############################################################################### # # WriteExcel. # # WriteExcel - Write to a cross-platform Excel binary file. # # Copyright 2000-2010, John McNamara, jmcnamara@cpan.org # # original written in Perl by John McNamara # converted to Ruby by Hideo Nakamura, cxn03651@msj.biglobe.ne.jp # require "writeexcel/workbook" # # = WriteExcel - Write to a cross-platform Excel binary file. # # == Contents # SYSNOPSYS # DESCRIPTION # QUICK START # WORKBOOK METHODS # WORKSHEET METHODS # PAGE SET-UP METHODS # CELL FORMATTING # FORMAT METHODS # COLOURS IN EXCEL # DATE AND TIME IN EXCEL # OUTLINES AND GROUPING IN EXCEL # DATA VALIDATION IN EXCEL # FORMULAS AND FUNCTIONS IN EXCEL # CHART # # == Synopsis # # To write a string, a formatted string, a number and a formula to the first # worksheet in an Excel workbook called ruby.xls: # # require 'WriteExcel' # # # Create a new Excel workbook # workbook = WriteExcel.new('ruby.xls') # # # Add a worksheet # worksheet = workbook.add_worksheet # # # Add and define a format # format = workbook.add_format # Add a format # format.set_bold() # format.set_color('red') # format.set_align('center') # # # Write a formatted and unformatted string, row and column notation. # col = row = 0 # worksheet.write(row, col, 'Hi Excel!', format) # worksheet.write(1, col, 'Hi Excel!') # # # Write a number and a formula using A1 notation # worksheet.write('A3', 1.2345) # worksheet.write('A4', '=SIN(PI()/4)') # # == Description # # WriteExcel can be used to create a cross-platform Excel binary file. # Multiple worksheets can be added to a workbook and formatting can be applied # to cells. Text, numbers, formulas, hyperlinks and images can be written to # the cells. # # The Excel file produced by this gem is compatible with 97, 2000, 2002, 2003 # and 2007. # # WriteExcel will work on the majority of Windows, UNIX and Mac platforms. # Generated files are also compatible with the Linux/UNIX spreadsheet # applications Gnumeric and OpenOffice.org. # # This module cannot be used to write to an existing Excel file # # This library is converted from Spreadsheet::WriteExcel module of Perl. # http://search.cpan.org/~jmcnamara/Spreadsheet-WriteExcel-2.37/ # # == Quick Start # # WriteExcel tries to provide an interface to as many of Excel's features as # possible. As a result there is a lot of documentation to accompany the # interface and it can be difficult at first glance to see what it important # and what is not. So for those of you who prefer to assemble Ikea furniture # first and then read the instructions, here are three easy steps: # # 1. Create a new Excel workbook (i.e. file) using new(). # # 2. Add a worksheet to the new workbook using add_worksheet(). # # 3. Write to the worksheet using write(). # # Like this: # # require 'WriteExcel' # Step 0 # # workbook = WriteExcel.new('ruby.xls') # Step 1 # worksheet = workbook.add_worksheet # Step 2 # worksheet.write('A1', 'Hi Excel!') # Step 3 # # This will create an Excel file called ruby.xls with a single worksheet and the # text 'Hi Excel!' in the relevant cell. And that's it. Okay, so there is # actually a zeroth step as well, but use WriteExcel goes without saying. There # are also many examples that come with the distribution and which you can # use to get you started. See EXAMPLES. # # = Workbook methods # # The WriteExcel module provides an object oriented interface # to a new Excel workbook. The following methods are available through # a new workbook. # # new() # add_worksheet() # add_format() # add_chart() # add_chart_ext() # close() # compatibility_mode() # set_properties() # define_name() # set_tempdir() # set_custom_color() # sheets() # set_1904() # set_codepage() # # = Worksheet methods # # A new worksheet is created by calling the add_worksheet() method from # a workbook object: # # worksheet1 = workbook.add_worksheet # worksheet2 = workbook.add_worksheet # # The following methods are available through a new worksheet: # # write() # write_number() # write_string() # write_utf16be_string() # write_utf16le_string() # keep_leading_zeros() # write_blank() # write_row() # write_col() # write_date_time() # write_url() # write_url_range() # write_formula() # store_formula() # repeat_formula() # write_comment() # show_comments() # add_write_handler() (* not implemented yet) # insert_image() # insert_chart() # data_validation() # get_name() # activate() # select() # hide() # set_first_sheet() # protect() # set_selection() # set_row() # set_column() # outline_settings() # freeze_panes() # split_panes() # merge_range() # set_zoom() # right_to_left() # hide_zero() # set_tab_color() # autofilter() # # == Cell notation # WriteExcel supports two forms of notation to designate the position of cells: # Row-column notation and A1 notation. # # Row-column notation uses a zero based index for both row and column while A1 # notation uses the standard Excel alphanumeric sequence of column letter and # 1-based row. For example: # # (0, 0) # The top left cell in row-column notation. # ('A1') # The top left cell in A1 notation. # # (1999, 29) # Row-column notation. # ('AD2000') # The same cell in A1 notation. # # Row-column notation is useful if you are referring to cells # programmatically: # # (0 .. 