# Data crunching! Excel, Filemaker masters needed! Can I do this? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 23, 2007, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/data-crunching-excel-filemaker-masters-needed-can-i-do-this/416670 "2007-08-23T18:17:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2007, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/data-crunching-excel-filemaker-masters-needed-can-i-do-this/416670/1 "2007-08-23T18:17:53Z")
This is a problem I have run into a number of times and it just seems that there ought to be a way to make it work. I am trying to chunk data…that’s my term. Creat records, essentially. The data is in a text file. Rather than being delimited by tabs or spaces or anything else normal, each individual piece of data exists on a line of its own. Now, if each complete “record” were precisely the same number of lines, I could probably make that work without too much agony. Even if each complete record had the same starting or ending info, I might be able to make it work. But it doesn’t. So I’m stumped about how to structure or manipulate it so that I can actually create records. Let me show you (what I’m working with currently is text extracted from my Eudora Filters…I have so many that my mail is a mess and I can’t figure out what’s what. However bizarre it is of me, I’d like to pullo that informaiton into either Filemaker or Excel and be able to search it for repeats, sort it, see what’s conflicting with what, none of which is possible in Eudora itself…very annoying. If anyone knows of a program that will do this for me, that would be great. But I’d still like this question answered because I’ve run across it in other contexts.) Record one is: rule [From:test@aol.com](mailto:From:test@aol.com) id 915 incoming outgoing manual header From: verb contains value [test@aol.com](mailto:test@aol.com) conjunction unless header Body verb contains value boogers transfer : RetroRelated:Content Related:Andreas sound Frog personality test personality label 4 mvattach 7693090 the next record, which starts on the very next line, is: rule Any Recipient:Gfone id 884 outgoing manual header Any Recipient verb contains value Gfone transfer :AFriends:Greggy reply AA Password Request redirect [TESTING@TESTING.COM](mailto:TESTING@TESTING.COM) speak 3 1836346163 50 stop And the next: rule From:cesarmillaninc.com id 829 incoming manual header From: verb contains value [cesarmillaninc.com](http://cesarmillaninc.com) transfer :Pre-trash the next: rule [From:events@goldstarevents.com](mailto:From:events@goldstarevents.com) id 919 incoming manual header From: verb contains value [events@goldstarevents.com](mailto:events@goldstarevents.com) transfer :Events in LA stop and so forth. Now, there is a max of 5 actions for any filter, but as you can see, there are many possible parts to any given action as well as parts to the rules. So, Data crunchers Extraordinaire…any help you can offer on how to parse this puppy? (FYI: ;the total number of rows in the file is nearly FOUR THOUSAND! Crazyness…) Than stoid ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2007, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/data-crunching-excel-filemaker-masters-needed-can-i-do-this/416670/2 "2007-08-23T18:25:16Z")
This might be overkill, but you could try [Flex](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flex_lexical_analyser). Looks to me that each line begins with identifiable symbols that Flex could look for then spit out the tokens (values) associated with them. It’s been a long time since I’ve worked with Lex though. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2007, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/data-crunching-excel-filemaker-masters-needed-can-i-do-this/416670/3 "2007-08-23T18:26:32Z")
[QUOTE=UncleRojelio] This might be overkill, but you could try [Flex](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flex_lexical_analyser). Looks to me that each line begins with identifiable symbols that Flex could look for then spit out the tokens (values) associated with them. [/QUOTE] Important note: I’m on a Mac… and that looks scary! ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2007, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/data-crunching-excel-filemaker-masters-needed-can-i-do-this/416670/4 "2007-08-23T18:29:47Z")
[QUOTE=Stoid] Important note: I’m on a Mac… and that looks scary! [/QUOTE] If you are on a Mac then Flex (and/or Lex) comes with the Developer Tools. You might be able to do something with AppleScript (or your personal favorite script language) and [grep](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grep).