Google Docs Spreadsheets

Using a Google Docs Spreadsheet allows you to import data from an online shared data source

The process begins by selecting New Google Docs Spreadsheet Data Source from the File→New→New EasyCatalog Panel menu option.

To connect to your Google Docs account, you must first authorize EasyCatalog to access it by pressing the Authenticate button. This needs to be done for each Google Doc Spreadsheet data source you configure. As authentication is required for each new data source, it is possible to import data from multiple Google Docs accounts.

Authenticate with your Google Docs account

Authentication is done via a web browser, using the standard Google Docs authentication mechanism. On the web page that appears you will be shown the information EasyCatalog is attempting to access. If at any time you need to prevent EasyCatalog from accessing your Google Docs account, you can remove EasyCatalog from My Account→Security→Third-party apps with account access in Google Docs.

After pressing the Authenticate button, EasyCatalog will wait for a response from Google. During this time, a Waiting for Authorization dialog will appear: do not cancel this dialog until you have logged in via the browser window, or unless you want to canel the log-in. You should be switched back in to InDesign once you’ve completed the authorization process in your browser.

Google Docs Spreadsheet Datasource dialog box

Name

The name wich will be used to identify this data source.

Authentication

Once authenticated, your Google Docs user name will be shown here. Occasionally it is necessary to re-authenticate: the can happen, for example, if you remove EasyCatalog’s access to your Google Docs from your Google account.

Content

Select the name of the spreadsheet you would like to import using the Spreadsheet pop-up. You can then choose to import an individual sheet from inside of the spreadsheet using the Sheet pop-up. Alternatively you can select All Sheets to import data from all sheets within the spreadsheet. A Sheet Name field will also be created and populated with the name of the sheet that the record belongs to.

The Range popup shows the data ranges defined in the spreadsheet using the Data→Named Ranges menu option in Google Docs. Only data defined by the selected range will be imported into your new data source.

Sample

The sample pane shows a preview of the data as it will be imported by EasyCatalog. When a column is selected in this area the Field Information pane will be available.

Field information

Before importing your data, you need to define a key column. The content of this column determines the uniqueness of each records being imported, and the choice of key field is critical to the successful operation of EasyCatalog. For further information, see Key Fields.

To define a key field, select the column in the Sample panel and check the Key checkbox.

Formatting fields

The field type for all fields imported from Google Sheets is set to Alphanumeric. To change the format of a column, select it in the Sample pane and use the Options... button to display the Field Options dialog.

Once you are happy with the configuration options, press the OK button to import the file. If the configuration is correct, a new EasyCatalog panel will open showing a spreadsheet-style view of your data.

Further information on working with the EasyCatalog data panels can be found in the Panels chapter.