News!! Using Excel To Brand The Html For The Trunk Of A Table

This article is most how Excel's text functions tin last used to brand the HTML statements to set within the trunk department of a table.   It's written amongst Blogger users inwards mind, but applies to anyone who needs to create a large HTML table.   Two Excel instance files are provided, i using CSS as well as i not, which guide maintain some formatting included.

HTML tabular array code

tables inwards your blog:  why yous powerfulness desire to usage them, as well as some options for making a table,

These include using a HTML-code-generator to acquire the "skeleton" of the table.   With this approach, the hardest component is putting the tabular array content (ie the words, numbers as well as pictures) into the right house inwards the HTML, therefore that it appears inwards right jail cellphone inwards the table.

This is slowly plenty for a modest table.   But if yous desire to brand a tabular array amongst  more information (eg I lately posted a book-index amongst 100 rows past times v columns), it tin last a lilliputian tedious.    Even if yous prepare your posts inwards private (which lets yous salvage oft without worrying most auto-save), it tin soundless last real difficult to brand certain that yous set the right contents inwards the right cell.   And because Blogger's postal service editor doesn't grip tables well, it tin sometimes exercise unexpected things to them,.

But at that topographic point are some alternatives.


Tools for creating the "body" department of HTML tabular array statements

I'm certain that lots of people guide maintain written custom applications that accept a text file as well as plow it into HTML.   (Though when i googled, the foremost SERPs included a programme for Win 3.1 / 95, which most people gave upward on a long fourth dimension ago!).

Many programs similar Excel, Word, etc at nowadays guide maintain an selection to save equally HTML - therefore yous could merely usage facial expression at the file they brand amongst a text editior (eg Notepad), as well as accept the relevant bits.   That said, they commonly include a lot of extra code, eg for fonts, layouts etc, therefore yous may acquire to a greater extent than than yous grapple for.

Commercial spider web evolution packages, eg Dreamweaver, may guide maintain tabular array editing tools - even therefore  many people cannot justify the terms of buying as well as learning them for smaller jobs.

Another selection is to use Excel to care your tabular array of data, as well as usage it's text-string manipulation functions to plow it into valid HTML code.   This isn't equally difficult equally it sounds, peculiarly if mortal else does the initial formulas for you.


Excel Templates for making HTML


First version - 

cell marker formatting - no CSS
s text functions tin last used to brand the HTML statements to set within the trunk department of News!! Using Excel to brand the HTML for the trunk of a table
Second version

 with CSS styles

The first template was made earlier I understood CSS:  it uses text-functions to set formatting code into every unmarried tabular array cell - though yous tin merely acquire out things blank if yous don't desire them formatted.  It may last best to usage if yous don't sympathise CSS.

The second template uses CSS styles to format the table.   This agency yous tin modify the formatting of all the tables inwards your website merely past times changing the CSS rules, ie yous don't guide maintain to edit each private table.   The Excel file lists the  CSS styles yous require to define, as well as the names (eg keyTableOdd for strange numbered rows) exhibit what each vogue is used for.

s text functions tin last used to brand the HTML statements to set within the trunk department of News!! Using Excel to brand the HTML for the trunk of a table
Version 2:  the formula expanse is green,
the input expanse is yellow, as well as the output expanse is orange

To usage these templates


1  Download the template


2  Check the formatting settings inwards the template.  Set upward CSS styles inwards your website if yous are using the 2nd version.


3  Create table header as well as footer statements yourself, or past times using an HTML tabular array generator.


iv  Adjust the Excel template, therefore that
  • the release of rows as well as columns inwards the information expanse is what yous need,
  • the formulas inwards the output expanse are right for your chosen rows as well as columns

    The department below explains the types of formulas used:  you tin model novel forumlas (for novel columns) on the electrical flow ones, as well as novel rows tin last made past times copying the formulas from an existing row.

v  Put the information for your tabular array into the data expanse inwards the spreadsheet


six  Copy the text from the output area, paste it into a text editior (eg Notepad)


seven  Use the text editor's Find/Replace role to change all cases of 3 apostrophes inwards a row (ie ''') into double quotes.


8  Copy the changed text from your text editor into the "body" department of your tabular array statement.


This sounds similar a lot of piece of work but I've constitute that fifty-fifty if a tabular array is solely 10 rows long, using a HTML-generators-spreadsheet is a lot to a greater extent than efficient than trying to type the values into it row-by-row.


Understanding the Excel templates


s text functions tin last used to brand the HTML statements to set within the trunk department of News!! Using Excel to brand the HTML for the trunk of a tableI'm assuming that yous sympathise a lilliputian most how Excel stores information inwards cells, as well as refers to those cells past times their Row/Column combination, eg "E5" - if not, cheque out an Excel tutorial earlier reading on

Also, yous require to sympathise the ideas of copying formulas betwixt rows, as well as the usage of relative co-ordinates inwards them to brand certain that each novel row or column picks upward the right values. Again, an Excel tutorial would last a expert sentiment if you're non familiar amongst copying formulas.

As good equally these full general ideas, at that topographic point are here are ii Excel concepts that are the footing of these templates:


1   Text concatenation functions

Excel has a broad hit of functions that are used to gum strings together, or to describe them apart.   Important ones used inwards these templates are:

= "whatever"   puts a text-string amongst the characters whatever into the cell
= a1 & b1   combines the text strings inwards cells a1 as well as b1   (b1 goes at i time later on a1)
= "This is A1: " & a1 & ".   This is B1: " & B1 &"."

The 3rd role combined the ii foremost ones.   It makes a text string similar     "This is A1: AahOne.   This is B1: BeeOne."

Notice that it is a chip fiddly:   at that topographic point are spaces within the text-strings, as well as a full-stop at the end, therefore that the output looks sensible.   To acquire far easier to read, I've set the conent that's within double quotes (ie "  ") on a pink background.

Once yous sympathise this type of formula, though, it's non a large boundary to formulas similar these which combine HTML commands as well as values from the cells inwards the spreadsheet.

="<tr class='''"&A21&"'''>"
=" <td class='''keytableID'''>"&B21&"</td>"
=" <td> " & C21 & "</td> "
=" </tr>"
=E21&F21&G21&H21

This uses a step-by-step formula creation, which makes the parts of the terminal statement, as well as then glues them all together inwards the finally formula..


2   Putting an Excel special grapheme inwards the output:

HTML needs to guide maintain double-quote characters to a greater extent than or less things that should last shown equally text - for example
<a href="A-FILE-URL">Anchor-text</a>

However inwards Excel, the double-quote is used to exhibit the commencement as well as destination of text strings.

At foremost , this may set people off using Excel,   But at that topographic point is a very simple way to a greater extent than or less this:
  1. Use some other (set of) characters that don't appear inwards the tabular array instead, and
  2. Before yous usage the the generated code, use a text-editor (eg Notepad) to modify them to the required special characters.


Other ways to brand tabular array contents

There are lots of other ways to brand the table-contents HTML code.
  • Using MS Access would in all likelihood last eaiser (but lots of people don't guide maintain it). 
  • Using Google Docs - spreadsheets is free, but I haven't tried out the string functions yet.
  • GreenLava of BloggerSentral has lately recommended Tabelizer:  I haven't used this myself yet, but it also looks promising.

What other options tin yous suggest?



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