10).each do |i| # worksheet.write(i, 0, 'Hello') # Cells A1 to A10 # end # # A1 notation is useful for setting up a worksheet manually and for working # with formulas: # # worksheet.write('H1', 200) # worksheet.write('H2', '=H1+1') # # In formulas and applicable methods you can also use the A:A column notation: # # worksheet.write('A1', '=SUM(B:B)') # # For simplicity, the parameter lists for the worksheet method calls in the # following sections are given in terms of row-column notation. In all cases # it is also possible to use A1 notation. # # Note: in Excel it is also possible to use a R1C1 notation. This is not # supported by WriteExcel. # # ==PAGE SET-UP METHODS # # Page set-up methods affect the way that a worksheet looks when it is printed. # They control features such as page headers and footers and margins. These # methods are really just standard worksheet methods. They are documented # here in a separate section for the sake of clarity. # # The following methods are available for page set-up: # # set_landscape() # set_portrait() # set_page_view() # set_paper() # center_horizontally() # center_vertically() # set_margins() # set_header() # set_footer() # repeat_rows() # repeat_columns() # hide_gridlines() # print_row_col_headers() # print_area() # print_across() # fit_to_pages() # set_start_page() # set_print_scale() # set_h_pagebreaks() # set_v_pagebreaks() # # A common requirement when working with WriteExcel is to apply the same page # set-up features to all of the worksheets in a workbook. To do this you can use # the sheets() method of the workbook class to access the array of worksheets # in a workbook: # # workbook.sheets.each do |worksheet| # worksheet.set_landscape # end # # ==CELL FORMATTING # # This section describes the methods and properties that are available for # formatting cells in Excel. The properties of a cell that can be formatted # include: fonts, colours, patterns, borders, alignment and number formatting. # # ===Creating and using a Format object # # Cell formatting is defined through a Format object. Format objects are # created by calling the workbook add_format() method as follows: # # format1 = workbook.add_format # Set properties later # format2 = workbook.add_format(property hash..) # Set at creation # # The format object holds all the formatting properties that can be applied # to a cell, a row or a column. The process of setting these properties is # discussed in the next section. # # Once a Format object has been constructed and it properties have been set # it can be passed as an argument to the worksheet write methods as follows: # # worksheet.write(0, 0, 'One', format) # worksheet.write_string(1, 0, 'Two', format) # worksheet.write_number(2, 0, 3, format) # worksheet.write_blank(3, 0, format) # # Formats can also be passed to the worksheet set_row() and set_column() # methods to define the default property for a row or column. # # worksheet.set_row(0, 15, format) # worksheet.set_column(0, 0, 15, format) # # ===Format methods and Format properties # # The following table shows the Excel format categories, the formatting # properties that can be applied and the equivalent object method: # # Category Description Property Method Name # -------- ----------- -------- ----------- # Font Font type font set_font() # Font size size set_size() # Font color color set_color() # Bold bold set_bold() # Italic italic set_italic() # Underline underline set_underline() # Strikeout font_strikeout set_font_strikeout() # Super/Subscript font_script set_font_script() # Outline font_outline set_font_outline() # Shadow font_shadow set_font_shadow() # # Number Numeric format num_format set_num_format() # # Protection Lock cells locked set_locked() # Hide formulas hidden set_hidden() # # Alignment Horizontal align align set_align() # Vertical align valign set_align() # Rotation rotation set_rotation() # Text wrap text_wrap set_text_wrap() # Justify last text_justlast set_text_justlast() # Center across center_across