Windows 10: BUG? : Excel forgets the Data Types of Table Columns in Data Model

Michael..B · Oct 25, 2018

Microsoft Office 365, Version 1809 (Build 10827.20181 Click-to-Run)

on Windows 10 Pro, 64-bit, Version 1803, OS Build 17134.345

I have a workbook with three tables in the Data Model, drawn from three tables on separate sheets in the workbook.

Whenever I close and re-open the workbook, the Data Type of every column in the Data Model in reset to "Text".

This creates several flow-on bugs:

- The column "Format" setting becomes confused for columns that were, for example, formatted as dates or times.

- More importantly, some calculated values are deleted from my Pivot Tables as the calculation (a "Max" in this case) is no longer compatible with the reset data type of "Text" - the column had been set to data type "whole number".

- As a result of the "Max" calculation being deleted, output Pivot Charts flowing from that Pivot Table end up blank.

I have tried multiple times to reset the data types of the columns, and save the changes. It always works fine once I have reset the data types, but once I close Excel and re-open the Workbook, the data types have again reverted to "Text".

I'll keep looking for workarounds, but this has shaken my confidence in relying on Data Models and Pivot Tables in Excel!

:)

Brink · Oct 25, 2018

Automatically create process diagrams in Visio from Excel data

Today, we’re excited to announce Data Visualizer, a new Visio feature that automatically converts process map data in Excel into data-driven Visio diagrams. This update, which is available to Visio Pro for Office 365 users, helps reduce manual steps while giving business analysts even more ways to create process diagrams in Visio.

Automatically create process diagrams from Excel data

Diagrams don’t always start in Visio. They often begin as hand-drawn sketches or—in today’s data-driven age—in Excel. Using Data Visualizer, business analysts can represent process steps and associated metadata in a structured Excel table and quickly convert that information into a visualized Visio diagram. You can do this by either using a premade Excel template or an existing spreadsheet of your own design. The premade templates—there’s one for basic and one for cross-functional flowcharts—provide a sample mapping table to populate with diagram metadata. The table includes predefined columns for process step number, description, dependencies, owner, function, phase and more. You can also customize the table with your own columns to meet specific business requirements.

Once the table is populated, Visio’s wizard helps you complete the remaining steps to transform your Excel data into a Visio process diagram. If you customize the premade template or create one of your own, the wizard helps you map certain flowchart parts, like swim lanes and connectors. The resulting diagram is linked to the Excel table, so if the underlying process data is modified, the diagram updates accordingly. Likewise, shape modifications in Visio are preserved if the Excel data changes.

Additionally, analysts can save their Visio diagrams and the underlying Excel mapping table as a single package using the “Export as a Template Package” feature. These packages can be shared and reused by others, eliminating the need to recreate the same diagram from scratch while encouraging process consistency across the organization.

No matter your preference—whether creating diagrams from a template or your own spreadsheet—the underlying Excel data travels with the related Visio Pro for Office 365 file, helping ensure your team always has the latest diagram version.

Start a free trial of Visio Pro for Office 365 to try Data Visualizer today, and visit our support page for step-by-step instructions to create your first process diagram from Excel data.

Please visit our UserVoice page to submit suggestions for new capabilities, and follow us on Facebook, https://www.youtube.com/user/msftvisio and Twitter for the latest Visio news.

—The Visio team
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Source: Automatically create process diagrams in Visio from Excel data - Office Blogs

Brink · Oct 25, 2018

New feature updates for Power Pivot in Excel 2016

We are pleased to announce new feature updates to Power Pivot for Excel 2016 as part of your Office 365 subscription. These updates include the ability to save a relationship diagram view as a picture and enhancements to the relationship dialog experience. We also fixed a number of important bugs to improve your overall modeling user experience.

Save relationship diagram view as picture

Excel 2016 users can now save the data model diagram view as a high resolution image file that can then be used for sharing, printing or analyzing the data model. To create the image file, in the Power Pivot add-in, click File and then select Save View as Picture.

Enhanced Edit Relationship dialog creates faster and more accurate data relationships

Excel 2016 Power Pivot users can now manually add or edit a table relationship while exploring a sample of the data—up to five rows of data in a selected table. This helps create faster and more accurate relationships without the need to go back and forth to the data view every time you wish to create or edit a table relationship.

We have also added several usability goodies to the Edit Relationship dialog:

Table selection using keyboard navigation—Type the first letter of a table name to move the first column name starting with the selected letter.

Column selection using column navigation—Type the first letter of a column name to move the first column starting with the selected letter. Retype the same letter moves to the next column starting with the selected letter.

Auto column suggestion for same column name in both tables—After selecting the first table and column, on the selection of the second table, if a column with the same name exists, it is auto-selected (works both ways).

Fixes that improve your overall modeling user experience

We made a few fixes that improve your modeling user experience, including:

Power Pivot data model is no longer lost when working with hidden workbooks.

Ability to upgrade an Excel 2010 workbook with a data model to Excel 2016 is now available.

Ability to add a calculated column in Power Pivot, unless it contains a formula, is now available.

For a full list in this customer update, visit Power Pivot and the Analysis Services Engine in Excel 2016 fixes.

For all Excel 2016 users, get the latest customer update by installing the following updates. Note, there are 32- and 64-bit versions of each, so be sure to download the right version:

KB3114374—Office 2016 Excel update from December 8, 2015.

KB3114297—Office 2016 Power Pivot in Excel from December 8, 2015.

Try them yourself!

Try these new improvements and see how they can help you improve your analysis performance. Do you have ideas on other improvements that you’d like to see in Excel? Visit the Excel UserVoice and tell us about them.
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Source: New feature updates for Power Pivot in Excel 2016 - Office Blogs

Brink · Oct 25, 2018

New Data Types in Excel for Office 365

Every day, millions of Office 365 subscribers rely on Excel to perform complex tasks with intelligent tools like Insights and advanced data transformation. This month, we rolled out several updates, which harnesses the power of the Microsoft Cloud, to make Excel even more powerful.

New data types in Excel—Today, we are announcing new, cloud-connected data types in Excel, starting with Stocks and Geography. With added AI capabilities, Excel can now recognize rich data types beyond numbers and text strings. For example, Excel recognizes that “France” is a country and automatically associates it with additional attributes such as population and gross domestic product, using the same technology that powers Bing answers. These attributes can then be populated into different cells or used directly in formulas and stay updated with the latest data. Based on machine learning, these new data types will simplify the process of working with real-world data. In the future, we’ll add organizational data types backed by the Microsoft Graph to Excel—intelligently enhancing your spreadsheets with even richer content.

Expanding capabilities in Excel Online—We also introduced several highly requested desktop features to Excel Online, making it easier to create and edit spreadsheets in your browser. Now, you can insert Pivot Tables and delete rows and columns to analyze and format data. You can also insert images from local storage, duplicate existing worksheets, and change the color of tabs—enhancing your control over the look and feel of your work.
Click to expand...

Source: New in March–rich data types, intelligent search, and datacenters

Windows 10: BUG? : Excel forgets the Data Types of Table Columns in Data Model

BUG? : Excel forgets the Data Types of Table Columns in Data Model

BUG? : Excel forgets the Data Types of Table Columns in Data Model

BUG? : Excel forgets the Data Types of Table Columns in Data Model

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