U.S. Department of Commerce


Frequently Asked Questions
Text FAQ #
 



FAQ

My Selected Commodity Service subscription file has been downloaded from the FTD Drop Box and is on the screen. What do I do?  In addition, my file is a bunch of numbers and text separated by commas. Now what? 

The Selected Commodity Service subscription appears in either one of two data files "Report Format," or "ASCII Delimited."

Report Format
This is an electronic version of what you might otherwise get on paper. You can print the file from your browser by selecting "Print" from the toolbar or from the "File" menu. You could also save the file to your hard drive and print it from your word processor.

  1. Change the file type to "Plain Text."
  2. Save ("Save As") the file to your hard drive. 
     
  3. Open your word processor.
  4. Open the file you just saved from your browser.
  5. Print. 

If the columns do not line up, reformat the file and print again.

ASCII Delimited File
The ASCII delimited file text will appear as a bunch of numbers separated by commas.  This file is formatted so that you can import it into a spreadsheet or database. Double quotes (") encase the text and either spaces or commas (,) separate each column.  For instructions on importing it into a spreadsheet, see .
(FAQ689)

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