Got a potential client. They want to have an extranet area where they can upload multiple Excel documents for their clients to login and download. Fine. They also want to be able to do some kind of search on these Excel files, e.g. on various columns that might contain information on dates and prices. Unfortunately the files aren't in a lovely format for turning into a datasource, e.g. they have lots of excel formula stuff in the columns, various display options to prettify it, etc. There doesn't even seem to be a complete standard for the files, with differing numbers and names of columns in different documents.
I'm thinking of using Verity to index the files, and use that to do a simple keyword search on the documents, and apart from that forget about even trying to do any complex search on any information contained within them. Although possibly searching any meta-data that gets added at the same time as the document is uploaded (date, title, client, etc).
But is there any way I could provide what the client is looking for? As far as I can see, it would be a complete nightmare, assuming that the information isn't in any standard form that makes it easy to use as a datasource/import to a database/convert to .csv/etc. Unless anyone can tell me otherwise.
Duncan Cumming
IT Manager
http://www.alienationdesign.co.uk
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Tel: 0141 575 9700
Fax: 0141 575 9600
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