Bug 51872 - Add menu for table import
Summary: Add menu for table import
Status: NEW
Alias: None
Product: LibreOffice
Classification: Unclassified
Component: Base (show other bugs)
Version:
(earliest affected)
3.5.4 release
Hardware: Other All
: lowest enhancement
Assignee: Not Assigned
URL:
Whiteboard:
Keywords:
Depends on:
Blocks: Database-Tables
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Reported: 2012-07-08 12:03 UTC by Ulf Zibis
Modified: 2017-06-19 22:31 UTC (History)
7 users (show)

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Description Ulf Zibis 2012-07-08 12:03:15 UTC
The only possibility to import a table e.g. from LibO Calc is by copy 'n paste from already opened table to LibO Base.
This is inconvenient, and very difficult to find.

So please add a menu item for this functionality.
Comment 1 Robert Großkopf 2012-07-09 10:45:35 UTC
Copy 'n paste is the way many people work. A menu for searching the document and then the sheet in the document and then the place in the sheet - the way could be longer than copy 'n paste
Comment 2 Ulf Zibis 2012-07-09 11:47:23 UTC
(In reply to comment #1)
> Copy 'n paste is the way many people work.

In the case of importing a sub-range of a sheet, I can agree, but not in case of importing a whole table. Examples:
- To import MS-Access or MS-Excel data source into LibO Calc, one has NOT to first open the document by help of the original application, in worst case, MS Office is not installed on the machine.
- To import a CSV data source into LibO Calc, one has just to open the CSV file, and an assisting dialogue is automatically opened.
- Importing favourites from IE to Firefox shouldn't work by Copy 'n paste.
- In rare case, user may not have installed LibO Calc, but wants to import data from ods document.

To me it's very inconvenient to first open LibO calc, selecting the object, open LibO Base, creating a new DB and pasting the object there (after I have consulted the manual, to find the instructions for IMPORT in chapter BINDING :-( ).

Binding and importing is a kind of similar action, e.g. handled in same chapter in Manual, which is solely titled " Database Binding". So why not treat those actions similar.
Ideally you would add a 4th choice in the "New Database"-assistant.

And last but not least, it's no lapse to have several ways redundantly.
Comment 3 Joel Madero 2012-07-09 15:33:01 UTC
Redundancy can be an issue actually -- mostly because it just has a lot more code that leaves a bigger memory mark on the system. Furthermore we have to document everything so redundancy also leads to redundant documentation which is all very time consuming for such a new and small project (relative to other projects of course). 

In this case I'm going to mark this as LOWEST priority ENHANCEMENT. The amount of work is substantial, the number of users who would benefit seem to be limited and there is already a way to do what you want (ie. you acknowledge that this would just been an alternative way to do something). 

Thanks for the suggestions, we'll see if one of the more experienced developers can take a look at this once other bugs are taken care of.
Comment 4 Ulf Zibis 2012-07-09 16:20:42 UTC
(In reply to comment #3)
> Redundancy can be an issue actually

Well, the amount should be small. Just to add a 4th radio button to the "New Database"-assistant, and to defer to the still existing "Table Copy"-wizard.

> Thanks for the suggestions, we'll see if one of the more experienced developers
> can take a look at this once other bugs are taken care of.

This sounds reasonable. I agree to priority: lowest.
Thanks for the detailed explanation!
Comment 5 Joel Madero 2012-08-20 17:49:40 UTC
@Lionel - I added you to CC since you're the go to expert for database. You want to take a look at this one or know someone who might be able to get this done ?
Comment 6 Alex Thurgood 2015-01-03 17:40:10 UTC Comment hidden (no-value)