Modifying number of columns in Excel export

[origamijason]

I have a system which requires me to export packing slips in an unusual way. Each shipment is a row, with the last "x" number of columns representing the packages (or line items) in the packing slip. For example, if I am shipping three items, I will have columns for job number, address, csz and then three additional columns, one for each item.

I may have two items or I may have 20 items.

Currently, I control this by adding and removing fields from the export database so that each item gets its own column. The actual data is the number of items going to each location.

This works great if I am the one creating each shipment, but I would like to be able to take a vacation.

How do I script either the creation (or deletion) or fields, or, alternatively, script the creation of columns in the excel export?

Thanks for any help!

Jason Tempestini

[comment]

I don't see why you need to remove fields, rather than just leave them empty (assuming you have enough fields to accommodate the maximum ever required).

Anyway, if you can accept a text format that Excel can import (.tab or .csv), then this could be produced by exporting as XML.

[origamijason]

You know, this post and an earlier post about omitting field names as column headers and hand-coding the first record to act as column headers solved this problem.

Thanks!

Jason Tempestini

[comment]

I'm glad to hear you worked it out, but "hand-coding the first record to act as column headers" is not something I would recommend.