Introduction

FlexiTable™ is a tool for MicroStation^® and Bentley PowerDraft^® from Bentley Systems. It provides four primary functions …

• Extract data from MicroStation models into a worksheet
• Exchange data with Microsoft Excel^® and other data sources
• Create a graphic table in your MicroStation model
• Update DGN data from a worksheet

FlexiTable™ works with MicroStation XM, MicroStation V8 2004 Edition and later and PowerDraft V8 2004 Edition and later.

Excel: Data Exported from MicroStation by FlexiTable	FlexiTable: Data Acquired from MicroStation

MicroStation users frequently ask for features that we have implemented in FlexiTable. These include …

• Use Pattern Catalogs to store a number of pattern definitions
• Exchange data between MicroStation^® and Excel™
• Import data from various file formats, including Excel and CSV, into a worksheet
• Update a worksheet from an external file
• Extract data from MicroStation models
• Export data in a variety of formats including Excel
• Create Intersections between MicroStation linear elements
• Create Level legends in MicroStation Graphics
• Create chart specifications for use by other applications
• Create paginated tables
• Place MicroStation text and cell elements from data in a worksheet
• Update MicroStation text & tag elements from data in a worksheet
• Define & document Tag Set definitions
• Get information about Named Groups
• Manage Colour Tables and Colour Books
• Update reference attachments

FlexiTable lets you do all the above and more. It gives you fine control over table line symbology and text styles. It provides numeric, currency, and date formatting similar to Excel and other Microsoft office tools.

You can use FlexiTable™ to transfer data from one data source to another. It acts like a data switchboard. For example, you can tell FlexiTable to read data from a MicroStation Tag Set, and export those data to an Excel workbook.

If you can't wait to use FlexiTable to make your data look good, visit the getting started section in the FlexiTable help document. Of course, you need to install FlexiTable™ first.

Data Sources

A data source means the origin of data that FlexiTable displays in its data editor dialog, and from which it creates the graphic schedule table. FlexiTable can obtain data from an external file or spreadsheet, or from MicroStation itself. You can read more about data sources in the FlexiTable help document.

FlexiTable can update an existing worksheet from an external file. The prime purpose of this is to let you update MicroStation elements when values have been modified externally. For example, you can acquire text or tag data in a worksheet, update the worksheet from a CSV file, then update the original MicroStation elements.

File Data Sources

FlexiTable can import data from a file. File data sources include XLS (Excel), CSV, XML, and HTML. There is more information about file data sources available in the FlexiTable help document.

Relational Data Sources

FlexiTable can import data from a relational database, such as Microsoft Access^® and Microsoft SQL Server^®. There is more information about relational data sources available in the FlexiTable help document.

Pattern Catalogs

Pattern Catalogs provide a way of storing multiple hatching or patterning definitions. FlexiTable lets you load a Pattern Catalog into a worksheet, where you can view its definitions …

Once you've loaded a Pattern Catalog, you right-click to pop a menu where you can activate that pattern. Then, use MicroStation's patterning and hatching tools to apply the pattern to a shape.

FlexiTable provides a tool to create a graphic legend of a Pattern Catalog. Load a Pattern Catalog, choose the Place|Legend|Pattern menu, and create your own legend …

MicroStation Data Sources

FlexiTable can acquire data from your MicroStation DGN model or multiple models.

You can ask FlexiTable can scan one or more DGN files and one or more models in a DGN file for various types of element. FlexiTable formats a worksheet and populates it with information specific to each element type …

• Graphic Elements …
  • areas, including shape, complex shape, and ellipse elements
  • cell instances
    • cell occurrences (cell count)
  • linear elements, including lines, line strings, multilines, arcs, curves, and complex strings
  • text elements
    • Font usage
    • Text Style usage
  • tagged elements
• Cells in a cell library or models in a DGN file
• Levels in a DGN file and its model references, or a level library (DGNLIB)
• References attached to a model
• Configuration Variables and their values in the current workspace

There is more information about MicroStation data sources in FlexiTable's help documentation.

Intersections between MicroStation Elements

FlexiTable finds intersections between linear elements. If you have acquired data about linear elements, you can tell FlexiTable to compute their intersection points. You can calculate both real and extended intersections.

You can annotate each intersection in MicroStation graphics with a label or other marker.

Colour Tables and Colour Books

FlexiTable lets you import and export files containing colour RGB data, or you can import a Colour Table from MicroStation. Once you've filled a worksheet with colour data, you can sort it in several ways. There's even a Colour Sorter to let you sort colours manually. You can use it to create a Colour Table or Colour Book (MicroStation XM only).

FlexiTable can create a colour swatch from a worksheet of colour definition. Here are extracts from swatches created from Farrow & Ball's and Fired Earth's published colours …

Names of some colours are trademarks of Farrow & Ball or Fired Earth

Named Groups

FlexiTable lets you acquire information about Named Groups and the elements in a group. You can see a list of Named Groups, and for each group create a new worksheet that lists the elements referenced by that Named Group.

Update Reference Attachments

FlexiTable provides a set of enhanced RefScan functions. RefScan is a CAD administrator's tool for modifying reference attachment data in bulk. It's been available for MicroStation/J for many years, and more recently for MicroStation V8.

FlexiTable makes it easy to develop a set of RefScan rules for modifying attachment data. Compared to RefScan, FlexiTable provides a visual tool to create and test RefScan rules prior to applying them to real attachments. FlexiTable's batch file modification capability makes it even easier to apply those rules to multiple DGN files.

