Part III: More-Advanced Access Techniques
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As you can see in Figure 17.12, this screen enables you to specify the separator used in
the delimited file.
A separator is the character placed between fields in a delimited text file. The separator is
often a comma or semicolon, although it can be another character.
FIGURE 17.12
The second Import Text Wizard screen- Select the delimiter that separates your fields. If an uncommon delimiter is used, select
Other and enter the delimiter in the Other box.
Caution
There can be a problem with the separator used if any of the fields in the text file contain the separator charac-
ter as data. For example, if you use a comma to delimit fields, and one of the fields is Acme Widgets, Inc.,
Access will have a problem importing the file. The solution is to wrap text fields in double quotes (“Acme
Widgets, Inc.”) so that the comma is not misinterpreted as a field separator. This use of double quotes is
referred to as the text qualifier. Most often single- or double-quote marks are used for this purpose and usually
resolve issues with special characters contained within data fields.
- If the first row contains field names for the imported table, select the First Row Contains
Field Names check box. When you’re done with this screen, click Next.
The next few screens are very similar to the steps involved when importing Excel work-
sheets. You can change field names, specify a primary key, and save the import for future
use. Save the imported text file with a descriptive Access table name.
Access creates the new table, using the text file’s name by default. The new table appears
in the Access Navigation Pane.