ExPDA FAQs

ExPDA (Excel Publish/Display Application) FAQ's

(Q1) I understand that your product ExPDA is a fully integrated system for exchanging data between Excel spreadsheets but can it also be used to share data with other databases?

(Q2) How will I be able to access the data that is provided via ExPDA?

(Q3) How is the data transported and do we require a dedicated network for this solution?

(Q4) How do we control who gets access to what data and who can update a particular data element?

(Q5) How does your product ExPDA control the issue of data validation?

(Q6) Can we use your solution to share information with our users in other offices or with our clients over the internet?

(Q1) I understand that your product ExPDA is a fully integrated system for exchanging data between Excel spreadsheets but can it also be used to share data with other databases?

(A) Yes, our product ExPDA can be used with multiple data sources and repositories. It is primarily designed around the need for users to exchange static and real-time data in spreadsheets (both retrieval and publishing) but it can also be used to publish/retrieve data from other databases and internal applications or web pages for more general viewing. Click the link for a more detailed description of the features of ExPDA.

(Q2) How will I be able to access the data that is provided via the ExPDA?

(A) The data that is available via the ExPDA Server platform is selected using an Excel © “Add-In” that is provided as part of the solution. This Add-In provides a data selection tool-box that inserts a link into a cell in your Excel spreadsheet that connects to one of our server hubs. These hubs provide the data transport and management infrastructure and are designed to work with minimal latency. The server hubs are used to manage the movement of data as well as the complex issue of permissioning.

(Q3) How is the data transported and do we require a dedicated network for this solution?

(A) Data is transported using the TCP/IP protocol and as this is a standard protocol it works on your existing internal network or over the internet. This enables our solution to exchange data with multiple application types, including browsers. The use of TCP/IP also means that data can be shared across a network of user sites such as from an office in one country with that in another. Normally this would be achieved by having separate server hubs in each location.

(Q4) How do we control who gets access to what data and who can update a particular data element?

(A) As part of the ExPDA Server solution we have integrated a full permissioning system that is controlled by your IT administrators. There are different levels of permissioning that cover the 2 main aspects of data sharing which are contribution and retrieval. There is also a detailed set of reports to assist data managers and administrators to control and report on usage of data to comply with internal restrictions as well as restriction that may be imposed by third party data originators.

(Q5) How does your product ExPDA control the issue of data validation?

(A) The facility to undertake data validation is an integral part of the ExPDA setup. Various user defined criteria are used to specify whether data updates are passed around the network to ensure that (within reasonable limits) pieces of “bad” data are not fed into automated processes. In the event that a particular data element is not trapped by the data validation algorithms a suitable authorised user can mark the data field as “doubtful” and this will show up on all authorised viewers spreadsheets as a warning. In development is also a mechanism by which a dedicated data validation team can investigate and data elements that are rejected by the data validation algorithms as well as those data elements that have been flagged as “doubtful”. The intention then is that the data validation team can remove the data elements that are considered to be incorrect.

(Q6) Can we use your solution to share information with our users in other offices or with our clients over the internet?

(A) This is one of the many features of DTS's ExPDA. It works by using IP to transfer data and as such will work with any IP based infrastructure. In some cases there may be a need to make minor changes to firewall or router settings to open a port to allow the data to move through those devices.