IDW Data Formats

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Brighter Possibilities.© Copyright 2016. All Rights Reserved.

IDW File Formats

Presented by:

Josh Given, IT Platform Support Manager

Robert Hollands, Systems Administrator

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• The primary methods for loading data

– EDI

– XML

– Flat-file

– Microsoft Excel

• Basics & example of each

• Pros & Cons

• How to use in IDW

• Documentation Review

Overview

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• Available in the IDW under Advanced > Information > Documents

Documentation

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• EDI Basics

– Segments and elements

– ISA segment is fixed width, defines delimiters & trading partner

– Delimiters

– Qualifiers and values

– Different documents for different functions

• An Example

EDI

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EDI Pros & Cons

EDI

• Pros

– Longevity

– Fast processing

– Diverse business applications

– Based on standards

• Cons

– Not human-readable

– Esoteric knowledge

– Bespoke development

– Not flexible

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How to use in IDW

EDI

• Drag and drop into your IDW FTP folder

• Use your IDX mailbox

– IDEA sets this up for you

– Files transmitted through VAN

• Documentation

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• XML basics

– Extensible Markup Language

– Describes how data should be stored and transported

• An example

XML

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XML Pros & Cons

XML

• Pros

– Flexible: can define own data model and tags

– Can loop fields using parent/child relationships

– Easy to produce and consume

– Both human and machine readable

• Cons

– Greater IT investment

– Larger file size

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How to use in IDW

XML

• UNSPSC Schema Attribute Format

– First XML format available in the IDW

• Full B-View XML Format

– Also captures the UNSPSC Schema Attribute data

– Use the documentation provided in the IDW

• For more information

– Please attend the session called “IDW XML Format”• 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM in Key West C

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• Flat-file basics

– Opposite of relational data

– Columns and rows

– Delimited values

• An example

Flat-files

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Flat-file Pros & Cons

Flat-files

• Pros

– Human-readable

– Can be viewed/edited easily

– Many apps already designed to consume flat-files

• Cons

– Limited, no looping fields

– Difficult to add fields dynamically

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How to use in IDW

Flat-files

• One flat-file format per B-View

• Drop individual flat-files into IDW FTP folder

– Remember, B1 must come first!

• Pipe-delimited

• Custom flat-file formats available for distributors

– There’s also a “Limited Fields” extract for 43 critical fields

• Documentation

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• Excel basics

– Proprietary Microsoft spreadsheet software

– Data stored in ranges on worksheets in workbooks

• An example

Excel

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Excel Pros & Cons

Excel

• Pros

– Everyone uses Excel

– Very powerful

– Easy to manipulate data in familiar ways

• Cons

– Behaves like a flat-file in IDW

– Formatting needs to be taken into account

– More difficult to integrate programmatically

– Expensive

– Imposes data limitations

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How to use in IDW

Excel

• Use is identical to flat-file

• Drop the file into your IDW FTP folder

• IDW only processes the first worksheet found

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Questions?

IDW Data Formats

Education