup which mean "||8a_girls". i will not print "8|8a|8a_girls", because if i import that line, it is not clear! it will be interpreted incorrect as an activity with students set "8", "8a" and "8a_girls". that is wrong, because it was only "8a_girls".

Quote
Sorry to bother you so much!

it's very important to talk about before i start coding. so you don't bother me.
but you didn't answer or comment all my questions

i think i will just start coding, because i think i understand your wishes. but you need to wait a little bit, because i don't have holiday, so i must do my work first.

lizards · September 09, 2008, 01:55:25 AM

Hi! Volker Dirr ,

Thank you very much!

Greetings
lizards

Volker Dirr · September 12, 2008, 12:52:56 AM

i released test version with timetable csv export. (fet-5.6.3.vd1)
please get and check it.
it's available at:
http://www.timetabling.de/

lizards · September 13, 2008, 05:13:56 AM

Hi! Volker Dirr ,

How can I use the source file fet-5.6.3.vd1 to check? Is there any software I need to install ?
Anyway, I have sent fet file through email for you to test! Thank you!

Greetings

lizards

Volker Dirr · September 13, 2008, 10:59:35 AM

You need to compile the source with Qt (compare readme in fet directory). I released only source, because I don't know your operating system and it took always long time to compile.

I got your file and sent a csv file to you.

lizards · September 13, 2008, 03:43:22 PM

Hi, Volker Dirr ,

It is really what I want to have! Thank you very much!

Greetings
lizards