Overview
Need to import data from Excel or Project files stored in SharePoint? Although Office Timeline does not currently connect directly to the sharing platform, there’s a simple way you can link a timeline to a file from SharePoint and refresh it easily when plans change. Here’s how it works:
Steps
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Sync the SharePoint folder that contains your Excel or Project file to a local folder on your computer.
This will create a local mirror of your SharePoint file that will stay linked to the original version, automatically reflecting any changes you or your colleagues make in SharePoint.
IMPORTANT: If multiple people on your team will be updating the same timeline, you must make sure everyone sets up their local mirror folder to use the exact same path (location) (E.g.: C:\Users\Public\Company\Work Channel). The location can either be set right when first creating the folder (see image below) or modified later using these steps.
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Use the local mirrored file to import data into Office Timeline and turn it into a PowerPoint timeline.
Quick tip: You can save this timeline in your local mirror folder and it will automatically be uploaded to your SharePoint site too.
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Your imported timeline is now linked to the Excel/Project file in the local mirror folder, which, in turn, is linked to SharePoint. This means that, whenever anyone makes changes in Excel or Project through SharePoint, you can click Refresh Data on the Office Timeline ribbon in PowerPoint and automatically update the timeline as well.
Notes and resources
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Before refreshing an imported timeline, you can easily double-check whether you’re using the right source file. Just click Change file in the Refresh Data wizard and check the folder location and file name to make sure the correct mirror file is selected and not another local document.
- For a reminder of the basic import steps in the Office Timeline Add-in, see our Excel import tutorial here or the Project version here.
- Want to know how refreshing imported data works? See our Excel refresh tutorial here or the Project version here.