UseHeader Property

Specifies whether the first line of the data file contains header information.

Syntax

[ fValue = ] TDC.UseHeader

Possible Values

fValue Boolean expression that indicates that the data file contains an initial line that names each column and optionally specifies its data type.

The property is read/write. The property has no default value.

Remarks

The default value for fValue is false, which specifies that the first line of the data file does not contain header information. If fValue is true, the first line of the data file should match the following layout:

fieldname:type,fieldname:type, ...

Notice that the above assumes the default field and row delimiters (comma and newline, respectively).

The fieldname can be an arbitrary text string, although it is best to avoid spaces and other punctuation characters.

The type is optional, and can be one of the following values:

String Textual data (default)
Date Date can be optionally followed by a space and then the letters D, M, and Y in any order. These correspond to Day, Month, and Year and control the interpretation of the dates in the data file. The date data is treated as three numbers separated by characters, so the actual separation character is not important.
Boolean Logical data (Yes/No, True/False, 0/not 0). Boolean will interpret the following data:

True values: Yes, True, 1, -1, any nonzero number

False values: No, False, 0 (zero)

Int Integral numbers (-3, 1, 5)
Float Floating-point numbers (3.141, 2.77, 0). The decimal separator used by float data is determined by the Language property.

Example

The following sample data file shows how the various data types can be declared when UseHeader is set to true and the default settings for FieldDelim, RowDelim, and Language are used.

FoodItem,Price:Float,Purchased:Date YMD,OnOrder:Boolean,Quantity:Int
Bread,1.57,97/5/12,Yes,30
Cheese,3.52,96/2/2,No,5
Old Wine,183.99,1905-1-1,No,1

Applies To

TDC

See Also

DataURL, Language, Reset