Using Export
Export writes data into either Lotus 123, Tab Delimited (also known as "text") or Comma Separated Variable (CSV) formats. It writes the data that is currently the active window's column fields. That is the ONLY data that gets exported.
Therefore:
-> Schedule-wide information, like Schedule Start date, does not get exported.
-> Task dependencies are not exported.
-> Resource assignments can be exported by displaying those columns in the active window. However, please be aware that Resource Assignments cannot be re-imported.
-> Task dates modified by resource leveling can be exported, but will be ignored upon re-import.
Using Import
(Note: We recommend that you read about exporting before reading about importing.)
The Time Line for Windows import feature allows you to use data from other programs. It functions much like a typing shortcut, "reading" the data found in a spreadsheet, for example, and then "writing" that data into the Gantt or Resource spreadsheets.
It reads in data from files in several formats: Lotus 123 (.WK1), Comma Separated Variable (CSV), and Tab Delimited (text). The data that is read in from a file is treated exactly as if you had typed the information into Time Line for Windows.
Therefore:
1) The order of the data coming in must match the order of the column fields of the Spreadsheet pane of the active window. For example, if you try to import resource names into a date column, you will receive error messages.
If Time Line for Windows reads a value from the file you are importing that does not match the order of data columns in the active window, it keeps a record in the Import Error Log. At the end of the import, the Import Error Log box appears and tells you which values were bad. If you have a lot of these messages, check your column order and try again.
2) Some fields get recalculated, and, therefore, may be different from the file from which you are importing. For example, if you import a task with a start date of March/15/1993, an end date of March/16/1992, and a duration of 2 weeks, then Time Line for Windows changes those numbers so that they make sense. Some calculations depend on the order in which the data was received. The import feature always behaves as if you had manually entered the data.
A few other points:
-> Time Line for Windows automatically reads Time Line for DOS files. Use "File\Open" to read a Time Line file. Import will not accept these files.
-> You cannot import data into fields that you cannot type into.
-> Make sure that the file format you choose matches the file you want to import.
-> If you are importing text (Tab Delimited) or CSV (Comma Separated Values), your Time Line for Windows date format must match the format of any dates you want to import. In other words if a text file has "Jan/31/93" in it, you must choose "Jun/23/93" as your date format in Time Line for Windows.
-> Because Time Line expects the import file to have a strict format, it is usually a good idea to create a perfect template by exporting a few lines, rather than create a template from scratch.