set_center_across() # Indentation indent set_indent() # Shrink to fit shrink set_shrink() # # Pattern Cell pattern pattern set_pattern() # Background color bg_color set_bg_color() # Foreground color fg_color set_fg_color() # # Border Cell border border set_border() # Bottom border bottom set_bottom() # Top border top set_top() # Left border left set_left() # Right border right set_right() # Border color border_color set_border_color() # Bottom color bottom_color set_bottom_color() # Top color top_color set_top_color() # Left color left_color set_left_color() # Right color right_color set_right_color() # # There are two ways of setting Format properties: by using the object method # interface or by setting the property directly. For example, a typical use of # the method interface would be as follows: # # format = workbook.add_format # format.set_bold # format.set_color('red') # # By comparison the properties can be set directly by passing a hash of # properties to the Format constructor: # # format = workbook.add_format(:bold => 1, :color => 'red') # # or after the Format has been constructed by means of the # set_format_properties() method as follows: # # format = workbook.add_format # format.set_format_properties(:bold => 1, :color => 'red') # # You can also store the properties in one or more named hashes and pass them # to the required method: # # font = { # :font => 'Arial', # :size => 12, # :color => 'blue', # :bold => 1 # } # # shading = { # :bg_color => 'green', # :pattern => 1 # } # # format1 = workbook.add_format(font) # Font only # format2 = workbook.add_format(font, shading) # Font and shading # # The provision of two ways of setting properties might lead you to wonder # which is the best way. The method mechanism may be better is you prefer # setting properties via method calls (which the author did when they were # code was first written) otherwise passing properties to the constructor has # proved to be a little more flexible and self documenting in practice. An # additional advantage of working with property hashes is that it allows you to # share formatting between workbook objects as shown in the example above. # #-- # # did not converted ??? # # The Perl/Tk style of adding properties is also supported: # # %font = ( # -font => 'Arial', # -size => 12, # -color => 'blue', # -bold => 1, # ) #++ # # ===Working with formats # # The default format is Arial 10 with all other properties off. # # Each unique format in WriteExcel must have a corresponding # Format object. It isn't possible to use a Format with a write() method and # then redefine the Format for use at a later stage. This is because a Format # is applied to a cell not in its current state but in its final state. # Consider the following example: # # format = workbook.add_format # format.set_bold # format.set_color('red') # worksheet.write('A1', 'Cell A1', format) # format.set_color('green') # worksheet.write('B1', 'Cell B1', format) # # Cell A1 is assigned the Format _format_ which is initially set to the colour # red. However, the colour is subsequently set to green. When Excel displays # Cell A1 it will display the final state of the Format which in this case # will be the colour green. # # In general a method call without an argument will turn a property on, # for example: # # format1 = workbook.add_format # format1.set_bold # Turns bold on # format1.set_bold(1) # Also turns bold on # format1.set_bold(0) # Turns bold off # # ==FORMAT METHODS # # The Format object methods are described in more detail in the following # sections. In addition, there is a Ruby program called formats.rb in the # examples directory of the WriteExcel distribution. This program creates an # Excel workbook called formats.xls which contains examples of almost all # the format types. # # The following Format methods are available: # # set_font() # set_size() # set_color() # set_bold() # set_italic() # set_underline() # set_font_strikeout() # set_font_script() # set_font_outline() # set_font_shadow() # set_num_format() # set_locked() # set_hidden() # set_align() # set_rotation() # set_text_wrap() # set_text_justlast() # set_center_across() # set_indent() # set_shrink() # set_pattern() # set_bg_color() # set_fg_color() # set_border() # set_bottom() # set_top() # set_left() # set_right() # set_border_color() # set_bottom_color() # set_top_color() # set_left_color() # set_right_color() # # The above methods can also be applied directly as properties. For example # format.set_bold is equivalent to workbook.add_format(:bold => 1). # # ==COLOURS IN EXCEL # # Excel provides a colour palette of 56 colours. In