Define Tag Sets

FlexiTable lets you define a Tag Set and its child Tag Definitions. You can save the Tag Set in the active DGN file, or write it to an XML file. As with any FlexiTable worksheet, you can save it to an Excel file.

FlexiTable provides a way to define & document a Tag Set definition that is not available in MicroStation.

Creating Text & Cells

Placement at XYZ Coordinates

FlexiTable lets you create text and cell elements at specified coordinates from data in a worksheet. Your worksheet should contain columns of coordinate (X, Y, Z) values, as well as a cell name or text to be created at each coordinate.

Creating a Level Legend

FlexiTable lets you create a table of level codes, level names and sample graphics from a level list.

You can acquire level information in two ways with FlexiTable …

• By scanning the level table in the current DGN file
• By scanning for graphic elements such as text or areas

In either case, you can use the list of level names to build a level legend. FlexiTable makes it easy to annotate your drawing with level information.

Placement along an Object

FlexiTable lets you create text and cell elements along a linear object from data in a worksheet. For example, you may want to place a set of survey points at measured distances from a starting datum point. Your worksheet should contain a column of distance values, as well as a cell name or text to be created at each point along the host object.

Updating Elements

FlexiTable can update certain types of element …

• area features
• tag elements
• text elements

Updating Text

FlexiTable lets you update text in a worksheet and apply changes to the original MicroStation text elements. You can update plain old text elements and text elements embedded in text nodes or in cells. FlexiTable provides formulæ that automate text substitution. In particular, several common requirements are satisfied through FlexiTable's formulæ …

• UPPER CASE text
• lower case text
• Proper Case text
• Text Increment

The first are self-explanatory. FlexiTable changes the case of text, leaving its content unchanged.

Text Increment lets you apply a formula to existing text that modifies its numeric content. For example, you can change ABC 123  to ABC 456  if you apply an increment value of 111. Similarly, you can change ABC 123  to ABC 12  if you apply a negative increment value of -111 . The Text Increment works with both whole (integer) numbers and floating-point (decimal) numbers.

Updating Tag Elements

Once you've populated a worksheet with tag data, you can edit the tag values in the worksheet (provided they are in a writable model and are not designated as constant). Then you can apply your changes to the tag elements in your DGN model, using FlexiTable's Update Tags menu.

Updating Area Features

FlexiTable can resymbolise area elements. See FlexiTable's help to find what types of elements are suitable. Once you've acquired a list of area elements in a worksheet, you can assign a distinct colour to each object. FlexiTable's Update menu lets you apply the colours to area objects by adding the specified colour as a solid fill.

Visualising Data

FlexiTable doesn't create a chart itself, but passes data to another application. Along with data for the chart, it also passes information about the chart's presentation, the type of chart, and the chart's labels and captions.

FlexiTable creates a chart specification file (.xml) that is compatible with third-party applications as well as the forthcoming chart generator from LA Solutions. You can read more about charts & graphs in the FlexiTable help document.

Reports

By report, we mean a viewable facsimile of the data managed by FlexiTable. There are several types of report that you can create with FlexiTable …

• A plot or print using MicroStation's normal printing facilities
• A hard-copy using FlexiTable's printing facilities via your Windows printers
• A CSV file, which is a comma-separated-variable list of values
• An XML file, which is a rich data set including not only values but other information
• An HTML file, which provides a visually rich presentation
• An Excel worksheet in XLS format, which provides a visually rich presentation

Plotting & Printing

FlexiTable™ creates MicroStation graphics. As a result, your tables plot using whatever Windows and Bentley plot drivers are available to your computer. Here's an example PDF plot.

If you use FlexiTable, then you avoid problems resulting from, for example, Windows Object Linking and Embedding (OLE), which can result in empty white rectangles in your plot where a spreadsheet is supposed to appear.

Report Files

FlexiTable can write not only data, but also header and footer content along with formatting information to an XML file. A CSV file is a sparse data set, with no information about data types or formatting, and nothing at all about header and footer content. An HTML file is rich in presentation and may contain header and footer content data in addition to formatting.

One of FlexiTable's features is the ability to import data into MicroStation. It is also to act as a switchboard to exchange data between a data source and a data sink. That is, it can copy data from one format for use within MicroStation, and in addition it can convert those data to another format.

For example, a frequent question on the Bentley Discussion Groups is, "How do I exchange data between a MicroStation tag set and an Excel™ spreadsheet?" FlexiTable provides the answer to that question. FlexiTable can scan your models for tag data, populate a table, and save the table in Excel format.

Appearance

FlexiTable attempts to replicate your Excel worksheet's appearance.

You can modify the appearance of the table at will by modifying the formatting of your worksheet's data cells.

Configuration

FlexiTable™ is designed to be configurable. In a networked office, it's convenient to be able to use a server computer to store command data and settings files.

FlexiTable uses several configuration variables to discover its settings files and data files. You can read more about FlexiTable™'s configuration variables in the FlexiTable help document.

If you can't wait to use FlexiTable to make your data look good, visit the getting started section in the FlexiTable help document. Of course, you may need to install FlexiTable™ first.

Download

You can download FlexiTable™ for evaluation. You must purchase one or more licenses for production use. Click the request FlexiTable link, then complete the form. You can then download a ZIP file containing the FlexiTable MDL application for MicroStation.