Using the Update Topic

In all topics, Aspen Systems is the server, and the target program is the client. The Update topic appears to reverse these roles. When you use the Update topic, Microsoft Excel appears to be the server, and Aspen Systems the client; however, Aspen Systems is still the server. What actually happens when you use the Update topic is called a “poke,” wherein Aspen poles, or “pokes,” Microsoft Excel for data. In effect, Aspen is taking data from Microsoft Excel rather than from a serial port (incoming data, or data retrieval).

You should also be aware that links built using the Update topic are not dynamic. To update data in your Aspen Systems datafiles, you must initiate the link in Microsoft Excel.

Before you can use the Update topic, you need to equip Excel with the Aspen Systems add in (16- or 32-bit, depending on which version of Excel you are running). and the button bar included in QMASTER.XLB. Aspen Systems Setup installs these files in your /EXCEL/ARG directory.

To access the Aspen Systems button bar for Excel, start Excel and open the QMASTER.XLB file located in your /EXCEL/ARG directory. Opening QMASTER.XLB automatically loads your Aspen Systems button bar. When you have completed this process, you will see three new icons among the standard icons in your Excel window:

The icon on the left displays the link generator. The next icon pastes the link in Microsoft Excel. The third icon enables you to create a symbol. The icon on the right enables you to create an Update link, which passes data in Excel to an Aspen Systems database file.

To setup your Aspen add in, start Excel and open the Tools menu. Then, select Add-Ins. Selecting Add-Ins displays Excel’s Add-Ins dialog box, which contains all known add-ins. When the Add-Ins dialog box appears, select Browse and open the /EXCEL/ARG directory. The /ARG directory contains two add ins, a 16-bit add in named Arg and a 32-bit add in named Arg32. If you’re running a 16-bit version of Excel, choose Arg. If you’re running a 32-bit version of Excel, select Arg32. Once selected, the add in appears in the Add-Ins dialog box. Make sure the Aspen add in is active by clicking on the toggle box to the right of its name (a check mark appears in the toggle box next to all active add ins.)

Once you have access to these icons in your Excel spreadsheet, you are ready create an Excel array and pass it to an Aspen Systems datafile. Let’s look more closely at creating an Excel array.