WriteExcel these colours # are accessed via their palette index in the range 8..63. This index is used # to set the colour of fonts, cell patterns and cell borders. For example: # # format = workbook.add_format( # :color => 12, # index for blue # :font => 'Arial', # :size => 12, # :bold => 1 # ) # # The most commonly used colours can also be accessed by name. The name acts # as a simple alias for the colour index: # # black => 8 # blue => 12 # brown => 16 # cyan => 15 # gray => 23 # green => 17 # lime => 11 # magenta => 14 # navy => 18 # orange => 53 # pink => 33 # purple => 20 # red => 10 # silver => 22 # white => 9 # yellow => 13 # # For example: # # font = workbook.add_format(:color => 'red') # # Users of VBA in Excel should note that the equivalent colour indices are in # the range 1..56 instead of 8..63. # # If the default palette does not provide a required colour you can override # one of the built-in values. This is achieved by using the set_custom_color() # workbook method to adjust the RGB (red green blue) components of the colour: # # ferrari = workbook.set_custom_color(40, 216, 12, 12) # # format = workbook.add_format( # :bg_color => ferrari, # :pattern => 1, # :border => 1 # ) # # worksheet.write_blank('A1', format) # # You may also find the following links helpful: # # A detailed look at Excel's colour palette: # http://www.mvps.org/dmcritchie/excel/colors.htm # # A decimal RGB chart: http://www.hypersolutions.org/pages/rgbdec.html # # A hex RGB chart: : http://www.hypersolutions.org/pages/rgbhex.html # # ==DATES AND TIME IN EXCEL # # There are two important things to understand about dates and times in Excel: # # 1. A date/time in Excel is a real number plus an Excel number format. # # 2. WriteExcel doesn't automatically convert date/time strings in write() to # an Excel date/time. # # These two points are explained in more detail below along with some # suggestions on how to convert times and dates to the required format. # # ===An Excel date/time is a number plus a format # # If you write a date string with write() then all you will get is a string: # # worksheet.write('A1', '02/03/04') # !! Writes a string not a date. !! # # Dates and times in Excel are represented by real numbers, for example # "Jan 1 2001 12:30 AM" is represented by the number 36892.521. # # The integer part of the number stores the number of days since the epoch # and the fractional part stores the percentage of the day. # # A date or time in Excel is just like any other number. To have the number # display as a date you must apply an Excel number format to it. Here are # some examples. # # #!/usr/bin/ruby -w # # require 'writeexcel' # # workbook = WriteExcel.new('date_examples.xls') # worksheet = workbook.add_worksheet # # worksheet.set_column('A:A', 30) # For extra visibility. # # number = 39506.5 # # worksheet.write('A1', number) # 39506.5 # # format2 = workbook.add_format(:num_format => 'dd/mm/yy') # worksheet.write('A2', number , format2); # 28/02/08 # # format3 = workbook.add_format(:num_format => 'mm/dd/yy') # worksheet.write('A3', number , format3); # 02/28/08 # # format4 = workbook.add_format(:num_format => 'd-m-yyyy') # worksheet.write('A4', .number , format4) # 28-2-2008 # # format5 = workbook.add_format(:num_format => 'dd/mm/yy hh:mm') # worksheet.write('A5', number , format5) # 28/02/08 12:00 # # format6 = workbook.add_format(:num_format => 'd mmm yyyy') # worksheet.write('A6', number , format6) # 28 Feb 2008 # # format7 = workbook.add_format(:num_format => 'mmm d yyyy hh:mm AM/PM') # worksheet.write('A7', number , format7) # Feb 28 2008 12:00 PM # # ===WriteExcel doesn't automatically convert date/time strings # # WriteExcel doesn't automatically convert input date strings into Excel's # formatted date numbers due to the large number of possible date formats # and also due to the possibility of misinterpretation. # # For example, does 02/03/04 mean March 2 2004, February 3 2004 or even March # 4 2002. # # Therefore, in order to handle dates you will have to convert them to numbers # and apply an Excel format. Some methods for converting dates are listed in # the next section. # # The most direct way is to convert your dates to the ISO8601 # yyyy-mm-ddThh:mm:ss.sss date format and use the write_date_time() worksheet # method: # # worksheet.write_date_time('A2', '2001-01-01T12:20', format) # # See the write_date_time() section of the documentation for more details. # # A general methodology for handling date strings with write_date_time() is: # # 1. Identify incoming date/time strings with a regex. # 2. Extract the component parts of the date/time using the same regex. # 3. Convert the date/time to the ISO8601 format. # 4. Write the date/time using write_date_time() and a number format. # # Here is an example: # # #!