List and modify shape data in Excel

[Thomas Winkel]

Hi,

the attached stencil draws a new Ribbon "Visio-Tools".
Here you find a button "List Shape Data" to export data of prepared shapes to Excel.
Any modification in Excel will immediately be transferred to Visio.
The shape needs two User attributes:
* User.TypeID = "Name"
* User.ListData ="all" or semicolon separated data row names

Here is a Video:
https://youtu.be/LQpllJpzsU4

Unfortunately I was not able to catch Excel events with late binding.
So you will possible run into a compile error, see Surrogates post here:
http://visguy.com/vgforum/index.php?topic=7572.msg32087#msg32087
In that case, simply select the correct "Microsoft Excel Object Library" for your system.
(VBA Editor -> Tools -> References)

Any help to solve this problem is appreciated

Regards,
Thomas

P.S.
I'm about start an open source project.
For this reason the code is distributed under GPL.
However, I will publish single features like this under MIT license, if required.
Just write me a PM.


EDIT: Now with explicit support for fixed list, variable list and boolean data types.

[Yacine]

Hi Thomas,
shall I again be the first one to reply?

Your tool is getting better and better.

And you're the second (or third) one to publish a synchronization tool. This shows there is a real need for it. How pity M$ concentrates all its efforts on Sharepoint. Small desktop solutions aren't developed anymore.

Well done.

[Thomas Winkel]

Hi Yacine,

thanks for your words.
This is a more or less generic extraction from my Electric CAD Tool in the hope that this is useful.
I think this feature is especially cool for Visio Standard users as the Professional version has something similar included (Link Data to Shapes).


Btw.:
Now with explicit support for fixed list, variable list and boolean data types.
See this video in 0:30:
https://youtu.be/dR4VeeKqNHs

[Nikolay]

I've also published similar thing awhile ago, but for Visio Pro (i.e. built on the top of existing Visio data linking system)
http://visguy.com/vgforum/index.php?topic=6086.0

Had to retract it though for a while, as it was not in quite in line with P4B business.
Recently I put it back online and converted into a "solid" product (free for users / not free for companies), added some features (text sync, postion/size/color - basically, cells sync)
http://unmanagedvisio.com/products/visio-back-sync/

Still need to rebuild videos and docs though...

[Thomas Winkel]

Your back-sync add-in is very cool, Nikolay.
MS should really have something like this integrated in their data binding feature!

I see my feature more like a input mask than import / export / sync to Excel.
For this reason I prevent Excel to ask for saving and hide the Excel buttons.