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Working with Excel spreadsheets, CSV and XML files can be a hassle especially when needing to parse such files.
Stream based parsers allow for ultimate performance, low resource usage, and nearly unlimited versatility scalable to any size data file, even tens or hundreds of gigabytes. Event based data manipulation and validation allows total control over the flow of data during the bulk insert process.
We found that the product under review, the Excel parser of the DataStreams framework, was initially created as a stream based parser for CSV files to be used in the .NET framework. Newer versions of the program were built to include Excel XLS, fixed width, and XML files. There is a bulk insert capability for Microsoft SQL Server, added for use with SqlBulkCopy under the .Net 2.0 framework.
The program can read, write, and bulk load CSV files, Excel XLS spreadsheet files, XML files, parsing large files without storing the entire file contents in memory.
It can detect occurrences of any character, including record end delimiters, inside text qualified fields, and can use all encodings (ANSI, UTF-8, Unicode, ASCII, etc).
We have found the website (www.csvreader.com) to be extremely simple in terms of appearance but rich in information. The documentation provided is extensive, and the users have their own forum to discuss various issues and advice each other.
A .NET demo version, code samples, and Visual Studio demo projects are available to be downloaded and used for free, while the following packs can be purchased (PayPal accepted):
- .Net DataStreams library (No redistribution rights);
- Royalty free .Net DataStreams library;
- .Net DataStreams library including full C# source code.
There is a promotional campaign running at the moment, with 25% off all products - you may want to check out www.csvreader.com now, we would definitely recommend it.
Overall grade: 4/5
This article is a paid review. |
