Once the data feed file has been selected and the settings file named and saved, WebMerge will want to know the best way to read the data feed file information. This is a simple process handled from the “Sources” tab in WebMerge. SImply put, the Sources tab is where you tell WebMerge which exported data file to use and how that file is to be read.
It is necessary to select the "Exported FIle" (see Setting up WebMerge), in order for the choices on the sources tab to work. They will be grayed-out if a selection has not been made.
"First line of file contains field names"
This box should already be checked, if not go ahead and check it.
We don’t know of any affiliate feeds that are not configured this way.
If your feed does not contain field names, WebMerge can
add them for you automatically, although for affiliate web sites this
is not recommended. Also see, Preparing the feed.
Presets:
The presets drop-down menu is provided so that you can
identify the type of data feed file you are using for WebMerge. If
you select the correct type, you can avoid manually setting the
delimiter
and quoted text value options.
TIP: After selecting the type of file preset, you change the delimiter or quoted text value option, the present resets itself to "none." Don't panic, everything is fine, and you can manipulate those other options manually. It is also okay if you skip the Preset selection option entirely and tell WebMerge what type of delimiter you are using manually (see below). You already should have a head-start, as WebMerge should recognize the type of delimiter used in the file anyway.
Delimiter:
The first thing to identify is the type of “delimiter” used.
When the cleaned up data feed file was saved, what type of delimiter
was chosen, or was it left as is? Let’s say you saved it
as a “Tab” delimited file in MS Excel. If
the file is Tab delimited, then selecting “Tab” in
both of the “Delimiter” is
necessary. As with MS Excel, you should now see your data neatly
organized in the preview window. If the proper delimiter is not
selected, the data in the preview window will appear on a single-line,
instead of appearing as rows, with a field name for each row.
Text Values are in Quotes:
It is very likely that many or all of the text values in the data
feed file are in quotes. Accordingly, this box should be checked.
You can confirm this by checking, and un-checking the box, while
looking at the description field in the preview window. You’ll
see the double-quotes appear and disappear as you do this. If
you leave the box un-checked, and build your pages, double-quotation
marks will be present in the description fields.
Figure 1 - Preview Window
Sorting your data:
WebMerge lets you optionally sort your data before generating pages,
with the “Sort Records by field” check box, and menus.
This can be useful if you need the contents of an index page
to be in a particular order (for example alphabetical). It will
obviously be easier for your site visitors to navigate or “look
up” product information if it is in some kind of order.
Figure 2 - "Sort Records by (selection)
For example, sorting the records by “NAMES” (or whatever the product name field is named in the data feed file) would mean index pages will display products in order alphabetically by the name of the product.
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