I need a primer in connecting to excel from any other applications, such as excel or visual basic. Ultimately what we are trying to do is to create an interface from another application (of type yet to be determined) to an existing Notes database. The interface needs to allow certain fields to be filled with required data and then kick off an approval routing, or at least call a script library where the approval routing can be started. ANY help would be appreciated.
Subject: Creating a Notes doc from an external program
Alot of people have their own personal preference on how to do this, mine is to use webservices. I realize you are in 6.5 but you can still mimick webservices in 6.5. There was sample in the sandbox and there was a tutorial on IBM’s site on webservices and 6.5. In the past I did this and create a webservice to authenticate people to the app against notes and then additional webservices to handle the data exchanges. I did this because previous uses of the NotesSQL driver and COM componants were kind of painful and the webservices hooked in nice with VB.NET for me. Those componants may be much easier now, again just my 2 cents.
Subject: Creating a Notes doc from an external program
Hi Lisa-Unless you have notes client installed locally, you’re not going to get Excel to create notes documents… and if you have notes client installed, why can’t you just create a really neat notes interface?
An alternative, if you can’t install notes client locally, is to create a really neat web interface.
Obviously, I don’t understand what your needs are… yet.
Please explain a bit more… what you have in mind and why it needs to be unusual.
Oh by the way, I’m pretty good at getting excel to create docs and creating notes workflow apps.
Subject: RE: Creating a Notes doc from an external program
We have an approval routing database that requires the user attach a document, select reviewers and then send for approval. The database has 21 different business groups using the same template, so we don’t want to change the template for one group. This one group wants an interface so that they can automatically create and route the document. Supposedly each person always would have the same approver list. I think that your suggestion to just do a neat notes interface is the best idea so that’s probably the way we’ll go. Can I use a scheduled Notes agent to get a document from the users C drive (or a network drive)?
Subject: RE: Creating a Notes doc from an external program
“…Can I use a scheduled Notes agent to get a document from the users C drive (or a network drive)?..”
Yep… and if desired, it can be triggered in a variety of ways, instead of scheduled.
All Notes databases can receive mail. The incoming mail could begin a workflow process too… when the agent sees new mail, it could read it and change it’s form name… assign it to the correct resource, send out notification that a new request has been received and all sorts of cool things. It’s all good.
Subject: RE: Creating a Notes doc from an external program
It sounds like your requirement is somewhat mission critical. Have you considered a commercial data driver? Proposion N2N can work from Excel or any .NET application and handles creating docs, setting attachments and even running agents quite well. See Products A-Z
Subject: RE: Creating a Notes doc from an external program
“Unless you have notes client installed locally, you’re not going to get Excel to create notes documents…”
I dont think statement is necessarily true, if http is running on their app server, you can do it using vba and posting the data to the server.
Subject: RE: Creating a Notes doc from an external program
good point