This dialog allows you to specify the format the ASCII file is being read in. This is where you tell the program the order of the fields in the file, such as X, Y, Z. For more information see EFS Overview.
Description
This is the description of the import option you are configuring. Each option must have a unique description.
Fields
The way the program deciphers the file can be done in one of two ways: either the program will look for certain characters on each line of the file, and use those characters as breaks to parse out the individual fields; or the program can interpret the file by using a fixed width count for each column. For more information, see Parsing Fields.
Delimited radio button
Records contain various fields separated by one or more delimiting characters. Specify the characters used to delimit fields within a record by selecting one of the entries in the Delimiter(s) combo box or by entering the ASCII decimal equivalent numbers (separated by commas) in the Decimal Value(s) box.
The Skip Characters combo box and associated edit box allow you to specify the characters to ignore. Select one of the entries in the combo box or enter the ASCII decimal equivalent numbers (separated by commas) in the Decimal Value(s) box. NOTE: The Record Delimiters are always skipped (see Records Button below).
Fixed Width radio button
Records contain various fields that are a constant width throughout the file. Specify the character count for the starting value of each column and the number of characters wide. Note: The program reads the file however you specify, so it is up to you to make sure that the start and length values for each column don't overlap onto the next column.
Coordinate Format
Coordinates can be specified as either Cartesian X/Y coordinates or as latitude/longitude values. See Latitude - Longitude Formats for more information.
Lat/Lon
Toggle Lat/Lon on if you wish the X and Y columns to be interpreted as latitude and longitude values.
Prefix/Suffix Cols
Specify the column number if there is a symbol for direction (i.e. N, S, E, W) associated with the latitude or longitude.
Headings
# of Lines to Skip
This option tells the program to ignore any title information at the top of the file.
Column Assignments
X
Enter the field position of the x coordinate. There must be an X value specified in the file. If Lat/Lon is selected under Coordinate Format, this will be interpreted as Longitude.
Y
Enter the field position of the y coordinate. There must be an Y value specified in the file. If Lat/Lon is selected under Coordinate Format, this will be interpreted as Latitude.
Z
Enter the field position of the z coordinate. This field is optional. If not required enter 0.
Code
This value is used for the Feature Detection Method, to group points together to form polyline type features or point chains. It is also used on the Codes tab for determining how to draw the feature and how the feature is to be used in Terrain.
Feature Name
Enter the field position of the feature name. This field is optional. If not required enter 0. This field will be combined with a unique sub-ID to form the complete feature name. For more information, see Feature Name.
Attributes List
It is possible to attach other data to the features as they are created. First define the Attributes using the Attribute Setup dialog. Then add them to the parsing list by clicking the Attributes button. Attributes which are commonly used include Comment and Point Number, but you can create attributes for any value you want.
Advanced
Records Button
This button pops up the Records Options dialog. It allows you to filter specific records to be read from the file. For more information, see Parsing Records.
Features Button
This button pops up the Feature Detection Method dialog. It allows you to specify how the records of the file will be grouped to create features.