/usr/bin/ruby -w # # require 'writeexcel' # # workbook = WriteExcel.new('example.xls') # worksheet = workbook.add_worksheet # # # Set the default format for dates. # date_format = workbook.add_format(:num_format => 'mmm d yyyy') # # # Increase column width to improve visibility of data. # worksheet.set_column('A:C', 20) # # data = [ # %w(Item Cost Date), # %w(Book 10 1/9/2007), # %w(Beer 4 12/9/2007), # %w(Bed 500 5/10/2007) # ] # # # Simulate reading from a data source. # row = 0 # # data.each do |row_data| # col = 0 # row_data.each do |item| # # # Match dates in the following formats: d/m/yy, d/m/yyyy # if item =~ %r[^(\d{1,2})/(\d{1,2})/(\d{4})$] # # Change to the date format required by write_date_time(). # date = sprintf "%4d-%02d-%02dT", $3, $2, $1 # worksheet.write_date_time(row, col, date, date_format) # else # # Just plain data # worksheet.write(row, col, item) # end # col += 1 # end # row += 1 # end # #-- # For a slightly more advanced solution you can modify the write() method to # handle date formats of your choice via the add_write_handler() method. See # the add_write_handler() section of the docs and the write_handler3.rb and # write_handler4.rb programs in the examples directory of the distro. #++ # # ==OUTLINES AND GROUPING IN EXCEL # # Excel allows you to group rows or columns so that they can be hidden or # displayed with a single mouse click. This feature is referred to as outlines. # # Outlines can reduce complex data down to a few salient sub-totals or # summaries. # # This feature is best viewed in Excel but the following is an ASCII # representation of what a worksheet with three outlines might look like. Rows # 3-4 and rows 7-8 are grouped at level 2. Rows 2-9 are grouped at level 1. # The lines at the left hand side are called outline level bars. # # ------------------------------------------ # 1 2 3 | | A | B | C | D | ... # ------------------------------------------ # _ | 1 | A | | | | ... # | _ | 2 | B | | | | ... # | | | 3 | (C) | | | | ... # | | | 4 | (D) | | | | ... # | - | 5 | E | | | | ... # | _ | 6 | F | | | | ... # | | | 7 | (G) | | | | ... # | | | 8 | (H) | | | | ... # | - | 9 | I | | | | ... # - | . | ... | ... | ... | ... | ... # # Clicking the minus sign on each of the level 2 outlines will collapse and # hide the data as shown in the next figure. The minus sign changes to a plus # sign to indicate that the data in the outline is hidden. # # ------------------------------------------ # 1 2 3 | | A | B | C | D | ... # ------------------------------------------ # _ | 1 | A | | | | ... # | | 2 | B | | | | ... # | + | 5 | E | | | | ... # | | 6 | F | | | | ... # | + | 9 | I | | | | ... # - | . | ... | ... | ... | ... | ... # # Clicking on the minus sign on the level 1 outline will collapse the # remaining rows as follows: # # ------------------------------------------ # 1 2 3 | | A | B | C | D | ... # ------------------------------------------ # | 1 | A | | | | ... # + | . | ... | ... | ... | ... | ... # # Grouping in WriteExcel is achieved by setting the outline level via the # set_row() and set_column() worksheet methods: # # set_row(row, height, format, hidden, level, collapsed) # set_column(first_col, last_col, width, format, hidden, level, collapsed) # # The following example sets an outline level of 1 for rows 1 and 2 # (zero-indexed) and columns B to G. The parameters _height_ and _XF_ are # assigned default values since they are undefined: # # worksheet.set_row(1, nil, nil, 0, 1) # worksheet.set_row(2, nil, nil, 0, 1) # worksheet.set_column('B:G', nil, nil, 0, 1) # # Excel allows up to 7 outline levels. Therefore the _level_ parameter should # be in the range 0 <= _level_ <= 7. # # Rows and columns can be collapsed by setting the _hidden_ flag for the hidden # rows/columns and setting the _collapsed_ flag for the row/column that has # the collapsed + symbol: # # worksheet.set_row(1, nil, nil, 1, 1) # worksheet.set_row(2, nil, nil, 1, 1) # worksheet.set_row(3, nil, nil, 0, 0, 1) # Collapsed flag. # # worksheet.set_column('B:G', nil, nil, 1, 1) # worksheet.set_column('H:H', nil, nil, 0, 0, 1) # Collapsed flag. # # Note: Setting the _collapsed_ flag is particularly important for # compatibility with OpenOffice.org and Gnumeric. # # For a more complete example see the outline.rb #-- # and outline_collapsed.rb #++ # programs in the examples directory of the distro. # # Some additional outline properties can be set via the outline_settings() # worksheet