TM1 and MAC Compatibility

[jorelb]

We deployed Excel 2007 worksheet templates where users enter data. On a weekly basis, these spreadsheets are emailed back to a central location where it is then uploaded to TM1. The data entry sections of these spreadsheets do not have TM1 formulas, data is uploaded by the superusers turning on a send flag to “Y” and bunch of dbs’ picks up the values on the data entry section and uploads it to TM1. For the most part, this process works except for our MAC users – excel crashes every time they open a worksheet with TM1 imbedded formulas. Is there an issue with TM1 on MACs even when the formulas are not turned on?

Thanks

Jose

[Paul Segal]

Hi Jose,

I'm afraid TM1 has never worked on Mac versions of Excel, and it doesn't surprise me to learn that the Mac version Excel will crash if there are TM1 formulas in a spreadsheet. You could convert the TM1 formulas to text before sending them to the Mac users, and then convert them back again once they are returned, but I don't know of any really elegant way of getting round this.

Regards

[John Hobson]

but I don't know of any really elegant way of getting round this.

Surely using a Mac is elegant enough

[Alan Kirk]

but I don't know of any really elegant way of getting round this.

Surely using a Mac is elegant enough

Get back to me when they release SQL Server and Rome:Total War for the Mac.

[Alan Kirk]

Edit: When referring to "DBRW"s below I meant it in the general context of TM1 formulas; after all, if the add-in isn't loaded Mac Excel should just be seeing "DBS" as a function that it doesn't know as well. I should have been clearer on that.

I'm afraid TM1 has never worked on Mac versions of Excel, and it doesn't surprise me to learn that the Mac version Excel will crash if there are TM1 formulas in a spreadsheet.

It surprises me a little. There's nothing really mystical about DBRW formulas as such. There's no particular reason why Excel should crash with such a formula unless it crashed with all formulas relating to non-loaded add-ins or UDFs. (And I'd assume that the TM1 add-in isn't loaded on the Mac; if it is, that's likely to cause a problem.)

I'm wondering if it may be an issue with some other aspect of that specific file; the easiest way to test it is to try loading a sheet with some raw DBRW formulas into the Mac and seeing whether they simply return #NAME errors as they should. If they do, it's not the formulas as such.

You could convert the TM1 formulas to text before sending them to the Mac users, and then convert them back again once they are returned, but I don't know of any really elegant way of getting round this.

Worst case, I'd agree that would be the only option.

[jorelb]

I followed Allan's recommendation and sent a plain vanilla worksheet with a TM1 formula and it crashed when opened in a MAC. We considered deploying the worksheet through TM1 Web but since our TM1 solution is a temporary fix for a current problem, we decided the cost of additional licenses was not justifiable. Consequently, we opted for a non-TM1 imbedded formula as Paul originally suggested.

Thank you much for the input!

Jose