method, see above. # # ==DATA VALIDATION IN EXCEL # # Data validation is a feature of Excel which allows you to restrict the data # that a users enters in a cell and to display help and warning messages. It # also allows you to restrict input to values in a drop down list. # # A typical use case might be to restrict data in a cell to integer values in # a certain range, to provide a help message to indicate the required value and # to issue a warning if the input data doesn't meet the stated criteria. # In WriteExcel we could do that as follows: # # worksheet.data_validation('B3', # { # :validate => 'integer', # :criteria => 'between', # :minimum => 1, # :maximum => 100, # :input_title => 'Input an integer:', # :input_message => 'Between 1 and 100', # :error_message => 'Sorry, try again.' # }) # # The above example would look like this in Excel: # http://homepage.eircom.net/~jmcnamara/perl/data_validation.jpg. # # For more information on data validation see the following Microsoft # support article "Description and examples of data validation in Excel": # http://support.microsoft.com/kb/211485. # # ==FORMULAS AND FUNCTIONS IN EXCEL # # ===Caveats # # The first thing to note is that there are still some outstanding issues # with the implementation of formulas and functions: # # 1. Writing a formula is much slower than writing the equivalent string. # 2. You cannot use array constants, i.e. {1;2;3}, in functions. # 3. Unary minus isn't supported. # 4. Whitespace is not preserved around operators. # 5. Named ranges are not supported. # 6. Array formulas are not supported. # # However, these constraints will be removed in future versions. They are # here because of a trade-off between features and time. Also, it is possible # to work around issue 1 using the store_formula() and repeat_formula() # methods as described later in this section. # # ===Introduction # # The following is a brief introduction to formulas and functions in Excel # and WriteExcel. # # A formula is a string that begins with an equals sign: # # '=A1+B1' # '=AVERAGE(1, 2, 3)' # # The formula can contain numbers, strings, boolean values, cell references, # cell ranges and functions. Named ranges are not supported. Formulas should # be written as they appear in Excel, that is cells and functions must be # in uppercase. # # Cells in Excel are referenced using the A1 notation system where the # column is designated by a letter and the row by a number. Columns # range from A to IV i.e. 0 to 255, rows range from 1 to 65536. #-- # The Spreadsheet::WriteExcel::Utility module that is included in the distro # contains helper functions for dealing with A1 notation, for example: # # use Spreadsheet::WriteExcel::Utility; # # ($row, $col) = xl_cell_to_rowcol('C2'); # (1, 2) # $str = xl_rowcol_to_cell(1, 2); # C2 #++ # # The Excel $ notation in cell references is also supported. This allows you # to specify whether a row or column is relative or absolute. This only has # an effect if the cell is copied. The following examples show relative and # absolute values. # # '=A1' # Column and row are relative # '=$A1' # Column is absolute and row is relative # '=A$1' # Column is relative and row is absolute # '=$A$1' # Column and row are absolute # # Formulas can also refer to cells in other worksheets of the current # workbook. For example: # # '=Sheet2!A1' # '=Sheet2!A1:A5' # '=Sheet2:Sheet3!A1' # '=Sheet2:Sheet3!A1:A5' # q{='Test Data'!A1} # q{='Test Data1:Test Data2'!A1} # # The sheet reference and the cell reference are separated by ! the exclamation # mark symbol. If worksheet names contain spaces, commas o parentheses then Excel # requires that the name is enclosed in single quotes as shown in the last two # examples above. In order to avoid using a lot of escape characters you can # use the quote operator %q{} to protect the quotes. Only valid sheet names that # have been added using the add_worksheet() method can be used in formulas. # You cannot reference external workbooks. # # The following table lists the operators that are available in Excel's formulas. # The majority of the operators are the same as Perl's, differences are indicated: # # Arithmetic operators: # ===================== # Operator Meaning Example # + Addition 1+2 # - Subtraction 2-1 # * Multiplication 2*3 # / Division 1/4 # ^ Exponentiation 2^3 # Equivalent to ** # - Unary minus -(1+2) # Not yet supported # % Percent (Not modulus) 13% # Not supported, [1] # # Comparison operators: # ===================== # Operator Meaning Example # = Equal to A1 = B1 # Equivalent to == # <> Not equal to A1 <> B1 # Equivalent to != # > Greater than A1 > B1 # < Less than A1 < B1 # >= Greater than or equal to A1 >= B1 # <= Less than or equal to A1 <= B1 # # String operator: # ================ # Operator Meaning Example # & Concatenation "Hello " & "World!" # [2] # # Reference operators: # ==================== # Operator Meaning Example # : Range operator A1:A4 # [3] # , Union operator SUM(1, 2+2, B3) # [4] # # Notes: # [1]: You can get a percentage with formatting and modulus with MOD(). # [2]: Equivalent to ("Hello " . "World!") in Perl. # [3]: This range is equivalent to cells A1, A2, A3 and A4. # [4]: The comma behaves like the list separator in Perl. # # The range and comma operators can have different symbols in non-English # versions of Excel. These will be supported in a later version of WriteExcel. # European users of Excel take note: # # worksheet.write('A1', '=SUM(1; 2; 3)') # Wrong!! # worksheet.write('A1', '=SUM(1, 2, 3)') # Okay # # The following table lists all of the core functions supported by # Excel 5 and WriteExcel. Any additional functions that are available through # the "Analysis ToolPak" or other add-ins are not supported. These functions # have all been tested to verify that they work. # # ABS DB INDIRECT NORMINV SLN # ACOS DCOUNT INFO NORMSDIST SLOPE # ACOSH DCOUNTA INT NORMSINV SMALL # ADDRESS DDB INTERCEPT NOT SQRT # AND DEGREES IPMT NOW STANDARDIZE # AREAS DEVSQ IRR NPER STDEV # ASIN DGET ISBLANK NPV STDEVP # ASINH DMAX ISERR ODD STEYX # ATAN DMIN ISERROR OFFSET SUBSTITUTE # ATAN2 DOLLAR ISLOGICAL OR SUBTOTAL # ATANH DPRODUCT ISNA PEARSON SUM # AVEDEV DSTDEV ISNONTEXT PERCENTILE SUMIF # AVERAGE DSTDEVP ISNUMBER PERCENTRANK SUMPRODUCT # BETADIST DSUM ISREF PERMUT SUMSQ # BETAINV DVAR ISTEXT PI SUMX2MY2 # BINOMDIST DVARP KURT PMT SUMX2PY2 # CALL ERROR.TYPE LARGE POISSON SUMXMY2 # CEILING EVEN LEFT POWER SYD # CELL EXACT LEN PPMT T # CHAR EXP LINEST PROB TAN # CHIDIST EXPONDIST LN PRODUCT TANH # CHIINV FACT LOG PROPER TDIST # CHITEST FALSE LOG10 PV TEXT # CHOOSE FDIST LOGEST QUARTILE TIME # CLEAN FIND LOGINV RADIANS TIMEVALUE # CODE FINV LOGNORMDIST RAND TINV # COLUMN FISHER LOOKUP RANK TODAY # COLUMNS FISHERINV LOWER RATE TRANSPOSE # COMBIN FIXED MATCH REGISTER.ID TREND # CONCATENATE FLOOR MAX REPLACE TRIM # CONFIDENCE FORECAST MDETERM REPT TRIMMEAN # CORREL FREQUENCY MEDIAN RIGHT TRUE # COS FTEST MID ROMAN TRUNC # COSH FV MIN ROUND TTEST # COUNT GAMMADIST MINUTE ROUNDDOWN TYPE # COUNTA GAMMAINV MINVERSE ROUNDUP UPPER # COUNTBLANK GAMMALN MIRR ROW VALUE # COUNTIF GEOMEAN MMULT ROWS VAR # COVAR GROWTH MOD RSQ VARP # CRITBINOM HARMEAN MODE SEARCH VDB # DATE HLOOKUP MONTH SECOND VLOOKUP # DATEVALUE HOUR N SIGN WEEKDAY # DAVERAGE HYPGEOMDIST NA SIN WEIBULL # DAY IF NEGBINOMDIST SINH YEAR # DAYS360 INDEX NORMDIST SKEW ZTEST # #-- # You can also modify the module to support function names in the following # languages: German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, Finnish, Italian and # Swedish. See the function_locale.pl program in the examples directory of the distro. #++ # # For a general introduction to Excel's formulas and an explanation of the # syntax of the function refer to the Excel help files or the following: # http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/assistance/CH062528031033.aspx. # # If your formula doesn't work in Spreadsheet::WriteExcel try the following: # # 1. Verify that the formula works in Excel (or Gnumeric or OpenOffice.org). # 2. Ensure that it isn't on the Caveats list shown above. # 3. Ensure that cell references and formula names are in uppercase. # 4. Ensure that you are using ':' as the range operator, A1:A4. # 5. Ensure that you are using ',' as the union operator, SUM(1,2,3). # 6. Ensure that the function is in the above table. # # If you go through steps 1-6 and you still have a problem, mail me. # Improving performance when working with formulas # # Writing a large number of formulas with Spreadsheet::WriteExcel can be slow. # This is due to the fact that each formula has to be parsed and with the # current implementation this is computationally expensive. # # However, in a lot of cases the formulas that you write will be quite # similar, for example: # # worksheet.write_formula('B1', '=A1 * 3 + 50', format) # worksheet.write_formula('B2', '=A2 * 3 + 50', format) # ... # ... # worksheet.write_formula('B99', '=A999 * 3 + 50', format) # worksheet.write_formula('B1000', '=A1000 * 3 + 50', format) # # In this example the cell reference changes in iterations from A1 to A1000. # The parser treats this variable as a token and arranges it according to # predefined rules. However, since the parser is oblivious to the value of # the token, it is essentially performing the same calculation 1000 times. # This is inefficient. # # The way to avoid this inefficiency and thereby speed up the writing of # formulas is to parse the formula once and then repeatedly substitute # similar tokens. # # A formula can be parsed and stored via the store_formula() worksheet method. # You can then use the repeat_formula() method to substitute _pattern_, # _replace_ pairs in the stored formula: # # formula = worksheet.store_formula('=A1 * 3 + 50') # # (0...1000).each do |row| # worksheet.repeat_formula(row, 1, formula, format, 'A1', 'A' + (row +1).to_s) # end # # On an arbitrary test machine this method was 10 times faster than the # brute force method shown above. # # It should be noted however that the overall speed of direct formula parsing # will be improved in a future version. # # ==Chart # # ===Synopsis(Chart) # # To create a simple Excel file with a chart using WriteExcel: # # #!/usr/bin/ruby -w # # require 'writeexcel' # # workbook = WriteExcel.new('chart.xls') # worksheet = workbook.add_worksheet # # chart = workbook.add_chart(:type => Chart::Column) # # # Configure the chart. # chart.add_series( # :categories => '=Sheet1!$A$2:$A$7', # :values => '=Sheet1!$B$2:$B$7' # ) # # # Add the data to the worksheet the chart refers to. # data = [ # [ 'Category', 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 ], # [ 'Value', 1, 4, 5, 2, 1, 5 ] # ] # # worksheet.write('A1', data) # # workbook.close # # ===DESCRIPTION(Chart) # # The Chart module is an abstract base class for modules that implement charts # in WriteExcel. The information below is applicable to all of the available # subclasses. # # The Chart module isn't used directly, a chart object is created via the # Workbook add_chart() method where the chart type is specified: # # chart = workbook.add_chart(:type => Chart::Column) # # Currently the supported chart types are: # # * Chart::Column: Creates a column style (histogram) chart. See Column. # * Chart::Bar: Creates a Bar style (transposed histogram) chart. See Bar. # * Chart::Line: Creates a Line style chart. See Line. # * Chart::Area: Creates an Area (filled line) style chart. See Area. # * Chart::Scatter: Creates an Scatter style chart. See Scatter. # * Chart::Stock: Creates an Stock style chart. See Stock. # # More chart types will be supported in time. See the "TODO" section. # # === Chart names and links # # The add_series()), set_x_axis(), set_y_axis() and set_title() methods all # support a name property. In general these names can be either a static # string or a link to a worksheet cell. If you choose to use the name_formula # property to specify a link then you should also the name property. # This isn't strictly required by Excel but some third party applications # expect it to be present. # # chartl.set_title( # :name => 'Year End Results', # :name_formula => '=Sheet1!$C$1' # ) # # These links should be used sparingly since they aren't commonly # used in Excel charts. # # === Chart names and Unicode # # The add_series()), set_x_axis(), set_y_axis() and set_title() methods all # support a name property. These names can be UTF8 strings. # # This methodology is explained in the "UNICODE IN EXCEL" section of WriteExcel # but is semi-deprecated. If you are using Unicode the easiest option is to # just use UTF8. # # === TODO(Chart) # # Charts in WriteExcel are a work in progress. More chart types and # features will be added in time. Please be patient. Even a small feature # can take a week or more to implement, test and document. # # Features that are on the TODO list and will be added are: # # * Additional chart types. Stock, Pie and Scatter charts are next in line. # Send an email if you are interested in other types and they will be # added to the queue. # * Colours and formatting options. For now you will have to make do # with the default Excel colours and formats. # * Axis controls, gridlines. # * Embedded data in charts for third party application support. # # == KNOWN ISSUES(Chart) # # * Currently charts don't contain embedded data from which the charts # can be rendered. Excel and most other third party applications ignore # this and read the data via the links that have been specified. However, # some applications may complain or not render charts correctly. The # preview option in Mac OS X is an known example. This will be fixed # in a later release. # * When there are several charts with titles set in a workbook some of # the titles may display at a font size of 10 instead of the default # 12 until another chart with the title set is viewed. # class WriteExcel < Workbook end